Old boots?

[Lmer]

Hello everyone,
I am planning to walk the Camino del Norte starting in mid-May. I am an experienced hiker, and I have a pair of mid-rise Merrell hiking boots. They have served me very well for the last five years on many long hikes and backpacking trips, and I like/need the ankle support, but they are not in the greatest shape anymore.

Shall I continue to wear these old ones down with this Camino, or should I get new boots and break them in before May?

Thanks!

 

[wayfarer]

Welcome to the forum Lmer. If you think that your boots have a Camino left in them, then stick with them IMO. As you are an experienced hiker you will be able to examine them in detail and make a call on that. You will also need a backup plan in case they do give up the ghost on route.
Wishing you a great Camino.
Buen Camino.

 

[jsalt]

Shall I continue to wear these old ones down with this Camino

Unhesitatingly . . . YES!

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

With a similar choice I decided to buy new boots. Now that the camino is over I can wear out my older ones on short day hikes and use the newer pair on longer backpacking trips where I rather not have a wardrobe malfunction. But really I think it depends on whether you can get the new pair broken-in before the camino.

 

[Tia Valeria]

Welcome to the forum @Lmer
I broke in my new boots for the Camino and wore the others out at home. You have about 9 weeks I guess, which worked with mine OK (different brand). If they are not ready to your satisfaction by that time you could risk the old pair on the Camino and hope that they hold out. Best of both worlds and leaves a choice, also you will have 9 weeks less 'practise' wear on the old pair, whatever distance that is.
Buen Camino

 

[Hiawatha]

I love my old hiking boots , I treat them like old dogs and horses , they rest in the sun and other pleasant places around the farm and don't have to work any more .
When I pass them each pair reminds me of the places I have been and things that I would not have seen unless carried there by them .
Love your old boots but don't ask too much of them , if they fail while you are walking you will have no choice but to buy and break in new ones and that would be difficult and probably painful .
Worse still you may have to discard your ' old faithfuls ' along the Camino .

 

[Deleted member 43985]

It's a long walk and if, as you say, they are not in the greatest of shape anymore, I'd consider a new pair. Even though the Camino isn't a technical hike, there is lots of walking on roads, sidewalks, etc that put a pretty good deal of abuse on the outsoles of your footwear. It sounds like you've found a brand and model of boot that really works for you so all you would need to do is getting some good miles in them before you leave and you'd be in pretty good shape. Buen Camino!!

 

[Kitsambler]

Especially on the Camino Frances, but generally true elsewhere, there is a substantial fraction of the route that is pavement walking. So, if you want to use your already broken-in boots, you might think about replacing the insoles (if you haven't already).

 

[Satírico]

Greetings,

Be wary. Not long after leaving Irun you will have to choose between an 'Alpinista' route with a very steep climb, or a lower, 'easier' path which I guess most of us opt for. I was there last April and the path was entirely made of sharp stones. It was brutal. You might want to check if there's a good outdoors store in San Sebastián.

Buen camino.

 

[Satírico]

Show them to your podiatrist. While the armchair physicians on this site usually take good care of their patients, it never hurts to get an independent opinion.

I think we all have 'independent' opinions.

 

[Dylan Price]

Hello everyone,
I am planning to walk the Camino del Norte starting in mid-May. I am an experienced hiker, and I have a pair of mid-rise Merrell hiking boots. They have served me very well for the last five years on many long hikes and backpacking trips, and I like/need the ankle support, but they are not in the greatest shape anymore.

Shall I continue to wear these old ones down with this Camino, or should I get new boots and break them in before May?

Thanks!

Hmm that is a tough one. I guess at 5 years old they are likely on the end of their life. Remember the outside and sole may look ok but the cushioning inside has taken 5 years of pounding so wont be up to long punishment - especially f you are talking 20-25km a day.

Also consider that the North route does not have as many options to buy new boots if yours die on you - so you may be walking in damaged boots for a while or end up having to buy sub standard new boots on the walk. This is something that happened to my wife when hers failed half way in. carrion had limited options so we went with the best we could get - which unfortunately left her with blisters on the undersoles of her feet for pretty much the rest of the walk.

I think if it was me I would be getting a good pair now and breaking them in nicely.

 

[Addicted]

Two things, yes the older the foot/shoe the better they feel and we all want to keep them. The second point is that rubber does degrade over time and a few years might be pushing the envelope . I recently spoke to a shoe repair shop about this issue. Be careful with old shoes. I met a young man on the Camino Portugal who had new pair of shoes ( never worn ) but were in the closet for a couple years. They fell apart completely on day two. He had larger feet and had a very difficult time for several days
Buen Camino friend

 

[Lmer]

Thanks everyone! I've been eyeing some new boots at Aux Vieux Campeur (it's like REI in France, and I live in Strasbourg at the moment). Still undecided. But I appreciate all the different perspectives!

