I know everyone’s foot is different. But I am looking for an inexpensive shoe to use for cold weather hiking. I realize that keeping your feet dry is the most important factor so any suggestions down that line are find with me. Out of all my fears on the trail, getting frostbite on my feet ranks at the top.
Schwartz
well…they may not SOUND like a good choice for winter, but paw and i have always enjoyed our lightweight runners!..i remember going out from the iron mtn shelter in the '03 blizzard in 18 degrees and thinking, ‘okay…here comes the frostbite!’…but with wool socks and gaiters, after 20 minutes of hiking, my feet were fine in my ‘new balance’ (we’re fortunate, by the way, to have an outlet nearby where we get our running shoes for around 50 bucks!..half what you’d pay for boots!)…my theory (not necessarily worth all that much most of the time, but oh well)…my theory is that running shoes, a size larger than what you’d normally wear, allows your foot ‘wiggle room’…you can actually MOVE your foot inside a running shoe to keep that circulation going!..they’re easy to remove on breaks and they dry (as you said) and thus THAW so much better than a big clunky boot…OCCASIONALLY, i’d put on a second pair of socks in really cold weather, but for me (and , yes, everyone’s different), my feet were always more comfortable with LESS ‘stuff’ inside! (i’ve tried insoles, extra socks/liners, insulating liners, etc., and what has worked best is just simply the shoe and one pair of good fitting wool socks)…and…i’ll put in my usual plug for those little ‘hand warmer whatchamacallits’ (if all else fails)…i’ve never tried them inside my shoe while HIKING (sounds like it might be a blister waiting to happen!), but if you felt like you were really close to the ‘frostbite stage’, i guess you could stop and warm up with those!..i know there have been some cases of frostbite out there, but i really don’t think you’ll need to worry too much…on the AT it’s pretty easy to bail into a hostel and put your feet up by the fire! :^) (or remember how your mom would always put bread sacks on your feet in the snow?..it’s the latest in lightweight winter gear!)
maw-ee