Creating a new thread to separate "barefoot" from "solo".

Never tried it but everything you ever wanted to know about barefoot hiking can be found at:

http://members.aol.com/bhthom/hikertxt.htm

Interesting. Many indigenous peoples walk long distances barefoot and have no problems. Dont the sherpas that haul a lot of equipment to base camp for Everest climbers walk barefoot a lot? Carrying humongously heavy loads?

Just ditch the shoes and do those 20 miles a day barefoot.

Vlad

All those barefooters out there who casually walk on any evil surface have been doing it since they were born. The soles of their feet are like elephants hides and they have no active nerve endings ! ! !

Way back in 1979 when I went to some idyllic pacific islands I thought I'd give it a go too. Walked about 500 metres on some nasty stuff and realised I was in too much pain and it wasn't gonna work. Problems was I had still to retrace those 500 metres !

So, a few hundred hours of torture will get you there but don't expect your huge flat wide feet to fit into any shoe you own now !

Ian, interesting point. i've seen the feet of individuals from the country of Angola in Africa. they walked barefoot from the time that they were toddlers. thick horny, discolored calloused feet. wonder what Dr. Sif would think about the lack of feeling in their feet? i could feel more through my pair of soft single-soled mocassins (hand made by the Quoddy Indians in Maine).

Edited by pj on 11/16/2006 03:01:38 MST.

Ian, interesting point. i've seen the feet of individuals from the country of Angola in Africa. they walked barefoot from the time that they were toddlers. thick horny, discolored calloused feet. wonder what Dr. Sif would think about the lack of feeling in their feet? i could feel more through my pair of soft single-soled mocassins (hand made by the Quoddy Indians in Maine).
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Siff would have probably argued with you just to argue with you. He was kind of a jerk, at least online. I dont think he could stand to lose an argument, even if he was wrong. He's dead now, he told me "he never took drugs" for his heart condition nor for any other medical condition. Yet he died I read, while in the middle of lifting heavy weights AFTER he had recovered from a heart attack. He wasnt old either when he died. Maybe if he would have been willing to take some cardiovascular drugs and maybe laid off the heavy weights, he might still be alive?

Good judgment he had, huh?

Still, he had some interesting stuff to say. I dont really know if a lot of it was true though.

Vlad

when i was young i was a commercial fisherman working from a beach --9 months a year i hardly ever wore shoes---your feet harden--i could walk 10 miles and not think about my feet---each day i would pull one mile of rope--no gloves--i had big callusses on my hands--people said my hands must be sore --i told them they would be if i did not have the calusses---if i wanted to walk barefoot now i think it would take at least a year to toughen up my feet to walk on tarmac- grass-forest paths etc----and there are certain rough sharp rocks--(the kind that you know are wearing down the soles of your shoes real fast)---that i could never cope with barefoot---------not sure about spelling of callusses-----regards barry

I haven't been to Nepal since the civil war started in fall of 2001, but I didn't see a whole lot of barefoot porters.

You did see a lot of people with shower flip-flops and very cheap slippers with smooth soles (from India, I think). Then whatever leftover footgear trekkers and climbers gave away -- pretty much regardless of fit.

The major walking routes are set with flagstones much of their distance, which wouldn't be that uncomfortable to walk on, at least for short distances. The leeches and the ankle-deep yak dung, on the other hand, would be less than esthetically pleasing.

I walk barefoot most of the time and the soles of my feet are very tough. That said I don't when backpacking - the front lawn is one thing - a trail with sharp rocks and pine needles is another. I also need the ankle support of a sturdy boot (no matter what my pack weight) - I am a klutz!

I have been known to walk barefoot around camp (after a check for sharp objects of course). Often I wear a pair of Teva's - about as close to barefoot as I've been able to find.

Edited by Laurie_Ann on 12/04/2006 09:27:11 MST.

I often walk barefoot (often times all over !!) depending on the conditions - when going on day walks I will have a pair of sandals (usually Tevas) for when the tracks get rough and sharp.. For overnighters, or cooler weather, adding a pair of shoes as well - boots are only really needed for more extreme conditions, or multi-day expeditions...

Down here (on the East coast of New South Wales..) for much of the year any clothes in general are an unnecessary and extraneous part of your kit, (at least once you get away from "civilisation") - maybe 2/3 to 3/4 of the areas I frequent could be approached and traversed barefoot or in sandals; while for about 8 - 9 months of the year around this region (: September - May ..), I only need (minimal) clothes at the beginning and end of the walk.

Having said that, however, I will :
* wear the essentials - hat, sunglasses, sunscreen and insect repellant;
* have sandals (on my pack..) for daywalks, plus shoes for longer walks;
* carry some protective clothes - depending on how bad the weather could get;
* have some ('minimalist') clothes ready (in my pack..) for when I may have to pass by - or through - a well populated or trafficked area - a light skirt or sarong, and maybe a light shirt is all that's really needed in most places..

Edited by bushwalker on 06/16/2007 10:20:43 MDT.