Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Boots and Proper Fit

Last week I made the summit via the main trail as a day trip. I brought my mountaineering boots so that I could use my step-in crampons if necessary. I have always had a problem with heel blisters when using these boots. However, after 22 miles you can only imagine the damage. These boots are gone for good......

My question is, how can you ensure a proper boot fit when purchasing a stiff boot that will, by its nature, require a break in period?

Thanks!

Go to a very good shop. Go in the week when its not busy. If the guy says what size are you then move on he should measure your feet. Take a long time, try lots of models i.e. different shapes. Allow a good couple of hours in the shop or more.
If your toes touch the ends they are no good. If your heel lifts when the boot is laced, likewise.
Buy in haste repent at leisure.
Good luck.

You may also want to learn some lacing tricks so that you can independently adjust the forefoot versus ankle lacing. Details depend on the boots and what sort of eyelets/hooks they have for lacing.

Also consider adding footbeds like the "Superfeet" brand that will stabilize your heels in the boots. My son has narrow heels and always has a problem with heel lift, but between better insoles and careful lacing, he minimizes the chances of blisters.

(I find that I have to vary my own lacing depending on whether I'm going primarily uphill or down...much more heel lift going up, greater chances of mashing my toes into the ends of the boots going down, so I will vary the ankle/forefoot lacing tightness accordingly.)

One final trick that works for me...on long days carrying heavy loads, I'll wear three pairs of socks...polypro liners, then lightweight wool and finally heavy/padded hiking socks. I find the extra slippage between the socks reduces the friction against my feet. I have a slightly different problem...a repaired Achilles tendon, which makes the area just above my right heel very bulky and subject to wear and tear no matter what I do. A little extra padding and providing a bit more "slip" between sock layers does help that.

I own a pair of Zamberlan, leather,extremely stiff hiking boots. I bought them at REI. They have great ankle support for rocky terrain, but I had a major problem with heel blisters when I first bought them.

Hiked up Mt. Baldy and had medium problems. Hiked up San Gorgonio and had major damage - we're talking more than blisters, chunks removed.

I did two things to remedy the problem. Number one, I took the boots back to REI, and they actually have a machine that can apply pressure to and stretch the heel area of a boot from the inside giving a little extra room where needed.

Number two, and the most effective remedy was advice I got from old timers who had problems with leather boots their whole lives. They suggested I do the following, I did it, and it actually worked.

I put the boots on with the Superfeet inserts I use, and the Smartwool socks I usually wear, and I filled the boots up with water from the front yard hose. I hiked around a 1/2 mile loop in my neighborhood, and filled them up with water again, then continued round and round for as long as I had time for.

The water and the warmth from your foot softens the leather and helps it conform to the contour of your foot, including your heel area.

I made some squishy sounds and left some footprints around the block, but the combination of REI helping with stretching (which helped, but didn't cure the problem) and an old fashioned remedy I was hesitant to try, the boots fit fine now.

I have a lot of difficulty with my feet and boots because the shape of my feet is not typical. The thing that saves me is a product called Second Skin by Spenco. I don't get the liquid; I get the gel sheets. I keep it in a ziploc because it dries out. I throw out the stickum stuff that comes with it, and I carry athletic tape (though I'm starting to think that duct tape might stick better).

When I have a blister or hot spot, I cut a sheet of this gel stuff and tape it into place. Sometimes I use a lot of tape to keep it flat and in place. I'm very careful when putting on my boots and socks so that I don't dislodge the stuff. Once it's applied, I can hike as if there's no blister at all.

I've never found moleskin to be useful, but I don't hike without second skin. Give it a try, and good hiking.

First, I think that feet often 'break in' before boots do. I've fing that I develop callouses, thick skin, etc. over time in my boots long before the boot changes shape to any meaningful degree.

Second, most people don't take enough time when trying on new boots. You can't just put them on for a few minutes, take a quick walk around the store and then determine that they fit. I think it takes at least an hour to tell if there are hot spots or friction point. Not an hour of sitting in a chair, but an hour+ of walking around on 'terrain'. Most REI stores have a fake rock area with slopes and steps. Pound around on it like you were on a long climb, going both up and down. Kick your toes hard into the front of the boots like you do on a long steep downhill section. and put a heavy pack on your back like it was the real thing. After all of that, you should be able to tell if you have a boot that is a close fit before trying to break both your feet and the boots in further.

Finally, some responses!

1. I do have Superfeet, and smartwool socks. I have added a little heel wedge, made of some "spaceage polymer" to help reduce the space for heel travel (before the Whitney trip).

2. I have done some advanced lacing techniques to help hold my heel in place without success.

3. Most of my work in these boots is on Shasta and the Whitney trip was the longest I have ever traveled in one day with them on....

4. I will try the other tips- wetting the boots and walking around the neighborhood like a wacko and triple socks. Some I have spoken to have fallen out of favor of liners.....I used to wear them but stopped using them in my search to find an end to these blisters.

I guess I have one/two things to try before I S**Tcan these boots (Vasque Apex).

Thanks!

Ed

From what I see, stiff boots are not meant for hiking longer distances. I doubt whether most anyone wouldn't have problems trying to use mountaineering boots for plain hiking. I used to carry a lightweight pair of nylon hiking boots for the trail approaches, then switch to heavy stiff boots for the climbing. That means more vertical versus horizontal.

The best strategy for your feet is to hike to snowline, carrying your stiff boots, then climbing using the stiff boots. I think foot wear is unavoidable, otherwise.

One thing that I have discovered helps is to change my socks frequently during the day. I usually carry four pair of wool socks. About every 1-2 hours (during a rest break near water) I put on a fresh pair of socks, rinse the dirty ones in the stream, then tie them onto my backpack to dry. At high altitude they take longer to dry, hence the need for four pair.

I stopped wearing multiple layers of socks years ago when my fellow hikers convinced me that was part of the slipage problem. I still get mild blisters on anything beyond 3+ days.

Personal experience and a little counter-intuitive. I have found that thinner socks seem to help. One regular liner, capilene or Cool-Max and a second thin hiker, wool preferred. I have used the Smartwool hikers and they are good, but a little thick at times.

On Shasta, I have a slight to nil problem with blisters. But, the mileage was not traveled as it is on the Whitney trail.

1. multiple socks- good idea, my feet swelter in the boots. Which contributes greatly to the maceration.

2. I did notice a few individuals staching trail shoes before the climb to trail crest to use in their descent.