How to Prevent Blisters
Filed under
Hiking & Backpacking
Hiking can wreak havoc on your feet! Excessively sweaty feet can increase your chances of getting blisters and worse yet an infection. Sweaty feet can also create nasty foot odors, ruins socks and boots, and create conditions for cold injuries like frostbite and trench foot.
So what can you do?
1.) Wear polyester or wool socks that wick moisture away from your feet. Switch out wet socks for a dry pair as often as possible. Make sure you dry your boots and your socks out at night.
2.) Break in your boots. Before you set out on a big trip, go out for a couple of small hikes near home, you should also wear your new boots around town for awhile.
3.) Pack Weight. A Lighter pack will help take the strain off of your feet.
4.) If you feel a blister coming on, stop and treat it right away. Don’t continue to walk, if you do you will make things a lot worse.
5.) Apply a Bandage or Moleskin pads over areas that have discomfort.
6.) Remove your boots and air out your feet during breaks.
What do you do to prevent or treat your blisters?
MoleSkin!!!!!
sock liners are great because they allow for moisture wicking and they slide against outer socks to reduce the chance of blisters. also they weigh practically nothing and take up no space and can be washed in a river and hung on your pack to dry thus allowing you to have new clean socks every morning no matter how long you go hiking
it may sound absurd, but a little trick I used to use in the army was to put panty liners (the feminine hygiene product), behind my heels. This used to prevent me getting blisters on my heels.
Makes sense, since they’re made for absorbing moisture.
Being in good shape can help a lot. You will tend to keep a better stride and walk properly.
Number 6 is a bit tricky. Though airing your feet can be a good idea, your run the risk of your feet swelling as soon as you take your boots of. Might make it more difficult to put them back on.