Hiking boots vs trail shoes
I have two sets of shoes that I wear while hiking. My favorite by far are my light weight trail running shoes. I have worn them on 9 mile hikes without any break-in, and went blister free. From a comfort perspective they are simply amazing.
I also have a much more expensive hiking boot, which is made of durable leather, however every single time I wear them, even for a couple miles, I get blisters. I cannot seem to break them in to the point where they are comfortable to wear. When is it worth going through the pain to break in leather boots versus just sticking with the much more comfortable and light weight trail running shoes? I typically just day hike so my pack weight is often less than 20 lbs.
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Hiking boots excel in a few situations:
- Extended side-hilling/traversing. Good boots take the stress off your ankles
- People with bad ankles. The ankle support of a good boot is hard to argue with. If you have ankle problems, I don't think trail runnes are appropriate.
- Heavy loads. Even if you don't have ankle problems, you'll get them lugging around 80+ pounds of gear :)
That being said, I wear runners 99% of the time when I hike. I don't suffer from the problems above, and having light shoes on your feet is delightful. I also appreciate the "break-in" problem and have never suffered from it in trail runners.
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I would argue you answered your own question in your first comment:
I think it's the way the boots fit
It is a myth that leather boots should require a painful bludgeoning period to break them in. You will come across all kinds of creative solutions to get you over the hump - but all of them are dealing with the symptoms of the real problem: you bought a pair of boots that don't fit well.
If you are dead-set on heavy boots - shop around. There are many brands, and they are all different. Size is just one number from dozens of factors to consider. Find your brand - and it might not be the one that looks the coolest, but it will be the one that fits right.
As for whether sneakers or boots are the way to go - as other's have pointed out, that is largely situational (terrain, weather) and personal preference. But, poorly fitting sneaks can give you just as much trouble as poorly-fitting boots.
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I almost always hike in tennis shoes (court shoes) if it's reasonably dry and free of snow. I use them for climbs, day hikes, and backpacking. I don't have ankle problems, so I don't the ankle support. The tennis shoes grip rocks better and have better padding than my boots. (I do carry extra socks, though, for dry feet.)
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