This Autumn is different because I have worn running, shoes, normal shoes, and Trail Glove 7 in the rain. I was very happy with the Trail Glove 7 during the entirety of the heat wave. I had no issues with them but now that we’re moving into winter I feel the need for shoes with greater ground clearance for when I walk through puddles, or streams of water running down roads while the rain falls.
A few days ago I walked in a wet forest on a rainy day with the Trail Glove 7 and although I expected to feel that they were completely inappropriate I didn’t. I found that they felt comfortable when walking through scrub, on the stony path and when they were wet.
These shoes will not protect you from thorns and other spikes. The base of the foot is safe but the top of the shoe is made of soft fabric that could be pierced. Despite this I didn’t feel as uncomfortable as I would have expected. In fact, I felt comfortable. I just had to be slightly more careful than usual, about where the top of my shoes scraped.
Avoiding Deep Puddles
The one unpleasant bit was when I was walking through deep puddles. Once or twice I felt the water rush into my shoes and wet my feet. It’s unpleasant for 20 seconds or so, until the water in contact with my feet warms up, and then it’s comfortable again.
A big fuss is made about the need for shoes to be waterproof, and in the middle of winter it will be essential. but this Autumn I feel fine, so far.
For years I have walked with waterproof shoes so I am in the habit of walking through deep puddles and I often experiment with their failure point and think “oups” as I feel water trickle into the shoes. With normal shoes puddles have to be several centimetres deep for water to run into the shoe. With barefoot shoes they need to be a few millimetres deep.
Waterproof Shoes Collect Mud
Although waterproof shoes are great in the rain they have one disadvantage. Their tread is excellent at collecting mud so although I have two pairs of shoes that are waterproof one is worn out and should be recycled and the other collects mud too easily and I think it’s at the limit of giving me blisters.
If I could walk in the mud I would be less exposed to cars. If I was less exposed to walking by cars I would not have stopped walking two or three of my favourite routes. The most enjoyable walking period was during 2020, when, thanks to lock down, roads were almost empty of cars.
Waterproof Shoes Dry Slower If They Get Wet
The problem with waterproof shoes is that you need to help them dry, if the interior gets wet. With non-waterproof shoes, if they get wet, you wear them until you get home and by the time you take them off, after a short drive, they will be almost dry, and by the next morning they will be fully dry.
I have got three pairs of shoes wet in recent weeks and I haven’t had to worry about drying any of them.
And Finally
I was pleasantly surprised to find that these shoes felt fine walking through the woods on a rainy day. I didn’t worry about the soles of my feet at all. I found that walking through scrub wasn’t more uncomfortable than with normal shoes. When rain falls vertically onto my shoes I don’t mind. It’s when I have to walk to the side of a path rather than straight through a puddle that I see the limitations of my barefoot shoes. In theory I could spend over one hundred and 50 francs to get waterproof barefoot shoes, but I can get normal waterproof shoes for 35 CHF. I have hiking boots for when it’s snowy and I have comfortable shoes for when it’s dry. It’s for Autumn and winter rain that I need to be responsible enough to wear cheap waterproof shoes.
At this time of year, especially on rainy days, when you’re forced to walk in the grass by cars, it makes sense to wear waterproof shoes, to keep feet comfortable and dry. If walking paths existed between villages and towns, rather than walking along the road side, I wouldn’t need waterproof shoes.
I could wear hiking boots but if I wear those, and I drag mud into the apartment building, neighbours will complain. I wear inappropriate shoes for the weather, because if they get muddy I can clean them in seconds, because we live in the age of drivers, and drivers never encounter mud.
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