Читать книгу Afoot and Afield: Portland/Vancouver. A Comprehensive Hiking Guide онлайн

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Gaiters are also nice to have along, and some hikers wear them all the time. These usually cover from your shoe tops to just below your knees. They keep your feet and lower legs dry, especially when you are traveling through brushy or grassy areas that are often covered with dew or water from the last rain shower. Gaiters also keep snow and mud from crawling over the tops of your boots and getting your feet wet and uncomfortable.

The miracle fabrics discussed above have also done wonders for socks. Today’s high-tech hiking socks provide cushioning comfort while wicking moisture away from your feet to reduce the chance of blisters. I usually wear two pairs of socks. The first is a synthetic wool blend and the second is made of thick, cushy wool. With this system and comfortable boots, I haven’t had a blister in almost a decade of rugged hiking.

As for footwear, the debate about hiking boots versus lightweight shoes has gotten an amazing amount of attention in recent years. For decades, the standard advice was to wear heavy leather hiking boots to keep your feet dry and your ankles supported and to protect your feet on rough wilderness trails. Proponents of super lightweight hiking, on the other hand, scoff at this advice and wouldn’t hike in anything but comfortable running shoes. Luckily, you don’t have to choose because there are a whole range of lightweight hiking boots that rely on synthetic fabrics instead of heavy leather to keep water out. They also provide necessary traction, with soles designed to grip the ground. A good pair of these will meet your needs for most trails. If you are backpacking or traveling on particularly rough or muddy trails, however, you will probably want to rely on a pair of tried-and-true leather boots.