The toughest ounces to lose: backpacking in minimalist footwear (video)

RYOR (run your own run).

When I decided to go back to "jogging" a couple of years ago (I'm not very fast), I instantly felt that the "maximalist" shoes like Hoka would work for me…and they did. I have both the Altra Olympus and a couple of different Hokas, and I slightly prefer the Hokas because they're a bit lighter weight, and because I have 56 years of wearing "regular"-drop shoes (except for a brief period in the '70s when I wore Anna Kalso's Earth shoes).

But then again, I NEVER walk barefoot (not even to the bathroom in the middle of the night — could be a scorpion!), so the soles of my feet are tender, tender, tender!

As much as I like my Hokas, I wonder whether they would have the necessary lateral stability for the rougher trails I prefer to hike on…

If you love minimalist shoes — bravo! Enjoy them. I'll be in my Hokas…

Valerie, stability in the Hokas is a concern, particularly with the ridiculously high ones. Definitely easier to roll an ankle. I use the Rapa Nui 2, which are less extreme, and discard the insole, which brings them down to a reasonable height.

I can't imagine wearing them all the time, but sometimes for long runs on non-technical trail I'm in the mood. it's just a different experience. I don't feel nimble or agile, but I do feel like I can serenely float along. I was amazed that I could run 2 or more hours in them, and have so little stiffness the next morning.

In a strange way, the maximalist Hokas do share something with minimalist shoes, in that both seem to lack support in the usual sense. The subjective sensation of the Hokas is of running barefoot across a flat surface that yields slightly and then bounces back. I dislike any arch support at all, which may be why they work well for me.

Funny, Ralph — after having some foot pain on last year's JMT thru, my podiatrist recommended that I get some arch support, so I DO add a soft arch support insole in my Hokas.

But I still kinda feel floaty…on a good day, anyway! :^)

"As much as I like my Hokas, I wonder whether they would have the necessary lateral stability for the rougher trails I prefer to hike on…"

Valerie…
There are many models of Hokas. I have the Hoka Stinson trail model from last year.
They do take some getting used to. And they do seem to change with some use. The changes being it seems the grip on smooth talus gets better as they wear some and it feels like the cush flattens a bit and/or your foot sinks into them a bit.

Anyway, I have had them on trail backpacking with no problem. I have not experienced to complaint of ankle roll. I have had them off trail, But they are quite squirrely when traversing across steeply angled talus blocks or scree. Not sure I would want to do talus or scree with a backpack wearing Hokas. So, yes, the lateral stability is a compromise at best… but I would think they would be okay on most rough trails. It's just off trail where I draw the line.

Billy

Also. I have heard that this year's Hoka Stinson trail model has a lateral stabilizer built in. Have not tried them; not sure how well it works.

billy

Here's the next foot wear I'd like to try:

http://www.outsideonline.com/1963816/tech-will-have-you-hiking-you%E2%80%99re-18-again

The inov8 trail roc 235's (a minimalist shoe) are heavier or the same weight as many of the hokas.

It's not really a weight on your feet issue.

I brought my homemade huraches on my trip this weekend. They really saved me as I was getting ball-of-foot blisters with my Altras. The fit of my Altras feels perfect and I don't sense any rubbing so the only thing I can figure is my feet were too sweaty.

I put in 3 miles the first day in the sandals. I put in 16 miles on the last day. I tend to crash my heels into the ground when I walk. I wish I could unlearn that. It bothers me even in the Altras.

I also bought some Luna Tabu tabi booties. I could wear them in the cool morning before my feet got too sweaty. They are too small so I can't wear socks with them and they chafed a bit between the toes (hence the tape in the picture above). They also lack breathability. Paired with Dirtygirls my feet were pretty impenetrable against foxtails. I wore them for about 3 miles and then went bare in my sandals the rest of the way.

Sbhikes: you haven't posted much on the MDA forum lately, don't blame you, it's been pretty dysfunctional. Don't know how you can hike in sandals – I inevitably get rocks between the sandals and feet that drive me crazy.

FWIW, I recently bought a pair of Merrell Trail Glove 3's and have hiked about 50 miles in them. They have a bit more arch protection that the 2's, which means slightly less ground feel, but less sore feet after hiking on rocky trails (they are all rocky in AZ).

Happy Trails!!

I'm a big fan of minimalist low-drop shoes for hiking, walking, and running, been wearing them for about 3 years for everything. I've used Merrell ascend gloves and NB Minimus MT10 and MO20 which have all been great. Just got some La Sportiva Helios SR which are low drop but a little beefier for climbing approaches with a heavy pack.

The only problem I have now is that I'm doing more mountaineering/alpine climbing which has its own footwear requirements for crampons, snow, alpine conditions etc. Mountaineering boots feel really clumsy and I've already given myself intermittent IT band syndrome by hiking a lot with my mountain boots (Salewa Ravens). I stay injury free (and the IT band syndrom goes away) with the minimalist trail runners. It doesn't seem like there are any off the shelf solutions for this problem and I'm not about to go all Kilian Jornet and start climbing committing routes in trail runners. So for now I just stay in the trail runners for as long as possible then change to boots. Anyone had a similar experience or suggestions?