Sore Feet - Does it end?

[dog_walkin]

I'm curious of those who hike the AT. Is there a point at which your feet aren't aching at the end of the day? If you start hiking 10 miles a day and work your way to 20+, do your feet still hurt at the end of the day the way they did when you first started? Does the ache ever go away, and if so when? Weeks, months, never?

I've never hiked on a continual basis the way one would on a thru-hike. My feet are always aching after a 10+ mile hike, and I'm wondering does it really ever get better?

Thru-hikers please share.

Thanks,

Dave

[Kaptain Kangaroo]

Well, everyone is different, but here is my experience...

I don't suffer from aching feet. Even after 60+ mile day hikes I've never had any issues with aching feet.

Also had no problems for 3/4 of my thru-hike. But for the last 500-600 miles I found that my feet did ache badly in the mornings. I would get out of my sleeping bag & my feet would be swollen & very tender for the first 15-20 minutes of walking. I would hobble around camp for a while, but then they did settle down & by the time I had packed up they were ready to go. I just put that down to 3 months of abuse.........

If your feet ache after only 10 miles perhaps you have foot and/or shoe issues. Get some professional advice to fix the problem. if you are planning to thru-hike you have to look after your feet...they have a big job to do !

[Nean]

It took many a year for my feet not to ache in the begining of a long hike.
My solution: 1advil every 5 miles
Light shoes and pack help too.

[sbhikes]

60+ mile day hikes? Really?

My experience is that a long day of hiking makes my feet hurt. But the restorative power of sleep is amazing. I was amazed how I could hike 30 miles a day, day after day, ending the day hobbling but waking up the next morning feeling great. So long as my shoes weren't destroying my feet (which they did at one point.) Once I got the shoe thing right, I could hike near 30 mile days every day for months without advil. Not without pain, but not enough pain to need advil.

[Nean]

60+ mile day hikes? Really?

My experience is that a long day of hiking makes my feet hurt. But the restorative power of sleep is amazing. I was amazed how I could hike 30 miles a day, day after day, ending the day hobbling but waking up the next morning feeling great. So long as my shoes weren't destroying my feet (which they did at one point.) Once I got the shoe thing right, I could hike near 30 mile days every day for months without advil. Not without pain, but not enough pain to need advil.

Well, I'm not very tough.
I guess you didn't cry yourself to sleep every night for the first 3 months either?

[Spirit Walker]

For me, when I'm thruhiking, anything over about 22 miles kills my feet. A lot of consecutive 20's can also cause problems. If I do over 25 I end up unable to sleep because my feet and legs hurt so much. But then, I also have arthritis in my feet - and almost no natural padding.

You do get used to walking big miles. But not everybody can do 30's, and generally speaking, you don't have to, even on the PCT.

[Chomp09]

Long story short, if you're on a thru hike, at some point or another your feet are going to start bothering you. And it's probably not going to go away until you stop abusing them on a daily basis. The million dollar question is how much is "normal" and unfortunately the answer to that is different for everyone depending on their gate, stride, tolerance for discomfor/pain, etc. If your feet are bothering you after only 5 or 10 mile days there's a good chance you could benefit from different shoes or perhaps some sort of orthotic.

[dog_walkin]

Orthotics do help. I wear them on a daily basis.

[Sierra Echo]

Maybe your shoes aren't a good fit?

[dog_walkin]

Orthotics do help. I wear them on a daily basis.

[Pedaling Fool]

When I started my thru-hike in 2006 I hadn't really hiked for years and I started with a very heavy pack - ~70lbs so I think I experienced more foot pain than average. It was so bad it was difficult to go to sleep at night and if I bumped my feet too hard it would wake me -- a lot of rough sleeping.

I finally got over it a little after Damascus, so the answer is 500 miles of continuous hiking.

However, YMMV

[dog_walkin]

Thanks. Yours is the sort of reply I was hoping for. Hope to see more.

[LoneRidgeRunner]

Well, everyone is different, but here is my experience...

60+ mile day hikes

!

Surely that's a typo...seems impossible

[Kerosene]

My feet would always start to ache after about 12 miles, even after I got my pack weight under 30 pounds. I solved the problem with orthotics, namely the Spenco Backpacker Insoles, which helped with my high arches. Of course, you may need slightly larger boots to accommodate the orthotics.

My guess is that after 1,000 miles or so most people will start to have foot problems as their feet widen and start to flatten.

[10-K]

Lots of variables...

Terrain: 200 miles in PA walking over rocks - my feet hurt. Any 200 mile section in NC - my feet don't hurt.

Shoes: No matter what, the insoles of my trail runners are shot after 300 miles. Then I put in a pair of Superfeet.

Weather: Wet feet are a main ingredient in the creation of foot problems.

Weight: Heavy packs are another main ingredient in sore feet.

Time: Hiking longer than your feet are conditioned for cause sore feet.


So..... yes, my feet quit hurting whenever I get all of the above taken care of. If not, then no, they'll hurt until I get home.

[sbhikes]

Well, I'm not very tough.
I guess you didn't cry yourself to sleep every night for the first 3 months either?

If it's that bad, there's something wrong with your shoes. I did cry myself to sleep, well, not to sleep because the shooting pains wouldn't let me sleep. That was just before my broken feet made me leave the trail. It was my shoes. They literally broke the bones in my feet.

You need better shoes. Try anything that'll work. For me it was less support and more cushioning and way more WIDTH. For other people it's more support.

[Nean]

If it's that bad, there's something wrong with your shoes. I did cry myself to sleep, well, not to sleep because the shooting pains wouldn't let me sleep. That was just before my broken feet made me leave the trail. It was my shoes. They literally broke the bones in my feet.

You need better shoes. Try anything that'll work. For me it was less support and more cushioning and way more WIDTH. For other people it's more support.

No advil with broken feet?!? Dang - you are a tough one!

I'm lucky in that I can wear most any shoe. Terrain and weight are my biggest factors in footache. The PCT is so smooth and well graded it would take bad shoes to start a hurt.

For me it took a couple of months in the begining to get all the kinks out of the body- and that depends on many things. These days I don't have much of a break in period.

[general]

take rest stops during the day and take your shoes and socks off for a few minutes.

[Skid.]

I had that problem with hiking boots at the end of every day, then switched to trail running shoes. I did 80-plus miles over 6 days last week, no blisters, no black toe, no problem.

[darkage]

I had that problem with hiking boots at the end of every day, then switched to trail running shoes. I did 80-plus miles over 6 days last week, no blisters, no black toe, no problem.

Same here, i found blister free love with a pair of asics .... light pair of train runner's with a good insole is what i'm talkin about ...