Thread: Lightweight Footwear. Trail shoes for hunting - Report

The amount of weight on your feet has a huge effect on how tired you are after a few hours' walking.
Lighter feet are nimbler and the chance of twisting your ankle or slipping is much less, too.

I got these heavy duty Keen shoes and did a couple of Great Walks in them. You see a lot of people wearing these around at the moment, at work, in camp, driving, at the range. They are great for protecting your feet on rocky tracks, with the big rubber and leather bit (rand) all around them. Grip is good in the mud and OK on wet rock. I walked several hours in snow and my feet were fine. Changed to dry socks in plastic bags at the bushline. You need some puttee thing to keep sand and gravel out. I got thicker insoles from a safety shop which were good for walking a lot of km.




I've also used trail running shoes and recently changed up to these Mizuno ones that happen to fit my feet very well. They are a heavier model than my two previous ones, so you could go lighter if you wanted. Of course, they're not waterproof at all. They have a sort of sock like capsule inside the toe box that keeps your forefoot under control. Grip is good in mud and soft leaf litter and it's no problem not having a distinct heel step. I don't think they're worn in enough to report on performance on slippery wood. I used them to walk in to Cascade hut and out and they were just fine carrying a pack. Also nimble enough for bush stalking the sika deer.




I know you're tired of looking at old boots, so here's some venison to feast your eyes on. Sika backsteak aged 2 weeks.





Here are my usual lightweight hunting boots, Scarpa Terra GTX.



Weights (pair):
Scarpa Terra GTX with custom insoles 1335g
Keen with Blundstone insoles 982g
Mizuno Wave Mujin M07 827g