Hiking boots care

Hiking boots care is a topic that is important if you want to be comfortable on the trail. Letting your boots deteriorate just because you didn't take the time to take care of them will hurt you in the long run. Run down boots can cause lower back pain, leg pain and more if your not careful. Also taking care of your boots can increase the life of the boot itself, gaining a few more years and saving money.

Hiking boots care:
Keep your boots laced up. Walking around the campsite with your boots unlaced after a long day on the trail is a real temptation. Doing this only stretches the boot and creates unnecessary wear on the inner linings. It also has a tendency to cut the laces. Take a pair of camp sandals or an old pair of sneakers.

Never dry your wet boots with heat. It is a strong temptation to dry your boots by the fire when you get to camp. All it does is damage the material and changes the fit of the boot. It also can loosen the glue that holds the sole to the upper if you get it too hot. Let them dry naturally overnight in a warm spot if possible. If you get a mildew smell you can use foot powder to get it out. After you get back home waterproof them again.

Keep your boots clean. Use a nylon brush or some other method of scrubbing the boots. Knock the boots together to get the dirt out of the lugs on the bottom. Use a cleaning solution that is recommended by the manufacturer to clean your boots after the dirt is off of them. If you have leather boots make sure you don't soak the leather. Waterproof them again when they are cleaned up.

Hiking boot care continued:
Waterproof your new boots as soon as you get them home. Synthetic boots? Use a silicone based product. Leather boots? Use an oil based product and stay away from waxes and silicone products. In either case make sure that you get the waterproofing product into the seams at the mid-sole where the most water is likely to come in.

Breaking in hiking boots is a must. Stiff boots will hurt you after a few hours on the trail. The breaking in period will vary according to what type and brand of boot you bought.

Don't store them for long periods of time without wearing them. Take them out once in awhile to keep them pliable Even if you just wear them around the house every now and then that will do wonders.

Check your laces every once in a while. Having a lace break while on the trail is a pain to deal with.

Hiking boots care is a topic that is not that hard to do. Keep these practices going all the time and you will be a much happier backpacker.

Also see:
Hiking boots buying guide
Selecting hiking boots

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