Archives, hiking boots, advice and all that

[Reynolds, Laurie]

I know that I benefitted greatly from the practical advice given so
graciously by fellow peregrinos, so at the risk of repeating what's been
said on the boots topic, I'll put in my two cents.
I walked in the month of May 2000, which was a glorious, almost rain-free
month.  However, since April had been quite wet, we did encounter a lot of
mud those first few days. I wouldn't have wanted to walk those days in
anything but boots. I wore a good hiking boot with smartwool socks, but
despite my care and best intentions (and lots of training), got blisters and
other feet problems. I am going back this May and have decided to bring a
pair of comfy running shoes as well as my hiking boots.  I personally think
that there are at least 5 or 6 days where not having hiking boots would be a
definite disadvantage (St. Jean - Roncesvalles; Roncesvalles - Larrasoana;
down into Molinaseca; down from the windmills towards Puente la Reina; up to
O'Cebreiro).  And if I get heavy rain this May, the hiking boots would be
far preferable. But at the same time, there are many days (and even long
stretches in some of the sections I mentioned above) where running shoes or
trail runners would be perfect.  And as others have mentioned, they treat
your feet so much better than hiking boots.  So I pared down my clothing
list even further, got a 3000 cu. inches (weight just over 2 pounds)
Mountainsmith pack to replace my 6.7 pound Lowe Alpine and decided to bring
both boots and running shoes. (I also have a pair of tevas for nighttime and
in-town time). My bag fully packed with the heavy Mephisto boots in it now
weighs under 13 pounds.  I figure that the lighter weight will also be good
on my feet.  I have taken a number of 20 mile hikes recently with the fully
packed pack and find that it leaves the weight right on my hips.  (This
particular bag does not seem to have the problem mentioned in an earlier
post about a lightweight backpack whose belt kept sliding down).
So, all in all, I personally have solved the boots vs. running shoes dilemma
by deciding to bring both.  Everyone's body is different, and most people
did have at least a few little feet problems, but I think that having a few
choices for footwear will help a lot, even if it does mean that my sartorial
splendor leaves something to be desired.  Buen caminio, Laurie