List your “quick drying” trail runners that you also cross streams in.

Scarpa Sparks. They dry in anywhere from 20 minutes to 2 hours, depending on how warm it is that day. Most of the moisture is trapped in my socks, so wearing thinner socks and/or wringing them out after the crossing can significantly speed dry times.

Inov-8 Trailrocs. Pretty good tread. I think its really hard to list an even moderately accurate dry time. If I am hiking in dry western areas, its less than an hour to dryness. But I am usually is the humid southern US. Sometimes they will stay wet most of the day. And if there is a crossing late in the day, I can expect to have wet shoes all night and into the morning(nothing dries out at night over here).

"It would also be interesting if you listed an approximate drying time after stream crossing. Assuming a continual hike from stream crossing to dry time."

I think that the specific model shoe is *somewhat* important, as indeed, some trail runners just have more mass of material to hold the water, but MORE important I think are a variety of factors. Not just how warm/dry the day is once out of the stream.

For example, did you leave your shoe inserts in when you crossed or take them out?
Are you wearing thick socks for the crossing and do you leave them in after crossing?
Do you stop on the other end and remove the shoes and squeeze a lot of water out of the thicker parts of the shoes?

If I'm going to be crossing again and again, then of course I don't bother with those things, but then I don't get my shoes dried out either. If I think that there's just the one crossing — well, first I'll consider whether it's safe/reasonable to cross barefoot. If not, then I'll take some time on the other end to sort of "pre-dry" shoes, so that they'll dry a lot faster.

So bottom line is that I don't often hike continuously from stream crossing in situations where I'm expecting to have no further crossings in the indefinite period.

Even doing some sort of "pre-drying", it really varies a lot, and I rarely seem to know exactly when they're "dry". I just over time have a decreasing awareness of them, and at some point some hours later, I realize that my shoes are entirely dry.

Of course, if the crossing is in the morning, and I can take off shoes and socks and take out inserts at lunch time and lay all of those things in the sun, that certainly helps! Or, do so for an afternoon break if you're inclined to ever take one of those.

Ive never found my shoes to be quick drying. In the humid SE , there just isnt any such thing. Things damp from sweat, dont dry overnight either, still sopping the next morning.

Its still not a problem.

I dont understand why people are scared of wet feet.

What bad experiences do people have that lead the to be frightened of damp feet?

Inov-8 295s. I never take my shoes off to cross here in NZ, as I would be putting my shoes on and off multiple times a day. Also it seems much safer to me to cross in shoes as opposed to bare feet. The 295s drain and dry pretty well, but I don't mind wet shoes and socks for days on end. I just use hyrdopel and dry sleep socks.

It isn't necessarily about fear. We all have things we like, don't like and things we can tolerate. I don't like wet feet but I can deal with it. For my son, a diabetic, he has to keep the wet feet limited to stream crossings and a certain amount,of sweat. Bodyglide helps but comtinually wet shoes can create risks. So unlike before the diagnosis he does two things UL'ers often try to avoid, extra shoes and a bear canister. Aside from what we choose as luxury items, we all have to make choices based on our own needs and the environment where we plan to hike.

Forgot my response to OP! I hike and trail run in Montrail Masochists and Hoka Mafates. If I leave socks on maybe an hour or a little more if it is dry out. If only an occasional stream while hiking I will take off socks and pull the insoles and then they dry pretty quick.

Old (2007) Montrail Hardrocks (I still have one new pair still in the box), or New Balance W1012 road running shoe. With my deformed feet (bunions, hammertoes, unusually narrow heels), the pre-Columbia-Sportswear-buyout Hardrock and the current NB SL-2 last (high and wide toebox, narrower heel and thick through the arch) are the only footwear I have found that fit. Even for formal occasions, I wear a NB leather walking shoe with SL-2 last and merino wool socks! Both my trail shoes are well-padded so take a little longer to dry, but on a 70's day with no rain, low humidity, about 2-3 hours until they are dry. That's without wringing out socks. With merino wool socks, my feet stop feeling wet after about an hour.

As Brian said, so much depends on the shoe, the sock, atmospheric conditions, trail conditions….

My experience with Goretex liners, though, that is one they get wet inside they take days to dry, and that my feet feel like a sauna in them even if they're not wet. I'd rather have occasional or periodic wet feet than Goretex!

Nike Air Max. Southern Cal. Often two hours plus.

Is it not practical to use plastic grocery bags over one's feet in order to lock out water for many streams (mutiple bags)? Or maybe using specially sewn up cyber fiber bags (or other such light sturdy material)?

Prepping for a large section of the PCT and don't want to derail this discussion but a couple of replies would be great.

Great discussion so far! Keep 'm coming.

Montrail AT plus, great shoe for my feet. Drying time is 30 min. to 2 hrs, depending on the weather. I have found it helps to take my socks off and the insoles out, before wading into the river. Reach the other side and pour the water out, re-insert insoles, put on socks, and my feet stay dry.

La Sportiva Wildcat. Best shoe ever!

None of the trail shoes i have worn were quick drying :
mizuno wave ascend
xodus progrid 2.0
addidas supernova riot 5
salomon xa pro 3d

I'm a newbie and had my first significant stream crossing on this weekends trip.

I wear trail runners (New Balance MT610s) which is against the trend of the troop … and they did dry out pretty fast and were only uncomfortable for a short period in otherwise rather muddy/wet conditions from heavy rains on Friday (we hiked in Saturday). I was surprised at how short the discomfort period was and both shoes/socks were dry the next morning. It was mid 60s and dry …

Some good tips – never thought about removing the insole but that would have helped. Also wringing out your socks makes a pretty big difference. I ponder carrying water shoes for crossings and camp (I cheat and use Crocs… I know … around camp but wouldn't want to cross some streams in them). Part of it is in camp there is more moving around to check on scouts, and a tradition of sitting up around the campfire rather than heading to bed that does make a separate pair of camp shoes nice…

I got a pair of Five Ten Canyoneers for trips that involve a lot of walking up stream as opposed to across them. They were surprisingly comfortable as hiking shoes. These have drain holes are are made out of material that don't adsorb water. Many of the mesh-type lw shoes (including my inov-8s) still have some suspect internal material that look like they might hold on to moisture a while.

I would probably buy a lightweight hiking shoe (but not a sandal) with the features of the Cayoneers for June in the Sierras. I say make the whole thing out of plastics. Anyone have a pure water shoe they would recommend?

Inov-8 Roclite 315. I wouldn't call them quick-drying. They drain fine but have open cell foam that holds water also just like pretty much anything else except some truly minimalist shoes. I find the sock choice to be more annoying. If I'm wearing thin ones, they'll "dry" much faster than wool "hiking" socks. If I'm still "squishing" after 20-30 min I may stop to wring out the socks unless I expect more crossings. I just make sure my feet dry at night. Don't care about putting on damp socks or shoes in the morning. Man up! :)

I don't need sox with my Merrell Trail Gloves so my feet are nearly dry 20 minutes after a stream crossing.