blister solutions for continued walking

[JJHACK]

Many of the hunters I have in camp end up with a blister on their heel blow the narrow spot from the tendon running up the back of the heel to the calf muscle, or right on the back of the foot above the heel.

It seems no matter how well they think the boots are broken in they don't spend time walking up hills for an hour. This stress on the backs of the heels against a ill fitting boot or sock can cause a hella bad expereince and ruin the rest of the trip. Walking up hills for miles or very steep sections for even a few hundred yards can cause fast "hot spots" on your feet.

When I have a client that cannot walk due to raw feet after the first day of a ten day hunt, it's a really bad situation! I have searched high and low for the best solution and am always open to new Ideas. I use Mole skin and double socks with the boots tied loosely and we shuffle along as far as we can. Is there anyone anyplace that can provide a better fix?

Is it better or not to puncture the blister? I think it's worse to do this so I never suggest it. I think the water inside is the best protection it can have. But I just don't know what to do. Clearly the best thing to do is stop the very instant that a problem is considered. Most guys seem to think "oh it's nothing". Problem is that by the time you feel a little bit of a hot spot the damage is done. Going further is going to create an un-repairable condition. I have also found.......... on myself that as soon as I feel a hot spot if I take my socks off apply mole skin and replace with dry socks, I'll usually be just fine. If I let it go until a while later, I'm in big trouble!

No matter how tough your feet are or how well broken in your boots are, problems can come up. Wet sweaty feet are a primary cause. A folded or crumpled sock is another primary cause. Extreme angles for a long distance are the biggest killer for me.

If there are any new blister solutions please share them. My hunting season starts in May so I have a month to buy the proper stuff to help foot sore clients, or even myself before I leave for Africa.

Hard to walk and hike in this condition, an Expensive hunt can be ruined on the first morning hike if not prepared with good boots. Or if you do not understand the warning signs of early blister developement.

 

[noharleyyet]

Exactly what happened to me the first day of my first elk hunt. Didn't stop or treat it til hunt was over. Stupid and dangerous. Took about 3 or 4 dermal layers off and took about a 5 weeks to completely heal. Mine were a result of insulated boots slipping during unseasonably warm weather in the mts. I bought some Danner uninsulated Pronghorns with good socks and haven't had a problem since...even in the cold and snow.

 

[buckeye in ga.]

Big problem for my feet diabetic 2nd skin blister kit then cover with moleskin works for me 2nd skin blister treatment appied ON TIME is very important

 

[mtmiller]

Aren't those 1-pointer wheels?

 

[csutton7]

pour whiskey into shoe and drink it--repeat as necessary until pain is relieved ---I suggest a few shots prior to using the shoe to get used to the whiskey and maybe over power the rotten foot taste--use your judgement--in fact you may need a few shots afterwards also!!!!!!!!!!! oh yeah make sure you unload gimpy's gun before he starts this medical procedure...............

really though--

I'm not sure what can be done in conditions as posted in your pic--but if this happened to me I'd be using the mole skin and wrapping my foot with duct tape or athletic tape(white)--the tape would act as a barrier and handle the rubbing I'd think--it may take a little painful roughing it, but I think you could hunt vs just the mole skin or nothing--albeit you might be a little slower, but at least you may be able to get out there--chris

 

[snake river rufus]

Since no medicos have chimed in, I'll spring for and office call to my doc. I also have diabes I recently found out.

 

[Deleted member 13457]

The absolute best blister fix I have tried is to place a square of duct tape on the heel. It protects the skin and is somewhat slick so it seems to relieve the friction. I had a pair of boots 2 years ago that would not "break in." I started taping my heels before I went out and never had another blister. Hope it works for you.

 

[IdahoBugler]

I to use the duct tape trick. If I start feeling the hot spot I put a piece of tape on it. Be warned though don't just rip the tape of when done. It will usually pull off more skin then it is suppose to. Just ask Wilycoyote.

