Choosing the Right Footwear for Your Hike
- In This Quick Guide:
- The Shape of Shoes
- Even More Choices
- Finding a Good Fit
Your choice of footwear will influence the success of your hike more than any other type of gear. If your feet aren’t happy, you won’t be happy, either. Selecting which boot or shoe to lace up before a hike should be the first gear decision you make. In this guide, we give you the rundown on the best footwear options for casual campers or intrepid hikers, to get your hike started on the right foot.
The Shape of Shoes
No pair of shoes or boots will work for both a day-hike and a weeklong trek. Instead, selecting the ideal footwear for each hiking trip boils down to three main factors:
- The difficulty of the terrain
- The distance you plan to hike
- The pack weight you will carry
If you like to go on both short day-hikes and long backpacking trips, you should probably own a different pair of shoes or boots for each activity. That might seem expensive, but comfortable footwear is worth paying for.
Light and Fast
Lightweight, low-cut trail shoes emphasize speed and comfort over support and protection, making them fine for short day-hikes on smooth trails. These thin-skinned shoes and boots will help you move quickly and assuredly on easy to moderate trails, but they won’t guard your toes from sharp rocks or give you extra confidence on hazardous terrain. A comfortable, flexible fit is another priority, made possible by their shoelike appearance and extensive use of synthetic fabrics. This also reduces the time required to break them in compared to larger, more rigid boots.
Sturdy and Slow
If day-hiking footwear is designed to be nimble, then backpacking boots are more like lumbering battleships. Instead of speed and flexibility, they emphasize support and protection. By wrapping your entire foot and ankle in a single rigid form, backpacking boots give you the leverage to efficiently move up steep, rocky slopes and added protection from stumbles, twists, and stubbed toes.
Even More Choices
The world of hiking footwear, however, isn’t cleanly divided between the two spheres of day-hiking and backpacking. Check out the shoe section at your local outdoor store and you’ll see enough styles and sizes to make your head swim. Not only will there be trail shoes and backpacking boots, but also dozens of hybrid styles incorporating aspects of both designs. Driving this trend is a demand by day- and weekend-hikers for smaller, lighter boots and trail shoes that still provide meaningful ankle support and protection. Here are the four major styles—from light to heavy—you’ll see on the shelves.
Trail Runners
These low-cut kicks are made from synthetic fabrics with mesh panels to enhance breatheability. Trail runners offer excellent cushioning—including gel inserts in the heel—but little protection from jagged, rocky terrain. Key advantages include a comfortable fit, a short break-in period, and a lightweight design. Some models are made with waterproof membranes to keep feet drier, while others are designed for desert hiking with maximum breatheability.
Best for: Trail running, day-hiking
Light Hiker Boots
With a beefier build than trail runners, these hybrid hikers look like a cross between a shoe and a boot. A taller ankle collar provides additional support and protects your feet from wet and muddy trails. Thick, rigid soles help with rock scrambling and edging but aren’t sturdy enough to navigate rocky terrain with a heavy load. The stiffest, most durable light hikers provide enough support for packs weighing up to 30 pounds. Most boots in this category also feature a wraparound rubber rand on the front to shield your toes from rocks and roots. Lightweight boots are best for hikers who get blisters from traditional backpacking boots or who are looking to shave a few ounces without sacrificing ankle support.
Best for: Day-hiking on rugged terrain, easy weekend and ultralight backpacking
Light hiker boots match durable, waterproof performance with athletic shoestyle comfort.
Midweight Boots
Designed to take a licking and keep on hiking, these backpacking boots are protected from rocks and debris by a durable, scratch-resistant hide (often made from leather or tough synthetic fabrics) and a thick wraparound rubber sole and rand. Higher collars and bulkier padding give your feet and ankles the leverage to heft packs weighing 40 pounds. Many also contain an internal shank—a plastic or metal support that runs along the bottom of the boot to provide more internal rigidity—while retaining some flexibility for comfortable striding. Waterproof membranes and ultrafine stitching enhance wet-weather performance so that you can ford shallow streams without getting soaked.
Best for: Backpacking on rugged trails while hauling heavier loads
Midweight boots provide rough-trail support with higher, stiffer collars but remain comfortable for regular striding.
Winter and Mountaineering Boots
Challenging terrain calls for technologically advanced footwear, and these boots deliver with rigid soles designed to accept crampons and extra insulation to keep your feet warm. Superior waterproofing and high-cut collars repel snow and ice. Some winter boots are sheathed in hard plastic that surrounds removable, insulating liners. However, these unforgiving boots require several weeks of practice hikes to fully break in.
Best for: Hiking in snow and ice and mountaineering
Finding a Good Fit
A boot or shoe must feel good from the moment you first put it on to the last mile of a hike. Because fit is so important, buying boots and shoes from an athletic shoe store, a website, or a catalog is a risky move. The better choice is to visit an outdoor retail store where you can measure your feet, try on multiple styles, and get expert advice from the staff. Most retail stores, however, don’t allow you to return any shoes or boots worn outside. This makes any footwear trial runs in a store extremely important. To get the best results, test each pair for at least 15 minutes and practice walking up and down stairs, on ramps, and while carrying a simulated backpack. Here are some important things to remember when trying on hiking shoes and boots:
- Don’t assume that your regular shoe size will be identical to your hiking boot size. Get your feet measured every time you try on boots using a Brannock device (the metal tray with adjustable sliders that determines the length and width of your feet).
- Bring hiking socks of varying thickness levels when trying on boots to determine which boot/sock combinations work best.
- Because feet tend to swell by the end of the day, shop for footwear in the late afternoon or evening.
- If your feet are different sizes, try on boots for the larger size and use thicker socks or footbeds to make the smaller foot fit.
- Remember that if it doesn’t fit in the store, it won’t fit on the trail. Breaking in boots reduces stiffness, but doesn’t improve fit or comfort.
Slippery Heels
Heels are ground zero for blisters—most are caused by loose-fitting or extra-stiff boots, not enough break-in time, or a narrow heel cup. Once your heel starts to rub against the back of the boot, the constant friction will quickly ignite a hot spot, followed by a blister. Making sure that your heel fits snugly in its cup at the back of a boot should be first on your checklist when shopping for boots or shoes. People with narrow or bony feet often experience the most trouble—and sometimes need to experiment with various sock thicknesses, aftermarket footpads, or gel inserts to achieve a comfortable, no-slip fit.
Getting Out of a Toe Jam
The front of your foot is the number two spot for blisters to form. A cramped or narrow toe box can quickly lead to hot spots and smashed toenails, especially on steep downhill trails. To confirm that a boot has adequate toe room, stand with your feet flat on the ground and with your toes completely relaxed. You should be able to wiggle all of your toes up and down, but not forward and back, and you should be able to feel half an inch of space between the tips of your toes and the inside edge of the boot. A durable, rubber rand surrounding a toe box will absorb the impact from buried rocks, logs, and roots, and shield your little piggies from a painful bashing.
Now that you know what you’re looking for, it’s time to hit the store! Have fun, and happy hiking!
From The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Backpacking and Hiking by Jason Stevenson
