[pct-l] Foot ready, are you?

[Diane Soini]

Before my PCT hike I was already an avid hiker that put in weekly miles 
in So Cal. However, something about the PCT still gave me blisters.

One mistake I made was the shoes I started out with were goretex. Never 
wear goretex shoes. They will kill your feet. Search goretex shoes and 
Andrew Skurka if you don't believe me. He does not even recommend them 
in wet conditions.

The trouble with the PCT is that it is too maintained. It is very very 
smooth. There is hardly any variation as you walk. Barely any rocks 
underfoot. If there is a slope to the tread, it lasts for 10 miles. It's 
a perpetual motion injury machine. It starts with blisters between your 
big and 2nd toe. Then you favor your foot because of the blister and the 
change in your gait causes problems in your knees or your hips. Soon you 
think you have knee problems. Then you get to a long climb with the 
trail tilted outward to the slope. Your little pinky toe on that side 
turns into a massive blister. Then it's 10 miles to the other side and 
your other pinky toe is hamburger.

Not much you can do really but wear breathable shoes, stop and air out 
your feet often, change your socks a lot, and take care of any blisters 
and hotspots as soon as possible. It'll pass. After the Sierras, which 
is a couple hundred miles of your feet being constantly wet, your feet 
will be impervious.

On 02/07/2014 06:00 PM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 6
> Date: Fri, 7 Feb 2014 10:19:38 -0500 (EST)
> From: Joshua Walsh<jpwalk38z at aol.com>
> Subject: [pct-l] Foot ready, are you?
>
>
> Any Solutions or advice?
>
> Please respond with comments for or against. Any constructive advice is welcome!