Long distance hikes: the great discussion

Trail runners for a thru hike.
Boots for just about everything else except day hikes.

>>959008
Watching this with interest. Walked some of the GR5 for a week in the Alps last summer. I thought boots were necessary there because it was sharp rocks underfoot for much of the way. But I did find them hard to air out - they got very moist by the 5th day. And it didn't even rain. We were doing about 12-15km a day with 9-10kg packs. Those boots were throw away at the end, but had done almost a decade of service. So were cost effective.

I wear trail runners most days as I must walk about 10km per workday, and they are more comfortable than boots by a large margin.

I think if I am doing grassy trails rather than rock, I might try trail runners instead of boots. But make sure it's appropriate to conditions I think.

kinda depends on the climate you know

>>959008
I've twisted my ankle during various activities (skateboarding a few times, playing football where I damn near snapped it all the way off) so I'm cautious about wearing shoes that don't cover my ankles, especially if I'm carrying a pack. I love trail runners when I'm doing a day hike or actually going trail running, but for anything else my personal choice is a boot (even just a 6".) You can definitely find some that will offer every bit of flexibility in the toe area and on top.

>>959038
>GR5
I'm interested. Do you think you could answer a few quick questions?

Which part did you do? Was it worth it? And did you camp?

>>959008
Trail runners all day every day. I'd only go with boots for waterproofness during a season/period I'm expecting heavy mud.

Anytime I wear a shoe with "ankle support" I feel like I'm going to break my ankle. The muscles around my ankle are built up enough that if I roll it in normal shoes I feel totally fine. Same with the heel support and toe protection.

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amazing for cross country, talus hopping, scree surfing, mud, grass, traveling light or heavy, anything you can throw at it while /out/.

but just 20 minutes around town on asphalt and tile is murder in mylegs.

This should really be called /outgear/. I see more stuff to buy than I do actual pics and stories.

>>959906
>>959917
I will probably do this 800km hike that it's through dirt road, some parts of mountain trail and also asphalt, and kinda a decent part of it, I imagine. Do you think it's still the best option? I would appreciate your input.
I did this 250km hike with regular running shoes and it completely murdered my feet, I need to choose wisely this time.

>>959944
i'm >>959917
i bought those shoes because they had the toughest, stiffest soles i could find because i wanted them specifically for aggressive cross country travel on backcountry climbing trips. they've been great for that (i bought another pair once the first died), but they have almost no shock absorbance on hard surfaces. for carrying a load on mixed trail/road i'd suggest you look for something with a tougher sole than a regular running shoe, but not so beefy as an off-trail trailrunner.

>>959948
Thanks anon.
The ideal would be going to a store like rei? with tons of variety to see and test but I live in this country where there aren't that many /out/ specific gear stores so I will probably buy from the internet and fucking it bad anyways lel.

>>959953
trying on is absolutely the best. if you must order online get them someplace with a good return policy. 800 km is no time to fuck around with bad footwear.

>>959034
Boots for serious day hikes too. Trail runners for gravel park paths.