It used to be that one of the essentials of backpacking was a good pair of hiking boots. Times have changed… The current lightweight and ultra light movements have gotten people to question the usefulness of wearing heavy leather hiking boots. For an in depth discussion on the matter, check out Ray Jardine’s Beyond Backpacking and Chris Townsend’s The Backpacker’s Handbook.

After much deliberation and a few test hikes, I decided that trail running shoes would be a good match for me. The choice of shoes is a very personal one and it really comes down to what shoe fits your particular foot best. I would strongly recommend going to an outdoors store or a shoe store where the staff is really trained to properly fit shoes. They should have you take your shoes and socks off and examine your feet both weighted and unweighted.

You should always try to wear the socks you like to hike in to the store when trying on shoes since socks can have an effect on how the shoes fits. The store should also have some inclines set up so that you can see how the shoes hold onto your feet on hilly terrain. Some stores stand by their shoe fitting so much that you can actually go out and hike with your new shoes and if you’re not satisfied then you can return them or exchange them with another pair.

Besides the shoes themselves you should also enquire about the insoles they come with. Often times, replacing the stock insole with an aftermarket one like those produced by Superfeet will improve the fit of the shoe.