Blister Prevention

[coyotezapper]

I have a pair of meindl perfects and a pair of the denalis for whatever reason i wear a 9.5 in the perfects and a 9 in the denalis. both have well over 20 miles on them. I love the perfects but on a september elk hunt go too hot and blistered so i went to the unins. For whatever reason I seem to still have blister issues. I have never experienced this till now. For example went on a 2 mile hike today in the denalis after not wearing for awhile and blistered my heals. You guys have any tricks for preventing blisters. thnx

Spray feet with plain PAM COOKING SPRAY( Non Stick ), let dry then put on good quality moisture wicking socks. Try it before you laugh!!!

 

[mmmooretx]

Thick socks with liners in good fitting boots. When hot spots start Moleskin will stop the rubbing so no blister. I used to pack 60 lbs. into wilderness in the summer to fly fish and it works. If you feet start swelling stop loosen boots a little, but keep them tight (definitely do not want them shakey loose).

 

[FEENIX]

In 2006, my scout troop and I planned a 10-day 50-miler backpacking trip at the Bob Marshall Wilderness but ended up with 80 plus miles. Anyways, sometimes even if you take every precautions, too much hiking will overwhelm you. We all (15 of us) ended up with blisters ... I just happened to have a Montana sized ones.

All of us wore socks in layers (liner), most used 3 socks, others with more. Every 45-60 mins we take breaks and changed socks whether we need or not, then just hang outside our packs for the next sock change. I started with a 63 pound pack. I have a worst picture than this but do not want to gross you all out.

Needless to say we all have to tough it out. When I returned from the hike , I went to see a doctor to make sure I did not get any infection. He could not believe the size of my blister or how I endured it.

Anyways, one of the best advice he gave me to prevent and treat blisters is "Preparation H" - yes, that's right, it's the same stuff. If you read uses/directions it makes sense.

NOTE: The doctor that saw me was a Navy Seal and medic before he became an MD.

For what it is worth. Cheers!

Ed

 

[gcamp54]

Feenix,
I noticed you used moleskin. This is the best remedy I have found but the key is to put tincture of benzoin on first then put the moleskin on top of that. This will keep the moleskin in place so it can do it's job. You must do this when it's just a hot spot, before it becomes a blister. I have a little different system after that.

Gordon

 

[midnightmalloy]

We use Duct Tape in our camp. A couple of years ago I got blisterd pretty bad, after a layer of duct tape I was good to go again. I now tape up before I even start hiking, its like a super tough second layer of skin. It works AWSOME!!! I totally advocate it. Good Luck.

BS1

um yes this works better than any moleskin IMHO. we use "riggers tape" its stickier and tougher than duct tape. tape over any hot spot and/or before you go hiking. you can also try gorrilla tape. Try this in conjunction with a thin under armour sock and use good socks like morino wool or smart wool. expensive but you really only need 3 pairs of each. you might think this is crazy but all my marine recon and corpman buddies swear by it...and i think they know!