What's a 'decent/cheap' trail runner shoe from Academy etc?

[wiel]

I've done the 21 crossings, what a beautiful trail, one of my favs. We just hike in regular hiking shoes until reaching the first water crossing, then put on cheap old athletic shoes to wade the remaining crossings (stash hiking shoes in the woods) ; on the return switch out to the hiking shoe. Others in the group have used keens the whole trail.

[Ricky&Jack]

Thanks wayne. I have only used cheap walmart shoes in the past. Wasnt really sure what is "decent" for possible multiple water crossings.

[Ricky&Jack]

I've done the 21 crossings, what a beautiful trail, one of my favs. We just hike in regular hiking shoes until reaching the first water crossing, then put on cheap old athletic shoes to wade the remaining crossings (stash hiking shoes in the woods) ; on the return switch out to the hiking shoe. Others in the group have used keens the whole trail.

Hey, Im having trouble finding a proper map of the trail(s) in that area.... Im reading its either 8miles or 19 miles..... and reading that its a loop and also that its not.

Im really wanting to go there in the next few days, but understudying that area and finding a readable map of that trail/area has been hard to locate. I can't find anything with like, an arial view with a lightlited path etc.

[Maddog]

The Cohutta Wilderness is no place for a novice backpacker. Shoes are the least of your worries! HYOH!

[Ricky&Jack]

The Cohutta Wilderness is no place for a novice backpacker. Shoes are the least of your worries! HYOH!

its like 18 miles from my house. So I thought local was a good place to start.......... (Its 62 miles if I want to hike amicalola/springer again)

[rafe]

Yeah, I'd go looking for a pair of New Balance something-or-others at an outlet store. But that's mostly cuz New Balance stuff tends to feel good to my wide feet. Expect 500 miles or so.

[Ricky&Jack]

I've noticed quite a few people mentioned just using cheap tennis shoes.... I never really tried before, but wouldn't tennis shoes get ruined after even just once or twice being fully submerged in water (creek/river crossing)? Or do they still dry out overnight, and would last a bit?

***EDIT: I know I don't need it to last a long time. But If I can get about 100 miles/10 good nights out of it, thats good enough for me. But don't want it to crap out after 1 water crossing.

[Malto]

You will learn to not get get freaked out over wet feet, at least when it not freezing. Wear your regular shoes all the way through. They will get wet and stay wet. That is a nice area to hike. Certainly not a bad second (or whatever it is) hike.

[Coffee]

What has worked reasonably well for me with water crossings is to remove my socks and insoles before any place where I know my trail runners (Cascadias) are going to get soaking wet. After the crossing, I take off the shoes, dry my feet, put on the dry socks, insert insoles, and proceed. Depending on humidity, the trail runners dry relatively quickly, or not at all. Of course, if it is raining hard, shoes and socks will get soaked no matter what you do. I never try to cross any streams barefoot. The risk is too high. Nor do I carry water shoes due to the added weight.

[Ricky&Jack]

You will learn to not get get freaked out over wet feet, at least when it not freezing. Wear your regular shoes all the way through. They will get wet and stay wet. That is a nice area to hike. Certainly not a bad second (or whatever it is) hike.

Okay. I guess Im just paranoid because of what Leutenant Dan said in forest Gump about socks and wet feet..

When I did the approach trail a few weeks ago, I wore some cheap $19 walmart shoes that had the bottoms almost wore out. I was worried about them breaking on the hike, so I carried a second paid of older walmart shoes (my pair before it) as a backup...... My feet felt great when I made camp. Not a second of pain. But there was a hole in the bottom so I threw them into the fire and just used my backup pair for the return hike. And within minutes of putting my backup pair on, my feet really sucked. felt like i was barefoot on rocks.... took 4 days til my feet felt fine at home to recover.

So that's the reason Im over-thinking (freaking out) about comfy shoes that I need to only last a little while til the disability check arrives.

[rafe]

Rick: Your feet will take an awful beating, and more so after days of walking on wet, muddy trail. I'm not aware of any silver bullets to deal with this but one thing to do is make sure you get your feet as warm and dry as possible at camp and while you're sleeping. IMO, it's critical to have a base layer and a pair of socks that's always clean and dry -- stuff you never wear while hiking but reserve for camp.

In the worst of times you'll be putting on cold, wet socks in the morning and inserting them into cold wet hiking shoes. Stuff happens. I don't know any way around it. Good news is that you hardly notice after the first few minutes of hiking.

