The great Australian bushwalking furphy.....or is it?

[wildwanderer]

How do the KTs go with gaiter straps?

Also Craig how much walking was in that 3 months? Only on dirt or city streets as well?

[CraigVIC]

I use s2s gaiters that have a cord, I just use Bunnings utility cord and replace if pretty regularly and it doesn't phase me too much.

I've been wearing them as my main shoes but I wouldn't say I've racked up many k's. 3 overnight trips and half a dozen proper day walks plus short stuff with the kids and I live 200m from the shops. A lot of the wear happened on one grampians walk which chewed them up.

[Heremeahappy1]

Where fashion prevails: a North face/Gucci collab.
https://www.snowsbest.com/fashion-criti ... ace-gucci/

[Neo]

I think they went for maximum dag!

Fashion is art, not meant to be for everyday. I like the Gucci pattern on the green puffy jacket.

[Ms_Mudd]

CraigVic, good comparison! How many kms had they seen in those 3mths?

I bought a pair yesterday as had to make the 100km round trip to Big W for school stuff for the kids. I got a mens 7 as although excessively roomy at the front, needed that so my foot across at the base of my toes was not squished width wise. I wore them from lunch time until just after dinner when I retired to my CCF mat for TV viewing

It took some tweaking with lacing them different ways to relieve pressure on my right foot, but nailed it in the end. They did not feel as soft to walk on as any of my Altras (Timp, Lone Peak, One, Escalante,or even my sons minimally padded King MTs) but not too much of a big deal. What was a big deal though was the heel height, everything I wear is zero drop and my plantar fascia was starting to grumble by the end of the night, on more than a short day walk I think it would be a full blown plantar fascitis flare up.

The KT26's are flat, but not flat enough for me.
Damn. Thought I had found a $39 solution for my usual $200 problem of new shoes Anyone want a pair of Size 7 shoes?!

[CraigVIC]

CraigVic, good comparison! How many kms had they seen in those 3mths?

I really don't know but nowhere near what others seem to be getting out of them. Can't change the drop but they do seem to stretch/mould a bit across the toes to match your foot (for me anyway).

[Dexter]

Dexter where are you finding the KTs?
I tried K-Mart and they had none.
I guess it depends what you are used to but I prefer the comfort of a properly fitting, broken in boot to LW runners. When you wear plastic double boots for skiing almost everything else feels like house slippers anyway, even my Montagnas are a kilo lighter than my telemark boots. Speaking as somebody who has just broken his little toes for the second time this year I prefer the protection offered by a decent boot if I can't go barefooted

Sorry, I've been battling leeches for a couple of days! Yeah as mentioned BigW... you're right, I didn't notice many larger sizes now that you mention it.

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk

[Kickinghorse]

Moondog, not sure if you’re had any updates to your question but the 26s seem to be available at Big W or in Adelaide at least.

https://www.bigw.com.au/product/dunlop- ... lsrc=aw.ds

Phil

[Kickinghorse]

Moondog
Oops just checked the the web site again and seems out of stock.

[north-north-west]

Wear what works for you and don't make facile judgments about other people's gear choices.

I need the compression and support off a full leather boot due to the arthritis affecting my ankles. They simply will not do pack-carries in shoes any more. Sure, a boot takes longer to dry out once it's wet, but it also takes longer to get wet from rain or vegetation or anything other than over-ankle water crossings (and good gaiters can even keep you dry during the shorter of these). And they're a hell of a lot easier to get mud off.

[peregrinator]

And judging by the frequentness reported here with which cheap shoes become unusable, good boots are probably the most economical choice. Granted, that's only if you like boots, but! I do because it just so happens I also agree with north-north-west on the points about wetness and mud. I will add avoidance of toe stubbing to the list.

[Nuts]

Another prolific walker, Cam Honan, adds his perspective recently: https://www.thehikinglife.com/2020/08/t ... mO4NZPViaY

My own (fallback) is that first principles provide much of the reading needed, and things can often get more complicated from there, be made more complicated in earnest.. or to turn a profit.

I stopped wearing boots altogether around 10yrs ago.. I wish I had done so when I was actually doing lots of walking

Newton's Third Law of Motion would have been enough. We have evolved over millions of years, never designed to carry heavy loads nor bind joints.
From my own perspective carrying excessive weights- damaged knees from direct compression, binding ankles- damaged knees from transferred energy (and if musculature holds up to where that damage isn't noticed, very likely hips). It becomes all too self-evident when even tongue pressure uphill is felt within the knee.

The same can be applied to the general question of support, for those who think they need this. If you feel your boots above the ankle at all, they are providing 'support'? (just minimal or a great deal, that energy isn't lost)

[rcaffin]

Most of you probably know my opinion of Big Heavy Leather Boots (TM) by now.

As for the KT-26s - I was told by an importer that they have gone out of production. They can't get them anymore.

Cheers
Roger

[gbagua]

Let's evolve:

https://www.chamonix.net/english/mounta ... ed-records

Been using trail runners (also approach shoes only for technical scrambling/easy up moderate rock climbing routes) now for the past 9 years. Boots never again. Clumsy, ugly and heavy!