My feet are not happy

Maybe you’re limited to a lightweight regular boot.  BOOT ?  Oh gawd!  Say it aint so.

I sent a PM with the name of an individual that might have some info.  Didn’t list it here so as to not call him out without his consent.  No worries.  Nothing major.

Good luck with the search.

Looks like Morton’s Toe. I would see a podiatrist and bring in your shoes to show them what’s happening.

I always have toe troubles too. Tried tons of shoes, boots, mids, all sorts of socks, injinjis, Wright sox, Darn toughs, on and on and on. I just accept losing nails and seeing them black for six months post major hike. My doc said it happens to her too and she just paints the black with a nice bright color! I recently bought some “toe condoms,” little silicone caps for your toes. I haven’t actually tried wearing one for more than a few minutes; they are pretty comfortable. Maybe I’ll try one tomorrow since I’m going to walk a ways, and see how it feels. They’re cheap anyway.

Try a larger size shoe, and wider too if you can.

Toe nails do not get damaged or bruised unless something is hammering them. This can only be the shoe.

What often happens is that at age 20 you decide you are shoe size X, and then assume that’s it for the rest of your life. IT AIN’T SO! Contrary to what some claim, feet do grow all your life, and for walkers the growth can be significant. My wife and I went from size 8 when we were younger to a size 10/4E today. I have worn 10.5 at times.

Try a bigger shoe. You have nothing to lose.
(Yes, I do keep preaching this, I know, but it has worked.)

Cheers

There are some hiking shoes which are specialized for bunions. Maybe that would be a good option.

I have recently gone from a 46 to a 47.5, that’s a pretty expensive change where mountaineering boots are concerned so one more nail in my mountaineering coffin. Ditto for ski boots. Same comment.
I have often considered having my own little toes amputated to help me get boots to fit, my GPs have been aghast at my temerity to suggest such a radical solution to getting ski boots to fit comfortably but most of them haven’t been skiers

I agree with Roger and typically wear a shoe a couple sizes bigger than my shoe size.  Works for me and keeps my big toe happy.

Only problem I’ve had is sometimes stubbing my toe because they are a bit longer.

On the plus side I’m usually able to put them on and take them off without untying them.  Very convenient.

As you can see by my picture I am wearing one of the widest shoes made and by the hole I have cut for my toe they are considerably longer than my foot. Not visible are the custom modifications I made to the insole to give me more room or the thin socks I wear. I don’t need beginner-level advice about shoes. What this is is a plea to shoe companies to make a shoe for a foot like mine. When the minimalist craze came out they actually listened. There needs to be a wide foot, Morton’s foot, we who lose toenails are mad as hell and not going to take it anymore foot movement to get these shoemakers to make shoes for us. There are lots of us. The choice has been to either mutilate our shoes or mutilate our feet. There’s got to be a better choice.

I wonder if there are any leather shoes that could be professionally stretched vertically to give you enough volume/height for your big toes?

I have a similar, but not as severe as yours, problem with the height of many shoes for my big toe.  Also trouble finding shoes that are wide enough in the toes without being too wide for my narrow heel – I love Altras around town but can’t wear them backpacking because I slip all over the trail, sort of off the side of my shoe in back.  Montrail used to make a shoe that worked well for my foot, but when the company sold years ago, that model was discontinued.

Keen’s have the widest toe box that I know. (You probably already know this.) My left foot is even worse than yours, fitting wise. I feel your pain.

My wife uses these:

1. Hanwag Alta Bunion Boot (Women / Men)

Except for really long middle toes, my feet look a lot like yours. A few years back I was dealing with horrible plantar fasciitis and Achilles issues (while wearing 4E Merrells) and my podiatrist recommended PT. It changed my life and I still religiously follow a daily foot/achilles exercise regimen. I regularly go barefoot around my house and yard now, whereas I couldn’t before. As the PT pointed out, a strong foot can endure a lot. Simply walking or hiking a lot doesn’t necessarily keep one’s feet healthy. Think repetitive stress. I’ve tried most of the shoes on your list and what I’ve found is that for me, my shoes are much less important than the health of my feet. FWIW, at this moment I hike is Altra’s and Topos. I wish you success.

Podiatrist and Physio.

