Hiking boots vs work boots

[Cellostman]

Hi all.
I'm new to hiking and doing outdoors stuff.
I have a camp coming up in which I have to do a few days of hiking. The equipment list states that hiking boots or shoes with ankle support are recommended, however I do not have the funds to buy a new pair of boots. I was wondering if there would be any problem with me using my pair of puma Borneo safety boots?
Thanks in advance.

[Neo]

Hi
Had a look. If your feet are used to them they should be fine (as in you wear them for work everyday). Or if you have familiar sneakers they could be taken as a spare/instead. Where or what kind of area will you be walking in?

[Cellostman]

I'm hiking around Paddy's Flat, in the upper area of the Clarence river NSW.

[Lophophaps]

Cellostman, welcome to the forum. Work boots are designed to provide a solid sole, top and often steel toe cap for a work enviornment. Work boots are usually a lot looser than walking footwear, and hence if work boots are used for bushwalking then there's a higher chance of blisters than if dedicated bushwalking footwear is used. I'm not keen on work boots in the bush. My at-home footwear are Blundstone workboots, quite light and very comfortable.

Ankle support is a myth. If the ankles were supported to any degree the ankle joint would not flex. A better description is that the footwear has a reasonably solid sole and upper to support the foot. A thick sole is important on broken terrain such as scree and thicker scrub as this allows the foot to be put on lumps without hurting the foot, giving stability. A twisted foot is either pronation or inversion (rolling inward) or eversion (rolling out). Building ankle strength is a good way to avoid this. Care when placing the foot is also helpful.

For about 20 years I walked in runners, including south-west Tasmania and many other trackless places. Runners do not have thick soles, but this can be fixed with an in-sole, cost $7-15. Runners will not last as long as an expensive apir of bushwalking boots, but will suffice in the short term while you work out what you want. Consider taking a light pair of runners or the like for camp so that if the day footwear is wet you have dry footwear. Not everyone agrees with this as the camp shoes are extra weight.

[Gadgetgeek]

When it comes to equipment lists, most places try to get people wearing a more outdoor style shoe/boot rather than say volleys or ballet flats, since as dumb as it sounds, people will show up to multi-day hikes with worn out sneakers. Not to say that there is anything wrong with that, I know plenty of people who hike in volleys, but its what they are used to, and they know the limits of the footwear.

As long as the shoes are in decent condition, have enough total foot support for your needs, and fit well, you'll do alright.

[tasswander]

i have done quite few extended hikes in work boot based shoes usually due to the cost of buying a dedicated pair of hiking boots but found out the hard way walking the overland track in winter that a membrane in your boats in a wet climate is must. by day 5-6 i started to have a reddish dotted complexion started to spread on my feet after spending up to 10 hours in wet shoes every day.

[Stew63]

Twice over the years I've tried wearing my 'comfortable' work boots and both times it ended in tears on only day 1.

Most recent was what was planned to be a relaxed 3night hike with my kids across the main range. By the time I'd got to only the Wilkinson Valley from Thredbo (7kms) my feet were totally trashed with large, painful blisters and blisters upon blisters - I was hobbling like a cripple - VERY painful. Could only camp one night before limping, slowly back to the car at Thredbo. Sedimentary blisters - took weeks to recover. (The boots were fine when used as work boots - never had a blister) The other time was in SW Tassie many years ago. Fortunately I had a pair of Dunlop Volleys in my pack. After hiking only 1 or 2 hours it was obvious it just wasn't going to work wearing those boots - the pain! Off came the boots and the Volleys were on for the next 9days. Had to carry those heavy 'dead weight' boots for the rest of those 9days! The Volleys performed brilliantly. These days I wear lightweight trail runners. Don't buy trail runners with the gnarly tread made for mud - that type of tread is just diabolical on slippery rocks/river crossings.

[Stew63]

As long as the shoes are in decent condition, have enough total foot support for your needs, and fit well, you'll do alright.

^^^This - but not work boots^^^

[Moondog55]

I have to say it depends on the work boots, I have walked a lot in my cheap Redback work boots but would not try this with my safety toe Olivers
Cheap work boots with decent footbeds may be a reasonable solution especially with a decent gaiter to keep the muck out.
Fit and comfort is more important than the label on the boot, a lot of boots are called "work" boots so that a tax deduction can be claimed

[Hiking Noob]

I don't really know but I used to spend up to 6hrs in stell cappers doing mountain bike trail work and I never had an issue and they'd be full of dirt at the end of the day but I never got any blisters, that isn't exactly hiking I know but it is similar.

I bought some Cheaper Zamberlan boots for the Overland Track and they were pretty uncomfortable after a couple of days, the sole seemed to compress in the middle but not at the edges where the mebrane was stitched on. If there is little chance of heavy mud I wouldn't wear anything but trail runners in Summer, my feet sweat a bit and membranes just seems to hold a bunch of extra heat in so I'll just go with something that dries quickly from now on.