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Hello there and welcome to our website. My husband and son walked the Kokoda Trail in July this year and here is a copy of what he replied to another person who asked the same question:
quote: My advice is that they get the absolute best quality boots they can afford.
Preferably with "Goretex" lining that keeps all water out. Good quality socks as well and there should be NO problems with the ankles. Especially if worn for a period of wearing in beforehand.In fact you really need boots to support the ankles on the many steep downhill
sections. This is in my opinion the most important aspect of equipment (ie. boots and minimum two pair of good socks)jt
PS Our latest lot of trekkers said they read this previously on our website and heeded the advice. They said they had absolutely no problems whatsoever with their feet which is great news compared to our first lot of trekkers in April this year who suffered terrible because their feet got wet.
Boots are the most important part of the trip after completing the trail on the 8th sept my boots came though with flying colours.You need to spend about A$200/$300 to get something that will do the trip.DONT SKIMP ON BOOTS OR YOU WILL PAY THE PENALTY.Blisters and water inside boo <img src="http://developer2/board/upload/style_emoticons//mad.gif” style=”vertical-align:middle” emoid=”:angry:” border=”0″ alt=”mad.gif” /> ts = pain
Hi and thanks for your help
I've been told to look at Scarpa or Meindl boots, both cost close to $300 which is no problem as I plan my trip for next year.
I'm still doing my homework on preparation.
I reckon, footcare is going to be my highest priority. What do you rank as important and why?
Thanks for replying
Cheers wombatty, I had Merrell boots and my mate was wearing Scarpa, there all as good as each other when your spending that money. Boots are the only thing you have to worry about as far clothes board shorts, old t shirts is all I had and all I needed. One thing I did take was lycra bike shorts to wear under my shorts they were great, highly recomended. <img src="http://developer2/board/upload/style_emoticons//rolleyes.gif” style=”vertical-align:middle” emoid=”:rolleyes:” border=”0″ alt=”rolleyes.gif” /> Happy treking
I recently walked the track and had no problems with my feet.
I wore Nike high cut ACG hiking boots. I chose these over other types of boots as they fitted my foot well, I believe this to be a very important factor. My boots wer broken in well in advance of the tek and I ensured that they were water-proofed (you can get the spray at shoe repair shops).
I also wore socks of very high quality and wore these for no more than 2 days without getting a clean pair.
A number of use smothered our feet with vasolene every morning, this was a tip from a marathon runner, who has walked the track and competes in Eco-challenge events. Those of us that did this did not even get a hint of a blister.
I hope this will help.hi,i am doing the trail next year and want to get my boots now.a few people in the stores have said that gore-tex boots are not so great in the heat as they dont let the sweat out,do you have any comments on this.
thanks bradpersonally I think you go with what does the trick and they have been proven as ok.
I bought a brand new pair of boots that were recommended by a hiking store for one of our guides and they didnt even make the end of the trek before getting water in one of them.
I have phoned the store and they said to bring them back but hey, imagine if this was a trekker.
As it was, Russell could walk the trail barefoot and not worry, but as you know our feet are not as strong and we need our BOOTS and they need to be WATER FREE!
My husbands and sons boots are still going strong some 10 months later…excellent buy.
Another group of aussie high comm federal police went out recently on a training hike up to Sogeri and they said a couple got blisters. It seems the steepness pushes your feet back towards your heel. As one girl found out this year….when your heels starts hurting…stop and take care of them otherwise like her you wont be able to put your boots on towards the end. She ended up walking the last two days barefoot….ouch! on arrival back here her feet did not look that pretty.
However, unless she changes her mind, her parting words was that she was going to try and talk her brother and parents into walking……
One of our porters in this pic Andrew seems to be everyone's favourite…whenever he treks they all say…if I return can I have Andrew as my porter!!! can I book him twelve months in advance….haha Andrew just smiles and takes it all in…
CIMG1551.JPGHi there, I too have a few questions regarding boots.
I have done a few walks over the years (nothing like the Kokoda however) and have always had full leather boots and waterproofed them by rubbing wax into them.
However, my boots were a little too old and would not have lasted the trip, so using my upcoming walk in September as an excuse I purchased (after much deliberation between these and another pair of full leather boots) a new pair of Raichle boots for $350 that have a full velour leather piece around the boot but have mesh 'windows' on each side of the boot.
They do have the GoreTex lining but after reading some of the responses on the site I am now wondering whether I should have purchased another pair of full leather boots.
Will my boots match up?
Tsuyosa.
I completed the track on Sunday and i feel that during the dry season all you need is a comfortable pair of boots or runners that you're used to. However we were lucky that it didn't rain at all as it would become boggy and slippery if it did. We saw one bloke with footy boots on!
Hi all
I had all of these questions in my mind before i went and the experience showed that gore tex lined boots are the best mine were La Sportiva and were worn in approx 6 months prior, good woollen socks and use light sock liners.
absoloutely no blisters or sweat problems we were on the track 3rd July and it was the wettest it had been in many years & track was very boggy. luckily not much rain on us.Cheers
Anzac
I walked the track at the end of June in the boots that I use for camps at cadets. These are full leather and cost about $100 from a disposals shop. I found my feet where fine the whole trip even when they got wet. I would not however recomend that anyone do this unless they know they have tough feet. I've been rollerblading since I was 4 so my feet had 11 years of hard ware on them when I walked. If you do have feet that can take these boots they are really good because they give you unbelievable ankle support. If your feet arent so tough you'll find really big holes in your feet.
Hello.
Would you please explain something confusing me – a grossly inexperienced trekker!
My boots are water-proof (leather) so long as they're not completely submerged, in which case they do fill with water over the boot's top rim.So when you say some boots are water-proof, do they also stop water entry via "over-the-rim"?
I ask this because I'd have to presume that we'd do many river x'ings and so my boots would water-log fast. Maybe I should seriously consider new boots now and wear them in before Apr'ish next year when I'd like to go.
Thanks in advance for sharing your know-how to help others enjoy this fantastic life experience.
Kind Regards,
DanHi Dan, having just walked the trail last week in the wet, I can honestly tell you I had no problems with water inside my boots.
There was only one crossing that we had to wade across and we were asked to take off our boots and put on our sandles in case of river stones cutting our feet.
All other crossings (and there were many of them), already had trees which had been cut down at some stage or other which we walked across with the aid of our porters and guides.
In another swampy area we were told to wear our gaiters. I did this but ended up with a rash from them so gave up and just wore long pants. The trousers protected my legs and for me this was a much better option. You can also purchase some covers that fit around your ankles by elastic and that cover the tops of your boots but in my case that was not necessary.
I wore scarpa boots and there were just great. However I ended up on my bottom 13 times and my guide/personal porter Russell Eroro (veteran of 287 treks) said they were still new and the thread should always be worn in more.
So whatever boots you have, make sure you have walked heaps in them and tested them well.
All in all a great experience and I must echo the words of many a trekker before me….the hardest, but best thing I have ever done in my life!
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