Wet feet question

[charlie babbage]

I have been wearing Montrail Hardrocks for a year. I wore my Asolo 520's once about a month ago for a 20 mile weekend. I wore the Asolo's again this past weekend. I wore the boots the first time because I forgot how hard it wasto hike in them and wanted to remind myself. The second time was after a really wet trip in cold temps wearing the Montrails. My feet were wet for 3 days of cold. I am planning a 14 day trip and really want to wear running shoes. I am not too keen on goretex. My experience is that the shoes do not dry out as fast after a wetting. So I would like to stick with the Montrails if possible. This trip will be during a month that is typically a rainy month – end of March in Southeast.

So I am looking for suggestions that will help me to succeed in completing my 14 days in style and comfort. How can I keep my feet dry on rainy days?

[Joshua Knapp]

Hi Charlie,
I have some goretex socks that work great. I got them at Cabelas for $40. If they do get wet you can turn them inside out at night, or in good weather, dry them on your pack. They seem to dry pretty quickly and actually offer warmth do to there wind and waterproofness. Besides then you don't have to buy a new $130 pair of shoes.

[Roger Caffin]

> So I am looking for suggestions that will help me to succeed in completing my 14 days in style and comfort.
Thick socks,probably wool, such as darn Tough Vermont Boot Socks.

> How can I keep my feet dry on rainy days?
You can't. Water runs down your leg into the big hole at the top of the shoe. Ignore – you won't die.

Cheers

[Lynn Tramper]

Without either waterproof boots or goretex type liners, you can't keep your feet dry in rainy weather. Even WITH either of these, your feet will get wet unless you add some extras to your gear, as thewater will run down you legs.

I layer first a pair of waterproof boots, then some knee-high gaiters, than some waterproof overtrousers. This works very well except for high river crossings. Even just using gaiters alone with waterproof boots works pretty well in all but the most torrential downpours to stop or slow the rain running down your legs.

[Vick Hines]

As everyone says, you can't keep your feet dry. I've used two techniques successfully.

1) plastic liners over liner socks and over wool socks so the wools socks are encapsulated. Change liner socks regularly; they get wet. Polyethelene tubes are good for this, but small garbage bags work OK, too. The main problems with this technique is the need to change the liner socks frequently and slipping around inside the shoes. Going downhill, your toes can get banged up.

2) Neopreme socks – my favorite. They keep my feet reasonably warm and cushoned even though they do not keep my feet dry. My toes don't get smashed into the ends of my shoes and I don't get blisters.

I've tried GoreTex and SealSkin socks. Gave them to unsuspecting enemies. Revenge is sweet.

[Elliott Wolin]

If my feet and socks get real wet my skin softens and I develop hot spots that can lead to blisters. I've considered using SportSlick or Hydropel, neoprene socks, etc. The last time this happened was after many stream crossings along the Na Pali coast in Hawaii. I'm thinking of bringing some Crocs knock-off if I have to cross a stream.

Any suggestions? What works for you?

[Joshua Knapp]

Hi Vick,

I was just wondering what you didn't like about the goretex and sealskins socks. I have used the goretex socks with great success, but the sealskins with much less success. Due to there lack of breathability.

[Dave T]

.

[Vick Hines]

The two brands of Gtx socks I tried didn't breath well. The Sealskins were not adequately waterproof. Since the Gtx seemed adequately waterproof, they worked ok as the top layer when I used plastic bags over liner socks and under wool, then Gtx. All in all, though, I seem to do better with neopreme socks.

Sooner or later, my calluses soften and come off on long walks. If the weather is dry for a while and I keep my feet dry the whole time, the calluses build up again. But then they come off again as soon as they stay wet for a while. On long treks, I find it better to keep the calluses off. Yeah, I know they are supposed to be like a sort-of extra sole, but they also harden, cause irritation on their edges and don't seem to protect my feet any better. So having experimented a lot, I find that I am more comfortable without them.

[Sam Haraldson]

Roger put it bluntly and laid it on the line perfectly in his statement above. When I first started backpacking I HATED hiking with wet feet. It felt weird and ached on my brain like finger nails on a chalkboard. After working on a backcountry trail crew for two summer seasons with no days off due to weather I was forced to accept the inevitability of wet feet in the backcountry.

Now, not minding a bit of moisture in my socks and shoes I simply wear shoes designed, not to keep water out, but rather to let water out. Inov-8 and many other brands make shoes with mesh sides that drain water out. Pair these with a good pair of wool socks (I use Darn Toughs) and you can just walk through every puddle and right across every stream without a care in the world.

When you stop for a break, take your shoes and socks off, ring them out and let your feet breathe. Be sure to stay well hydrated to avoid blisters.

[Elliott Wolin]

Sam, I read about doing what you describe and tried it, but it didn't seem to work for me.

I wore shoes that air and drain well, and was wearing good wool socks with thin synthetic liners. At the end of a humid day, after many stream crossings, my feet were hurting and at the verge of developing blisters. I wrung my socks out on occasion during the day, too.

I hadn't been hiking for month or so…maybe my feet softened up in the interim. Or maybe you just have tough feet, and I'm an incurable tenderfoot.

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Elliot

> At the end of a humid day, after many stream crossings, my feet were hurting and at the verge of developing blisters.
Try changing your shoes size up half a unit. That should fix the blisters. They have nothing to do with the wet feet; rather they have to do with the fit of the shoes.

cheers

[Matt Brodhead]

From my experience there isn't much you can do to 100% save yourself, so I just got over it and now life is much better :-)

[Lynn Tramper]

Like the others said, it's nothing to do with "tough feet". Make sure your shoes are PLENTY large enough in both width and length, and become mentally accustomed to wet feet. I would estimate 90% of all my hiking in NZ involves wet feet, even if it's not raining. You WILL get used to it, but you may have to work with your footwear to stop abrasion.