 

[t2andreo]

My first pair of Keen Targhee II, mid-high boots lasted four Caminos (Frances 2x, Porto, & Madrid (partial)). I had them resoled twice after each Camino Frances.

Perhaps my SOLE (no pun intended) criticism of this brand / style boot is that the tread material is a tad bit soft or thin for extended use. Actually, I did communicate that observation, with photos, to Keen after my first Camino in 2013.

In my experience these boots are good for perhaps 1,000 Km before the mid-sole material stars poking through at the heels. I accumulated that much for training and actually walking the first Camino in 2013.

The reason I stayed with these boots is that they conformed perfectly to my feet and needed no break-in each year, even after resoling. You can find resoling services over the internet by searching for hiking boot resoling.

Just as an FYI, in four years, over about 2,500 km I have not had ONE BLISTER wth these boots. I wear a thin microfiber liner sock for moisture wicking and abrasion / friction resistance, and a Smart Wool outer sock for cushioning and insulation. Your feet are no doubt different, as your experience will be. But this works for me.

Once you locate a vendor that resoles hiking boots, if your specific brand or style is not listed in an advert, send a message to them asking if they will can do your specific brand, style, size boots / shoes or sandals. Often, and this was my experience, my boots were not listed, but they did a factory perfect job each time.

The vulcanizing adhesion processed used to affix these soles are universal form brand to brand. So, it is a question of whether the resoling vendor has access to the factory-original "fixings" components. hat was my experience with the Keen boots.

This year, I have another pair of the exact Keen boots. Hopefully, I will be able to use them on Camino. But I must break them in locally first. Then there are my income taxes to consider....grrrrr!

I hope this helps.

 

[Awakekiwi]

I would actually say don't use old or new boots! And im quite serious about this.. The Camino is totally different to hiking.. most of the time you are walking on hard surfaces, concrete, pavement, roads, stone paths etc.. not so much dirt or tracks.. 80% hard surfaces.. you need really good heal support. In my experience many I saw who were using hiking boots got blisters or had to have lots of blister creams or bandages to stop blisters. Also sweating in the boots also caused problems.
Plus you need to choose a size larger than normal because your feet will swell up, and then those boots will be too big for normal hiking later on. Please consider this carefully. Many I saw with boots were having problems, spending a lot of time tending to their feet every morning and night.. Im saying this from experience. My friend she wore hiking boots and was in constant pain from day 2 onwards and had to buy gel inserts to take the strain off her heals.
I wore the high end Teva hiking sandals with Shoc pad heal support the whole way. I never had any blisters or problems with my feet at all.. the shocpad made the difference between ordinary sandals.. they drained easily in the wet.. were the perfect temperature in all conditions and made my whole camino that much nicer. My friend was in tears and pain every day.
I had terrible hay fever so i guess that was my sacrifice to the camino gods
Just be aware hiking boots are not the best thing for the camino.. people assume they are because its along distance.. but you dont need ankle support on the camino.. 80% is on flat hard surfaces..
If you google search advice about footwear for the camino you'll also find many others who have said the same.
Many who walked the camino in boots the first time, used sandals every other time after..
Once we were two thirds through the camino her pain was so great that I took her into a shoe shop and bought her some Tevas with the shoc pads, 10 minutes later she was crying with relief and so grateful.
So I would consider this very carefully. I also saw many people throw away their boots (sometimes new) on the camino or post them back home to save weight and buy hiking sandals.
I spoke to many along the way who had also transitioned to open soled shoes like mine to stop the sweating, blisters and pain. You can always buy them along the way in various places and post your boots back home if needed. Just make sure they have really good heal support.
Enjoy!

 

[C clearly]

In my experience everyone I saw who were using hiking boots got blisters or had to have lots of blister creams or bandages to stop blisters... Everyone I saw with boots were having problems,

Goodness! I guess you didn't see me on the Camino!

 

[Awakekiwi]

yes perhaps i will edit this to read many or most.. it was not accurate.. i have edited it now..
Im sure some will be fine if they have the perfect boots for them.. I have never liked boots as I like my feet to breath so I guess im biased!

 

[Lurch]

Things to think about. If you take your old pair and they self-destruct any shoes you buy will have to be broken in on the trail. Probably at your feet's expense. Plus your choice will be better at home.