A few people have been asking about what kind of footwear they will need for the walk, and in particular a few North American walkers may not be familiar with walking conditions in the north of England in summer, so I thought I would put up a post to help people out in deciding what gear they need to bring / buy.
This post isn’t supposed to be patronising in any way, and its just my own personal opinion, but I thought it may help some walkers. I also don’t want to scare anyone into spending lots of money. You can really do the walk in pretty much any footwear you have (bar high heels) so long as they are properly worn in.
I have put some indicative prices on here and there are links to review sites with prices, but if you are lucky enough to be American, you will probably pay significantly less for footwear, as in England we like to pay over the odds for our sporting goods!
Also if you are American, I have some quick translations to help you through the post:
- £1 = around $1.50 (or less nowadays)
- Trainer = sneaker you might use for training
- Plaster = band-aid (in the UK the term “band-aid” refers to “a singing group of celebrities”)
Walk Conditions
The Hadrians Wall path should be pretty well laid out for most of the way, with few rocky sections and some small hills but nothing really large (depending on your definition!). The main thing to contend with will probably be the English weather! Basically in July in the North it can quite easily be very warm at around 25 degrees celcius (I don’t know what that is in faranheit?) and sunny and dry. It could also quite easily be raining heavily or lightly or somewhere in the middle. More likely we will get a mixture of the two across the days. Rain causes bogs and puddles which can get your feet wet. These different possible scenarios leave two main options with regard to footwear:
Approach Shoes - ‘Approach shoe’ is a posh way of referring to a sturdy trainer (sneaker) normal sports trainers (sneakers) probably wont be suitable. They can come at all kinds of prices from £20 to £100. In the UK Merrell and Solomon and North Face do some nice approach shoes, but at the end of the day it wouldn’t make much difference if you went for some cheaper ones (Karrimor and Hi-Tec do some reasonably prices ones). Trail magasine reviews can be found here and give professional as well as user opinions of different shoes.
Advantages – They are light and comfortable and at the end of a days walking the weight saving may leave you feeling a little less tired than others. They say that a 100gram saving on your feet is worth a 400gram saving in your backpack, in terms of being fresh for walking.
Disadvantages – The main drawback with the approach shoe is waterproofing. Even if you have some expensive goretex shoes, it only takes one deep puddle to leave you with wet-feet for the rest of the day. This wouldnt normally be a problem, apart from you are going to have to put the same shoes on the next day to walk again, and that will be pretty uncomfortable. If you go for approach shoes, I would recommend taking a spare pair of trainer or something as a back up (and to wear in the evening when the last thing you want to do is put your walking hoes back on again!
The other disadvantage is that approach shoes have less support for the ankle. I have never found this an issue and have been up some pretty big mountains in them, but if you are prone to twisted ankles etc, you may want to consider boots.
Walking Boots – Walking boots come in all different shapes and sizes. If you are going to go for boots, I would say you may as well get some that are waterproof. Boots can be waterproof through leather outers (such as the middle pair shown in the picture), through the use of membrane liners (such as goretex) or even through waterproof treatment of synthetic boots. They also vary significantly in price (£35-£250). Trail magasine reviews of 3 season boots are here (these will probably be enough), and reviews of 3-4 season boots are here.
Advantages – Hopefully you will arrive at the other end with dry feet! Also they have ankle support as it is likely there will be one or two rougher tracks encountered during the week.
Disadvantages - They are heavy and may tire you out quicker. Boots can also be very hot (in particular if they have waterproof lining like goretex), and you may end up a little sweaty.
Sometimes at the end of the day you may not want to put your boots back on to go to the pub or to hang around it, so if you do go for boots, you may want to carry a spare pair of light trainers (sneakers) or sandal or something with you.
Comfortable Walking
Basically whatever you go for, its worth thinking about how comfortable you are going to be on day four after walking for three days and having more walking ahead of you.
Blisters can be a nightmare. One of my friends (who incidentally reads electricity meters for a living and covers 7 miles every day) had to drop out on day two of our Pennine Way trip because he had too many blisters because he hadn’t worn his boots in properly. The most important thing is make sure you wear your boots in, and wear proper walking socks, you should be fine. Anti blister plasters (band-aids) such as Compeed (in the UK) are invaluable for minimising the number you get.
That’s a réally useful post. If I find a couple of hours I’m going to some stores to do some scouting for shoes and socks (not gonna buy anything in a haste..but I’m going to seriously start the search for a decent pair).
I’ll bring some compeed, miracle stuff in my experience.
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Sam Reply:
October 6th, 2009 at 8:54 pm
@Arjan, I have also just realised that Team Bandicoot contains a Pediatrist (foot doctor) who may be in demand on that middle day
Sam´s last blog ..Top 10 Movie Characters
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Thanks for the great advice– I’ve been wondering about how rough exactly the trail is going to be. From what I’ve read, it is very well traveled and mostly closed in the winter months, so I figured it must be fairly well groomed, without too many huge mudholes and such.
I have a friend who has hiked a good portion of the Appalachian Trail and I have been meaning to pick his brain about shoes, socks, backpacks, general clothing advice, etc.
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Dan Reply:
October 6th, 2009 at 1:09 am
@JJ Daddy-O, I have dreams of walking the Appalachian Trail. Although I’d refuse to camp more than acoupe of nights so I think it’s probably going to remain a dream.
As you say, the path should be fairly easy going. No need to go overboard. I’m pretty certain it’ll be the socks that save your feet rather than the boots.
Dan´s last blog ..A butterfly rash
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Sam Reply:
October 6th, 2009 at 8:57 pm
@JJ Daddy-O, I was going to write something on waterproofs at a later date, but any guest posts are welcome.
Sam´s last blog ..Top 10 Movie Characters
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I can’t decide if I’m going to buy new boots for this or not. I’m not convinced the ones I have now are properly waterproof.
Dan´s last blog ..A butterfly rash
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I decided to go with a pair of light hiking boots from Asolo, which should give the support without the heaviness (there will be plenty of weight elsewhere). I’m bringing a pair of sneakers for off the trail. Maybe at some point I’ll go barefoot and splash in a few puddles. If Helen walks topless, stripping off my socks and shoes is the least I can do.
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Sam Reply:
October 6th, 2009 at 8:56 pm
@Idaho Dad, sounds like a good idea to me. Though we may demand you refer to sneakers as trainers.
Sam´s last blog ..Top 10 Movie Characters
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I asked you’re brother for some advice on buying footwear, and he gave a response akin to what I imagine a McDonalds employee might give if I asked if they would recommend anything from the menu. Complete with shrugged shoulders.
I have ended up procuring some lightweight boots. Mammut. They are cool, and I’ve been wearing them a lot already.
SingleParentDad´s last blog ..Family portraits and an image update
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Useful post ta Sam. I have been given some boots by my mum which I might practice in. Knowing her they’ll be a good make and barely worn. I am prone to turned ankles as mine are a bit weedy so I will definitely be purchasing some of my own at some point though. Either that or Santa will bring me some.
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