I am still working on making my own hiking shoes. I stumbled on some scrap leather so decided to make leather shoes. These have leather uppers/lining and insoles, a 6mm EVA midsole and 8mm Vibram Newflex outsole. I really like the Newflex. It has good traction and a nice feel and it's light. Barefoot Ted uses Newflex for his huarache sandals. These shoes do not feel heavy at all.



I wore them on an 8 mile hike. The trail was really muddy, which was quite sad. But I washed off the shoes and they survived. There had been rain and the trail was very wet, but my feet never felt wet even though the shoes looked wet. I guess the lining helps. (They are lined with some thin leather.)

My feet did get sore, though. I've been learning to make shoes so I can make simple shoes. Not exactly "barefoot hiking" but minimalist shoes for hiking. I don't know if it's my feet are weak from decades of arch support and cushioning or if my shoes are just too thick and stiff, but my feet were sore and tired by the end of the hike. I will have to try other minimal shoes to see if it's my feet or my shoes.

Anyway, I keep on trying. Making shoes is totally worth it even if I can't make them better than the Chinese.

Your shoes just keep getting better and better! I'm impressed. One of these days I'll get around to trying this for myself, but in the meantime I'm going to try to learn from your experience so I'll be ready when the time comes to make my own pair.

What kind of sewing machine did you use?

--B.G.--

They are hand stitched with an awl.

Impressive. The stitching looks so consistent.

--B.G.--