Re: [pct-l] footwea -- additional info

[radney@ix.netcom.com]

I forgot one of the most important of all footwear equipment 
-- orthotics OR superfeet.  Hope those of you who were on 
the list last year don't get tired of my speil on 
"orthotics," but I can't stress enough how much they made a 
difference to my feet and the rest of my bod and kept me on 
the trail.  They are a MUST for me! If you can't go to a 
podiatrist and get fitted for orthotics, go to the shoe 
store, outdoor gear store, Sports Authority -- whatever and 
try superfeet out now.  You'll be surprised how they can 
help your feet and back in just your everyday walking.  Take 
OUT the shoe inserts and place the superfeet in.  I don't 
recommend getting a cheap brand name -- I did and they don't 
last half as long and they also fell apart.  

>Did you carry sandals from the get go, and what kind did 
you carry?  Both Walt and I carried a pair of Reebock 
sandles that were on the bargain table at the outlet store -
-cost was $5 each and I wish we had picked up a couple more 
pairs of them -- we still use them but the soles are getting 
a bit thin and the fabric sides are a little stretched and 
thin.  Walt made the mistake of cutting off the strap that 
tighted the sandal over his foot.  The end result was 
that this made his sandals less secure when we forded in 
heavy currents and on slippery rocks (he was trying to save 
weight!)  Walt also sent his sandals home before the Sierras 
and wished he hadn't because then he had no other shoe to 
change into for town or just walking around in at night.  
Sandals are much easier to get into when you have to get out 
of your tent to fertilize a tree -- or whatever.  I really 
enjoyed having a change of footwear, and my sandals helped 
me to air my feet out often and also to air out my hiking 
shoes since I wasn't in them.  I changed into sandals at 
lunch, to go for a dip in the water (who knows what is on 
the bottom in some muddy places), in the desert (with socks 
on so my feet wouldn't get sunburned!), and for deep fording 
when my boots weren't already wet and I wanted to keep my 
boots dry.  If we knew we were coming to a section with a 
lot of fords (didn't most of the time) we just crossed in 
our boots.  It is too much trouble to change shoes/sandals, 
at every crossing, especially when you were fighting the 
mosquitoes or other bugs!

>I wish the goretex socks would work for me but my feet 
sweat so that they just get wet from the inside.

I would still suggest taking goretex socks in the Sierras -- 
it really helps keep your feet warm.  It does sound like you 
have a great deal of Mountaineering experience and have 
probably made your winter foot condition choices already.

>I wish you happy and healthy feet :-)

Thanks Margo, they are much happier feet today than have 
ever been.  Thanks also for the great Class '99 Roster!

Pat -- Happy Trails Couple 

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