Footwear for dayhikes in heavy rain

After completing a drenching 7 hour dayhike on the LT with Ray and Ridgewalker (look for Ridgewalker's upcoming TR), my Gore Tex and freshly Nikwaxed footwear eventually wetted out and I consequently got soaked feet. I also wore gaiters.

All this leads me to ask the following question: what is your dayhking footwear of choice in torrential rain?

Thanks,
Marty

Comfy slippers. I should also add that my butt is parked in from of the computer screen and I have a glass of single malt scotch handy. I think you have mustered all the equipment and technology a modern capitalistic society can offer at this point, other than the using your browser to find an up to date weather report. Other than to tell you to build a better mousetrap, and necessity is the mother of invention, you have thought of it all. I hope you enjoyed the rain as much in your environment as much as I did in mine.

I've never been able to keep my feet dry through a long rainy hike, so there's nothing special I would do - I'd as usual choose my shoes for the amount of support I think I need - sneakers/low or high boots.

I like squishy boots anyway: It's refreshing, especially when there are potential hot spots. Two weeks of mostly wet hikes in the Grand Canyon showed me that wet feet are not a bad thing.

I gave up on this years ago. I still vividly recall a "hike" that I took with friends on the 19 MI Brook Trail in torrential rain. We were all wearing Goretex and expedition weight thermal polypro underwear. We had abandoned our plan to hiking to the Alpine Garden because of weather. Several hours later we returned to the cabin soaked thru and thru. We were ringing out the underwear and we won't even discuss the feet. We couldn't stop laughing
I have never successfully stayed dry in that kind of weather.
I look at it now as a matter of degree, accepting that I will be wet, but struggling to keep from being completely drenched!!!

My Montrails Torre GTXs stayed reasonably dry yesterday heading up to Bondcliff (it rained for over 8 of our ten hours. My feet finally got wet in the final stream crossing on the way out and by that point I did not care. I do not spend a lot of time waterproofing.
One thing I have seen a lot of hikers do is stick to their waterproof winter boots (Sorels, Columbias etc) during spring mud and rain season. Because mine are rated at minus 40 I opted not to do this, but I may buy another pair in the future that are not as inulated.

Comfy slippers. I should also add that my butt is parked in from of the computer screen and I have a glass of single malt scotch handy

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Paradox - the scotch taste so much better after finishing a wet hike!

For me it's an easy question...light weight rubber boots. Same as I use in the winter if the conditions are overwhelmingly slushy and wet.

Today, I wore 2 layers of socks, and then plastic bags, and then my boots. Worked pretty well!

It's a dayhike, so I figure I have dry socks waiting in the car. Unless, your feet are getting all wrinkly, pruny and hence massed to a bloody pulp, then I wouldn't worry about it. And, if you are having blister problems, you probably have ill fitting boots. Granted, it's not the most comfortable, but it's better than not hiking.

As far as backpacking, I figure I'll be putting on wet boots the next morning. Makes for an uncomfortable minute or two, but it's better than not hiking.

spider solo said:

For me it's an easy question...light weight rubber boots. Same as I use in the winter if the conditions are overwhelmingly slushy and wet.

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Ayuh, as folks do in some famously wet places, e.g., Britain -- Wellies; SE Alaska -- "Southeast sneakers"; and Norway -- gummistøvler like these and these..

Make sure you get boots with a shank (usually steel, sometimes fiberglass or composite) for weight distribution, or your feet will hurt after any stretch of true hiking. None of them are the equal of mountaineering or heavy hiking boots for rock scrambling, but they will keep the wet out on trails. I use Superfeet insoles in the (discontinued) lace-up rubber boots from LaCrosse that I bought several years ago in AK. The insoles help a lot with control and comfort.

My feet sweat a lot, so yes, my socks do get wet, but I never feel bad tromping through stream crossings and puddles when I'm wearing the rubber boots. And my feet stay warm in driving rain and wind at 45 degrees F, because I'm not recirculating heat-bearing water back into the wild.

I don't mind wet feet. I strolled up the Nelson Crag Trail yesterday, all spiffy in my well-greased old Limmers, waterproof gaiters, and full side-zip Gore-Tex rain pants.

My feet were soaking wet at the end of the day.

This is why I chose the region with the "worst weather in America" as my playground. Because I don't mind wet feet.
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"Some people walk in the rain, others just get wet."
- Roger Miller
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dude - its impossible to keep the boots dry on very rainy days, unless your wearing like a wellie or something



- I have given up hope and just deal with it.

Hipwaders!


I have a nice set of Chota Mukluks (3mm neoprene) that I use for launching/landing on early spring paddles. Wouldn't hike in it though even though it has a nice rubber sole to it. It's soooo awesome paddling that I wouldn't risk beating it up.

Jay

Trail Runners!

Trail runners! You can walk through a stream crossing and they still dry up enough in 5 minutes that you feel comfortable! I wore 'em on my backpack this weekend and I was comfortable the entire time!

-Dr. Wu

Paddling shoes will dry fast too and the lack of laces make them quick to put on and off.

When I went to Alaska where you are constantly crossing braided streams, I brought allong my paddling shoes and used them and they doubled as campshoes too..

Plus, you can get them fairly cheap from STP usually... They have a rubberized sole meant to be somewhat grippy to river and lake bottoms.

Jay

Yes, lots of overboots out there. The kind I wear are made by Tingley they weigh next to nothing and roll up nice and small. You just put them on over whatever you nomally wear. I got them at the local feed & grain store. If they get chewed up over time you can just duct tape them or patch them much like you would a bicycle tire. Surprisingly durable and inexpensive.

nice tip about paddling shoes and Chotas'...

This weekend I hiked Friday and Saturday with a pair of Lowa's (Klondikes) and they took a long time to really get wet. It wasn't until the 2nd day that I started sloshing. However, once wet, they keep that sloshing feeling. On Sunday I wore Garmont Nagevi's which are a low light shoe. They got wet pretty fast, but within minutes of walking right through a stream, the sloshing was over and they felt comfortable even though they were wet.

I agree w/ Dr. Wu

Trail runners. Your boots WILL get wet. Wet trail runners weigh a lot less, and will "dry out" within 5 minutes.

trail runner ditto

I agree with WalksWithBlackflies who agrees with Dr. Wu

Onestep

marty said:

All this leads me to ask the following question: what is your dayhking footwear of choice in torrential rain?

Thanks,
Marty

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These

I wear them with Precip pants with the elastic cuffs pulled over the boots.