Sandals are not recommended hiking gear, but I have a problem. I always wear hiking boots while hiking, but whenever I start hiking downslope, the ends of my toes slam against the front of the boot. This can lead to each step being very painful and later I have found some of my toenails have turned black from the hammering they got.
Before the hike up Eagle Valley, I tried to figure out what I could do to show some compassion toward my toes. I knew that the hike would end with a long downward slope that used to be a logging road. Since it was formally a road, I figured that the terrain would not be rugged, and I came upon the idea of taking sandals along on the hike and putting them on for that long downhill section. Sandals have nothing in front of my toes that they would slam into.
It all worked out really well. By the time I got to the start of the downhill, my toes were already beginning to be painful. I sat down on a boulder and took my hikers off and put on my sandals and started down.
My feet got wet and muddy as I walked through the many small puddles and rivulets that crisscrossed the old road, but my toes didn’t hurt any more.
I don’t know how well or safe sandals would be on rough terrain, but I will probably take them along again on our next hike.
My paintings can be seen at: www.davidmarchant.ca
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