I can't believe our ancestors weren't used to wet feet a lot (except maybe some of you in OZ), so I'm sure your body can adapt. Just make sure they get well dried out each night.

[Paul Tree]

Foot care can be intensive, but like getting older, it beats the alternatives…

Freshen up your water repellent – NikWax, not petroleum solvent based waxes, kills the leather's stiffness. It helps a bit.

Take off boots when resting, even short dryouts can really help. Pat dry and massage, then put on clean dry ones before you get going.
If you want to get more efficient:
Wash your dirty socks while you wait, and wring them out, not so hard as not to distort them. Stick them in a place where they stand a chance of drying. Waving around in the breeze they won't look as good but can dry faster than in your pack's mesh pocket.

Sun is also great for them. Fires are good, if you can.

Poly socks or liners. I have heard good things bout the injinji socks. They would keep your toes separate, and presumably breathing better. Between toes is always where I get the rot first. As far as sleeping, cotton socks seems the best to help avoid this, and you can put woolies over if you want. I've put TP between my toes at night too, but that was a little late. Mayhap fleece socks?

and Unmerciful Heavens! – take some anti-fungal ointment. One is way better than the other, I can find out which if you want. I've had my feet go from perfect to oh-no in a week. Not a whole tube, maybe a third.

When drying boots, remove footbeds.

For those that have water running down their leg into their boots – too hot to wear pants?

[Linsey Budden]

The Inov8 Mudclaws that I hike in are made of some kind of moisture loving mesh–they get wet in an instant and stay wet.* Ironically they fit sublimely when wet. They are sized for a merino blend Injinji toe sock as a liner and a second wool sock. When my feet are soaked they are basically comfortable and warm as long as I stay moving, cooler if I lolllygag. I wring and hang wet socks and sleep on top of a second (likely damp) pair of liners so they're easier to put on in the morning. Then I use the dedicated possum down socks (always kept carefully dry) for when I get in bed–they get cozy quick. On the times I put on damp socks in the morning, my feet warmed up pretty soon after starting to hike. On dry days I safety pin damp socks around the shock cord/compression straps on my pack so they'll dry. In mid October I decided to add the Goretex sock to this for four days with rain and patchy snow. The fit was a bit long and narrow and added constriction to the clamminess of poor breathabilty. My feet basically stayed warm as long as I kept moving, got cold when I wasn't, but my socks were damp instead of soaked, and I was happy to have the Goretex when into snow a foot deep, but they were far from ideal. It seems I'll have to give Neoprene a try.
*This was not as much of a problem with the other Inov8 model I've worn. The Mudclaw's great if one remembers it's a pared down racecar of a shoe that will perform like magic but wear out incredibly fast.

[Al Shaver]

I have used REI GTX socks for 20 years. They go everywhere with me. Unlike GTX boots, you can remove the less breathable GTX layer in dry conditions and pop them on for rain, puddles or stream crossings. I can stand in an icy creek with 1 pair of std socks on and my feet stay toasty. Socks also go much higher up the leg than boots and don't open up like funnels at the top like boots. I've even cinched my sleeping pad straps around the tops of the socks around my calves for thigh deep river crossings and had no significant leakage!
I have problems with blisters but have run 25 miles in the rain with a pack and GTX socks on and had no foot problems.
$50 at REI. Someone posted a $40 model at Cabelas.
Have yet to wear a pair out.
Top 3 items I own:
Camelbak
Nunatak Down Balaclava
GTX Socks.

[Tim Olvey]

I tried the GTX socks from Cabelas. The fit was too narrow for me and resulted in cold feet. I switched to quality merino socks, GTX trail runners (Saloman) and shorty gaiters for cold weather trails. Non-gortex Montrail Namches (high top trail runners) and merino for warm, wet weather and take time to stop, wring out, air out and treat hot spots if necessary.

[Hamish McHamish]

I wear well-draining trail running shoes (TNF Prophecy) that fit well. I use thin SmartWool ankle-height socks. But when my feet get wet and stay wet, the bottoms of my feet get macerated and very painful.

I have read a lot about HydroPel in the book "Fixing Your Feet" and have seen it mentioned here at BPL.

How much of the stuff is needed when used preventatively? At $14 per 2 ounces, HydroPel is crazy expensive. Ryan, how much HydroPel did you go through per day in Alaska?

If it costs me an extra $14/day to keep my feet from getting macerated, I've got to find another solution.

[Joe Kuster]

I find that I only have to use a thin coat of hydropel and work it into the skin when dry. If your skin has already gotten wet you'll have to dry it out first for hydropel to be effective. Alcohol wipes come in handy for this when you can't promise enough time to dry your feet out before reapplication is needed. I find the stuff lasts me about 20-25 miles per application in the winter and perhaps a bit less in the summer (not 100% sure yet since this is my first summer using it). So far, I've still got 3/4 of a tube left from first adopting it for my wetter condition trips a year and a half ago.

For dryer trips I usually just use body glide or sportslick since my feet won't be staying wet all day and it's cheaper per application. Body glide doesn't last as long so I'm phasing it out as I use up what I have left but sportslick does feel very thick on the skin like vaseline so as a preference I like the feel of body glide better but I like the longer lasting and anti-fungal/anti-bacterial properties of sportslick better. Both do the job however and I've even found the off the shelf from BandAid brand that looks and acts like bodyglide works just about as well as bodyglide itself and it comes in a ideal sized applicator as well as being cheap and easy to find.

[Hamish McHamish]

Thanks Joe. Do you put Hydropel on just the bottoms of your feet or all over them?

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