[Ricky&Jack]

Rick: Your feet will take an awful beating, and more so after days of walking on wet, muddy trail. I'm not aware of any silver bullets to deal with this but one thing to do is make sure you get your feet as warm and dry as possible at camp and while you're sleeping. IMO, it's critical to have a base layer and a pair of socks that's always clean and dry -- stuff you never wear while hiking but reserve for camp.

In the worst of times you'll be putting on cold, wet socks in the morning and inserting them into cold wet hiking shoes. Stuff happens. I don't know any way around it. Good news is that you hardly notice after the first few minutes of hiking.

Okay. You pretty much put me at ease.... Now its time to head to academy etc to find shoes, and camp shoes/crocs

[Sarcasm the elf]

Academy should have "New Balance", New balance makes an awesome trail shoe and they will last alot longer than 100m, if academy don't have them then Shoe Show will, they cost between 40-50 dollars, I personnaly know hikers that hiked the entire AT using 2 pairs so they will last a good 500-800m comfortably. and i have used them i have hiked many miles in a pair of New Balance.

I would second the suggestion of looking for a pay of New Balance trail runners on sale/clearance. I don't know if they actually call them trail runners, but look for the ones with a fairly beefy tread.

As far as your question about water crossings, in warm weather I usually just walk through with my trail runners on. Some people prefer to take their shoes off, but I like the added stability when I'm walking in a stream. I find that synthetic trail shoes dry off quickly enough when you hike in them for a while.

[Malto]

I would second the suggestion of looking for a pay of New Balance trail runners on sale/clearance. I don't know if they actually call them trail runners, but look for the ones with a fairly beefy tread.

As far as your question about water crossings, in warm weather I usually just walk through with my trail runners on. Some people prefer to take their shoes off, but I like the added stability when I'm walking in a stream. I find that synthetic trail shoes dry off quickly enough when you hike in them for a while.

RS, the difference with this trail is that you are in and out of water constantly. After the first couple of crossings, I just said F it and lived with wet shoes. A single crossing, maybe you could croc it, but you would spend more time changing shoes then hiking.

[Ricky&Jack]

yeah, if i read right, its 21 crossings for a 9 mile trail..... or something

[MuddyWaters]

The best shoe is the one that fits you the best, breathable, with roomy toe box. Everything else doesnt matter.

My son used several pairs from Academy while he was growing fast. Nike alvalords, adidas kanadia come to mind. Dont be hung up on brand name, go by what feels good.

[rocketsocks]

The best shoe is the one that fits you the best, breathable, with roomy toe box. Everything else doesnt matter.

My son used several pairs from Academy while he was growing fast. Nike alvalords, adidas kanadia come to mind. Dont be hung up on brand name, go by what feels good.

This all the way, everybody perceives comfort differently. Now that said, when it comes to sneakers, you for the most part, pretty much get what you pay for. That's not to say there aren't deals out there to be found, but....

check out steap and cheap for some, sometimes good deals, Woot, Sierra trading post, and Moose jaw


http://www.steepandcheap.com/?CMP_ID...teep_and_cheap

http://sport.woot.com/?ref=gh_sp_6

http://www.sierratradingpost.com/?af...processed=true

http://www.moosejaw.com/moosejaw/sho...FXQOOgod7DAAbA

[Coffee]

But there was a hole in the bottom so I threw them into the fire ...

Ok, ok, someone has to say it ... Please do not attempt to dispose of shoes by burning them in campfires.

[Venchka]

... But there was a hole in the bottom so I threw them into the fire ...

I have to call "BS" on that.
Pack it in.
Pack it out.

Academy will have useful shoes. Follow the link I posted earlier. You might bust your budget. Your feet will thank you.
I have a pair of New Balance 8 hundred something model number cross trainer/trail runners/whatever you want to call them/beefed up running shoes that I had in New Orleans before Katina (2005). After wearing them for work and casual dress several years, I retired them to grass cutting/fishing/wading/banging around duty. They are still in my garage and I wear them to work in the yard/play in the mud/wade in the lake. They still work. No holes. No split seams. I can't break them. back in my canoeing days, I had other shoes that got wet routinely (living in New Orleans forever that happens a lot) and they didn't melt from a little water. Call me a snob, but I have never owned a pair of shoes from a no mane company. As a result, my shoes don't fall apart. They may look like death, but they just keep working. Mrs. Wayne usually throws them out when I'm not looking. They still have life left in them.
One more time: Buy quality once. That doesn't mean the most expensive. I look for sales, closeouts, etc. It has always been less expensive for me to buy good quality at a decent price versus cheap crap that falls apart. That applies to a lot of categories. Not just outdoor toys.

Wayne

[Venchka]

Thanks Coffee. I was typing and you were posting.

Wayne