Are You Cleaning Your Hiking Shoes?
Although it might not seem important, cleaning your hiking shoes or trail runners during this muddy season is essential to keeping them in your rotation for the long run (no pun intended)! And in transitional seasons where we're bound for mud on the trail, it's more important than ever.
Just like leaving shoes wet for too long can cause harm, dried mud left on shoes will slowly wear away at the glue and damage the foam used for cushioning over time. And while shoes might seem easier to replace, they're a piece of vital gear adventurists use often and can last years with the proper attention.
Read on for a few tips on how we can keep our favorite pairs around for all the adventures we have to come this season!
Work Faster, Not Harder
It may be tempting to let your shoes sit and just knock off the dried mud later, it's pretty much the same thing, right? Wrong. The sooner you can get any grime off your shoes, the easier the whole process will be. When the mud is wet, it is far easier to get off, especially in any little nooks and crannies you might find it hiding. Once the mud dries, it's gonna take a lot more elbow grease to scrub all that mud off. This really applies to the exterior of the shoe, the laces....well...we'll get into those now.Laces
I hate to break it to you but one of the best things you can do with your laces is just take them off of the shoe completely, hand wash them, and put them back in when they're dry. This is, of course, if you have a day or so in between shoe use. If not, taking a damp cloth to them to wipe off any large pieces of debris/dirt is another great option.The Right Tools
Believe it or not, there are a few items you probably already have in your home that will make this task all that much easier. A textured sponge/scrubby, a toothbrush, and/or a washcloth with soapy water will aid in the removal process should the mud dry and become difficult to remove. another option here is letting your warm compress rest in the difficult-to-remove portion, but do not let your shoe sit submerged in water. This can further exacerbate any damage from mud or natural wear and tear. If you really want to get into it, you can even snag shoe cleaners from brands like Nikwax to help ensure the solution is super shoe-friendly.We promise treating your adventure footwear right will make all the difference between wearing out your beloved shoes and needing to break in a new pair just before that big backpacking trip. If you'd like a more in-depth explanation of the process, be sure to check out our YouTube video! Have fun, be safe, wear it out, and we'll catch you out there!