Lightweight Hiking Boots

Lightweight hiking boots have come a long way since the fall of 1998 when I took my last "traditional" backpacking trip. That was the last time I wore my traditional heavy all leather hiking boots.

Today I use lightweight hiking boots, or Trail Runners.

My first pair of trail runners where made by Nike . I put over 400 miles on them. They stood up better than I thought they would. Considering the Rocks/Roots/& Erosion that's typical of New England hiking trails, I was quite impressed!

My first pair of lightweight hiking boots where made by New Balance. I bought them for use when light snow might be encountered.

Lightweight Hiking Boots and Trail Runner Skepticism

After the umbrella (or maybe tied with it), backpacking without heavy hiking boots was high on my list of skepticism. At first I only day hiked in my lightweight hiking boots, carrying no weight on my back. As I became confident that I was not going to roll and break my ankles I started to carry more and more weight. Before long I had hiked to the summits of both Mt Katahdin - 5268' and Mt Washington - 6288' carrying double the weight than I planned on carrying while ultralight backpacking. At that point I left my heavy hiking boots behind.

My traditional all leather hiking boots weighed over 4 lbs. per pair.
My lightweight hiking boots around 2 lbs
My trail runners weigh 1.5 lbs.

The often-quoted adage that a pound on your feet equals five on your back sure is true!

What an incredible freedom... light weight hiking boots, and trail runners, have added more miles to my day with less effort than any other Ultralight Backpacking technique I've used!