 

[wilecoyote76]

IB, I remember that day very vividly. A word of caution to everyone - whenever you put duct tape on your heels, leave it there for the duration of the hunt. I pulled mine off on the second day of a 4 day excursion and pulled a few square inches of heel off in the process. Duct tape works well, I recommend it.

 

[Quiet_One]

Well, my hubby works 12hours a day i know got nothin to do with huntinbut he gets blisters that turn into to bleed i told him get or try scholls jellen things , or thick sock like i wear footies but never tryed to go huntin havent hunte dyet till next year for reasons maybe it work or duct tape that others suggested i try that first theres got be somethin that works ask other hunters

 

[snake river rufus]

O.K. the word from my Doctor and his nurse( asked independantly) as well as the RN at the call center that blue cross provides is to not lance the blister. They all recommended over size shoes and wearing 2 pairs of socks.

 

[1_pointer]

Those be my wheels. Miller, you remember how much duct tape I used on our first trip to WY!!! Yes, and leave it on. If you take the tape off, the blister comes with it.

PS- My wife still gives me chit for out-hiking me that day! :BLEEP:

 

[Bambistew]

Question for all the guys out there that get blisters on a regular basis. What type of socks do you wear? Of all the countless miles over the years I've hiked, I can count the times I've gotten blisters on one hand. Every time it was because my feet got wet and I didn't have a frest pair of socks to change into. I guess I'm lucky and have always had shoes that were broken in and fit properly. I suppose if the soes don't fit right you're asking for blisters. I rarely wear wool socks when I plan on hiking a long ways in a day, and If I do I wear wool its a thin pair over a thin pair of cotton socks. Most of the time I wear just heavy padded cotton socks, be it 70 degrees out or 10 below zero. When I'm hiking my feet don't get cold. The last two season have been with uninsulated boots too! For me it seams that the cotton won't make blisters. I do change them if my feet feel sweaty or before I start my down hill decent home... Wet socks and down hill are hell on my feet.

What typ of socks do you all wear?

 

[noharleyyet]

Cabelas wool blend outfitters (thin for moderate and thick for cold) with a good fitting uninsulated boot solved my blister problems. Danners, so far, are the best boot I've found and my foot is narrow and very hard to fit. I agree that dry is the operative condition for foot comfort.

 

[snake river rufus]

bambistew, it's not that I do get blisters, rather that since my feet no longer have any feeling in them, I would not know if a blister was forming until I looked. I can no longer tell if my feet are damp. Soaking wet? yes, I can feel that. People with diadeties have to be extra careful of thier feet, Amputation is still a concern in the modern world.

 

[1_pointer]

BS- Don't you know cotton kills? My blisters were due to the heel cup on my boots breaking down and not the socks. Now I wear nothing but smartwool when I'm going to be on my feet much and even for just casual wear much of the time. I prefer the 'light hiker' weight. I wore them with uninsulated boots in a few inches of snow in pretty cold weather with no problems of cold feet. So far so good...

 

[snake river rufus]

oops wrong button pushed

 

[Calif. Hunter]

I wear the thin polyprop or merino wool socks under a thick wool sock. The thin socks help wick the moisture away from my foot and into the thick wool sock like smartwool or now some of the more advanced wool/blend socks from Cabelas. I've done this for over 30 years in the Boy Scouts on week-long high sierra trips and on 20 mile day hikes, and I tried to keep up with it in SE Asia...but was not as successful there at keeping my feet dry, for some reason.

Apply moleskin at the first sign of trouble and leave it on.

It still works, although the hikes are only 8-12 miles or so nowadays.

 

[Boman]

If I know I'm going to get blisters I use Dr. Scholls's blister stuff, its a gel like pad that has a sticky side that you stick over the blister. The key for me is to wash your feet and dry them thorougly before you put them on. I mean right before too. not the night before you leave. If I do this right before they stay on and I'm good to go. If I don't or try to do it in the field they won't stay on for long. Then I go to the duct tape. I've gone through lots of boots but I have finally found some that never give me blisters. Cabelas Meindl's Alaskan hikers. They are the best I've found. good luck