[pct-l] some about footcare from a 01 'thru hiker

[crow@skylab.org (sister crow)]

Hi,

I wanted to offer the thru hikers some advice.   I walked the entire
trail last year.  It was a great experience but almost immediately my
feet hurt.   I kept trying new shoes thinking maybe they where the
problem.  I went thru 12 pairs, I think. 

My feet hurt the whole time sometimes excruciating.  If I had to do it
over again I would see a podiatrist before going to see if s/he could
see any problems with my feet.  Also I would want to have someone to
call in case of foot problems.  So I would look for a sport podiatrist.
I would have in my drift box at Mt.Laguna everything I could possible
need to fix my feet including the book "fixing your feet" and the foot
smart catalogue www.footsmart.com.  

I don't know if custom insole would have helped but once on the trail
podiatrists are hard to come by, So it may be worth it to get them if
your podiatrist thinks they may help.

After coming home my feet didn't improve I couldn't walk barefoot and I
couldn't walk more then an hour without pain and numbing.  I bought a
pair of Chaco sandals and they totally fixed my feet.  

Also....soak your feet when you can in the cool streams along the trail
and when you get into town ice your feet, elevate them and I even found
wrapping an ace bandage around them helped.    For some reason it took
me the whole trail to learn this...I would always head for the hot bath
in town instead of the ice.   

Best of luck on your journey.

-Pat '01