They have certainly helped me. One to make a custom orthotic that helps with toe joint alignment and the other to try to bring some flexibility back to my ankle and toe joint that have over stressed my plantar fasciitis.

My feet are square at the end like your plus very high volume across the arch. Altras don’t have enough width back there for me. I have to shop for the length to the end of my small toe rather than the big toe. It seems that toe box height has declined in today’s trail runners compared to that 10 years ago.

You could take a look at Softstar shoes. The leather is very soft and could be easily stretched.

Altberg in the UK make boots and hiking shoes in 5 widths though they prefer fitting in person for XW and XN

Yeah, my feet slip around in the altras too, but they are too limiting height-wise where my toe needs to move. And too narrow, or maybe there is something in there rubbing my little toe? I don’t know. I had to buy Keens a larger size than my foot and then there was a seam that rubbed against my big toe making it swell up and causing me lose my nail. Lost my big toenail with Merrill’s. I’m not happy with minimalist shoes because when the ground is hot they give me blisters on the bottoms of my feet from the hot trail dirt. Maybe I will try topos. I haven’t tried them yet. But still, why does this have to BE SO HARD?

Dianne have you considered moccasins?
They wet mould to your feet and as they are made to measure for you and your own feet they might work for you. You then add a sole to take the wear and tear which you would replace as needed.
This won’t work if you are Vegan or an absolute vegetarian. There are many styles of moccasin and very many types of leather available to use although they are very much minimalist and they do make you feet work this isn’t a bad thing in itself.
I’ve not made moccasins personally I read about them when researching Mukluks for deep cold travel when not wearing ski boots

I’m an old man and 20+ years in the Army left me with a few “unusual”…as a podiatrist said…foot issues.  Good quality leather boots, more than a few soaks in water, some mink oil treatments and some versatile shoe stretchers solved all my issues.

Topo shoes are terrible. Nope nope nope. There’s no room. The insole has to come out. I will have to hack up the tops of them or take the tongues out.

Why not have a pair of shoes made for you by a bootmaker?

Sean I think that service is even more expensive in the USA than it is here, and my b’loved wife who has similar feet was quoted $3500- a pair for her bespoke set, which she didn’t have made naturally because it was unaffordable for us. Also that price was without orthotics, that was an added extra cost from the podiatrist first and then shoes built to fit the total foot volume

Depends on who is making the boots, construction, etc. Limmer Boots in New Hampshire came custom boots and walking shoes. It would be worth contacting them.

I mentioned Limmer because I have a pair from 35 yrs ago.

John Calden Boots makes custom ski and hiking boots. No experience with them but worth checking.

My partner has a pair of custom Limmer boots which he inherited from someone else around 30 years ago.  Even though they weren’t made for him, they are still the most comfortable boots he’s ever had.  Have been resoled by Limmer a few times.

We both ordered the semi-custom boots Limmer made in the 90s – not comfortable at all.  I’m not sure if they even still do those ones, but I would recommend their fully custom ones or nothing.

I tried to get custom-made shoes once and they came out way too small and tight. I sent them back for stretching and still too small and tight. I soaked them in water and alcohol and still they would not stretch enough.

And I don’t want to wear boots. I just want to wear normal shoes that are breathable and dry quickly after walking through creeks. I’m not the only person who would like shoes that fit. My friend even got his toes amputated so he could wear normal shoes.

The shoe companies got on the born to run bandwagon and made a plethora of minimalist shoes, many of which I own. But minimalist shoes cause the bottoms of my feet to get burned on hot surfaces, or one pair of them had such minimal soles that I stepped on a thorny ceanothus branch and was impaled in my arch by a thorn. Both of those had a footbox that fit. Seems you can’t have a good footbox AND adequate sole.

I wish someone would write a best-selling book about ultra runners who mutilate their shoes to fit their feet. Like this guy: https://fellrnr.com/wiki/Shoe_Modifications

Or this podiatrist: https://www.correcttoes.com/foot-help/modify-shoes-better-fit-feet/

Or this: https://www.blisterprevention.us/blogs/blister-blog/cutting-holes-in-running-shoes Check out the injinji-clad foot poking out. I feel kinship with that person. I don’t wear injinjis anymore because they take up too much space.

If Limmer makes walking shoes, as Bill mentioned, could that work for you?  Seems like it would be worth it to contact them and see what they might be able to do for you.