Black toe nail/ no nails

imported
#1

Any body having a problem with black toenails or nails coming off? Doesn’t hurt now, just looks aweful!

no nails

#2

I lost the nail on one big toe the first time I did a section hike on the AT. The problem is, your boots/shoes are too small and your toe is hitting the end of your shoe while hiking downhill. Get a 1/2 to one full size larger shoe and make sure they’re laced up tight when you have a long stretch of downhill.

Nooga

#3

I lost a toenail by “stubbing” my toe and it took about 3 months before I actually got the nerve to go to the Dr but he yanked it off I took 3 sick days and 2 weeks off hiking (I’m a weekend hiker) and I was / am good as new

knightjh

#4

Same thing happened to me on my section hike. I have since gotten larger boots, but haven’t tried them out on a trail yet to see if they work better.

bitpusher

#5

I had this happen on a hike in the Rockies (not the big toe, but the second one). It also happens to runners sometimes. The black was from the blood/trauma when the nail separated from the nail bed after repeated stress. I kept it clean and eventually a new nail formed under the old nail. I was advised to keep the old nail in place as long as possible (provided I could keep it clean underneath) to act as a form guide for the new nail, but it fell off about 3 weeks later and it took 6 months to get fully back to a normal hard nail, until then it was soft like thick skin and I had to treat it carefully. See your doctor, I’m not one, just telling you what happened to me.

RockyTrail

#6

As nooga said, it sounds like you’ve got boots that are too short, which is fairly common. To check for the correct length, untie and loosen the laces on the boot, kick the ground with your toes to knock your foot into the front of the boot. Stand on the ground with weight on your foot, lean forward a little, and feel how much room is behind your heel (not the achilles.) Ideally, you should be able to fit 1.5 finger widths behind your heel, maybe a little less for a low cut shoe, or a little more for a higher cut boot. Have fun!

Skittles

#7

Building on what Skittles and Nooga said, when you relace your shoe, be sure your heel is against the BACK of the shoe before you re-tie it. If your instep goes numb from the snugness needed to keep your foot back off the toe box, as mine did in earlier shoe models, a soft foam or felt “tongue depressor” can be placed under the laces as cushioning.

The Phil Oren foot clinic at Trail Days is really a must-see for anyone who hasn’t been able to sort out their “shoeing” problems. They saved my hike last year. I LOOOOOVE the Phil Oren people, when I got to Trail Days last year I could hardly walk. My feet were being tortured, despite several earnest fittings of new shoes by outfitters. The outfitters really tried, but my feet just don’t fit many shoes. I needed someone who really knew both feet, and the current shoe lines.

Once they saw my low-volume, narrow-heel/wide toe, high-arched, pronating, hammer-toed, bunioned peds, they tried on three or four different types of shoes, two of which they didn’t even carry - they sent me to other outfitters to get them and bring back for custom fitting.

They also didn’t try to sell me Superfeet, which I respected; I think it’s a great product, but I had custom orthotics. In fact, they not only told me my orthotics were doing a great job, they were doing THE job of supporting the mid-foot, and that my shoe wasn’t. To demonstarate, they bent my shoe in half - it bent at the arch, not the toe-break. They taught me alot.

One other tip: After you find a pair of shoes that feel pretty good WITH WEIGHT ON YOUR BACK (take your pack, it will reveal the “holes” in a fit quicker than anything), remove the inert and stand on it. Everywhere you “spill over” the insert, that’s where you’ll be hurting when you backpack. That’s where you’ll rub against the sides or front.

We don’t have x-ray eyes to see inside the shoe, so this nifty technique brings any “overages” to light. Then, toss the cardboard insert and get a decent, arch-supporting insert. Not everyone’s arches agree with the higher arch of the Superfeet, but there are other insert, or you can shave yours down.

And take folks’ rave shoe reviews with a grain of salt - what fits me, won’t likely fit you. The exception to this is
reviews discussing quality, longevity, product support and workmanship, of course.

LiteShoe

#8

I’ve had this happen a couple of times too…not necessarily an ill-fitting shoe or boot…sometimes kicking rocks repeatedly will do it, especially if you don’t keep the darn nails trimmed nicely…like if you’re tired and not picking up your feet. So the nail turns black and falls off. No big deal, it grows back. I have great boots that fit me perfectly…I’ve hiked many miles with no toe problems, then hike too many miles a day on a rocky trail, lose a nail…hike again in same boots, no problem…

Margaret

#9

If you are wearing sneakers or trailrunners you can use a marathoner trick in tying your shoes. It’s called rabbit ears or bunny ears. It’s too complicated to discribe in writing but ask around and see if anyone can teach it to you. It really helps keep your foot from sliding forward. Good luck

O’B

#10

In addition to the previous comments… Another problem is having low volume feet and higher volume boots. Even if you go longer in length you will still slip forward if the shoes are too high volume for you. I have had good luck with the tongue pads and Custom Superfeet courtesy of Phil Oren and staff at Trail Days last year. I do have to “break my feet in” each season if I haven’t been out a lot. When I send my boots back to be resoled, I’m going to have tongue padding greatly increased on the inside. I did this before and was very happy with the results. (Used RMR) This was better than risking gangrene from lacing my boots so tight to hold the heel back. I also use a different lacing method. I think there used to be alternative lacing methods on the Montrail Site…you can check and see if it’s still there. :tongue

P.S. The gangrene comment was meant as a joke.

Lady Di