Shoes for the Brooks Range

That said, I don’t think there is such thing as perfect footwear for the Brooks Range or covering long distances anywhere in Alaska. There’s so much variety of terrain from tussocks, river crossings, rocky passes, etc.

For lightweight backpacking in the milder months if you get comfortable footwear and plan on having wet feet a lot you should be fine.

FWIW: Brooks Range Traverse

it's not all that swampy that you'd think the knobby'r ones would be any advantage.
whatever you get, might make sure it's got some form of stiffness to it so as to protect you from rocks. there will be quite a few miles on rocks and cobbles.
by the time you get to going uphill to need super-duper traction, well then, you're on a hill, so it won't be as wet anyway.
regardless of lug pattern, what will pay dividends is Grip. you want as much sticky (like to wet rocks) as possible. this will be found to be a safety issue. more Grip, as in the adhesion of the sole compound to wetness = a good thing. so, peter votes for grip over pattern.
is just my op. not a hard absolute fact.

I'm slated to get my 3rd pair of Speedcross 3's sometime this spring. When I did a 100ish mile packraft loop on my last trip up in the Brooks, I found them overall to be comfortable and about as secure as one can be in trail-running shoes on anything from talus-hopping to side-hilling to stumblef**king across knee-deep tussocks (not exaggerating). The Brooks Range will flummox your feet if you've never been there before, at least in the central region (Gates of the Arctic). The eastern side (ANWR) is "mall walking" by comparison, according an acquaintance of mine who frequents there. You might get away with a less aggressive tread in that region, but elsewhere you'll definitely want the deeper lugs.

I don't think you can really go wrong with the Speedcross 3's if they're a good fit for your feet, but keep in mind you'll probably want to prep them with some Shoe Goo before subjecting them to their upcoming abuse. When I did the Wilderness Classic last year, the mesh on the outside edge of both shoes (just below the pinky toes) punctured and eventually blew out to about the size of a dime due to intense bushwhacking. Another racer wearing these shoes experienced the exact same failure (keep in mind this was in the Chugach/Wrangells, not the Brooks). Also, you may want to consider replacing the insole with something that can withstand continuous saturation. The stock insoles are very comfortable, but the problem I've encountered is, when the shoes are soaked, and you go to make even a modest descent (in degree, not distance) the insole is prone to sliding and folding up on you, which is extremely annoying. Squeezing the water out of the insole helps, but if you've worked a crease into where they've folded up, your chances of it happening again will increase.

Side-hilling when wet is probably the leading cause of most of my hot spots and blisters with the Speedcross, but that's usually after wearing them all day when my feet are more likely to be waterlogged. Get some sort of ointment like Body Glide and coat the bottom of your feet each night. That should help stave off the pruniness.

To give you an idea, I used Keen Targhee II mids for 14 days, Sheenjek to Achilik River across the divide. That type of sole did great. No worries.

Thanks for everyones insights and if I could add a question my plan is to use my Six Moon Designs Skyscape Treker for shelter what have you gentalmen used. This will be a summer trip.

The Skyscape Trekker would work well, but you could go about a half pound lighter with a 'mid shelter like the MLD Duomid, and get more square footage. That would be (& now is) my go-to shelter for a Brooks Range trip of any length, but my last trip up there was actually in a different Six Moon shelter: the Lunar Duo. It worked well enough for a two-person tent.

Thanks Steve, I own both the Trekker and Duo both of which have been excellent shelters serving me well in multiple trips into the Weminuche and Wind River Range. I was not sure if they would be appropriate for the Brooks Range though. I am relatively tall at 6'2" and I enjoy the length and ability to escape the mosquitos in these shelters. I will take a look at the Duomid though as I am always looking for ways to save some weight.

As an individual who has spent some time in the Brooks Range what is the suitability of my other big three. I plan on using my Elemental Horizons Kalais(all dyneema), great hip belt, and Katabatic Palisades quilt. Thanks in advance.

Which summer month will you be there? Will you be packrafting?

If hiking is your only mode of travel, you've definitely got a solid UL setup. I will say that the Palisade, with it's +30 rating, could be a bit too warm if your trip is in June or July. I've come to expect anything from 40-90 degrees in the summer, with 50-70 degrees being the norm. Last time I was there I had a +35 bag and cooked most nights. This is especially the case when the sun is shining all night long

And yes, if you look into the DuoMid you may want to consider the inner netting that it's compatible with…however that might push its weight back up to your current tent.

I used a double rainbow for two of us. Worked great. One of my pyramids would've worked just as well.

I will be out there in the begining of June through July and only packrafting the last section.

If you're going to be packrafting, the volume on your pack is going to be iffy. As an example, my last trip to the Brooks was 10 days in an area where bear barrels are required. Including group gear/food, full boating gear (packraft, dry suit, PFD, paddle), and everything else, my full load-out was about 45 lbs. I used the ULA Epic with a 65 liter dry bag. Even with the PFD, paddle, packraft and foam pad strapped to the outside of the pack, the dry bag was topped out.

Will you be doing multiple trips throughout June & July, with brief respites in between, or is this one long trek or traverse?

The "Plan" is to do an east west traverse of the Brooks Range in the same fashion of a few others before me. Ten days of food in between caches and caching the packraft at the head of the Noatak River so I do not need to haul it the whole trip. My trip is slated for next summer to give me time to ask questions, Thank You all, and refine any new skills I may need. Packrafting will be one of those skills, as I will be coming from a competitve marathon kayaking background, ICF K1's. A mind set change I suspect more than anything.

With those logistics in place, your pack size should be fine. Keep in mind that, while the Upper Noatak is a fun run (Class II) in a packraft, once things flatten out it's going to be a bit of a slog. Given your background you should be fine with paddling over 400 miles, but my suggestion would be to treat that float as a time for rest and relaxation. You may want a fishing pole if you haven't already considered it.

Thanks Steve you have been more than helpful and I like fishing.

John