Follow up: heel blisters from stiff mountaineering boots

Here's the situation:

I was preparing for an upcoming course on Mt. Baker by wearing my winter boots a few days to "get my feet in shape" as I've had the boots for 2 seasons. Turns out boots that might be a half size too small combined with 95 degree heat = problem (this happened over a 2 hr period on Monday - have only worn boots enough to test new sock/bandage combos since then). I leave for Seattle Friday to spend 6 days on Baker...

Question:
Is it better to keep the blisters out, exposed to air and let them dry OR bathe them in Neosporin and keep them under a clean dressing?

I also welcome any sage advice or tips. I have lined up a pair of rentals a size larger and emptied the shelves of my local gear shop's blister care products.

Lance

NIce! I used to get some like that in the Corps humping in our "mickey mouse" boots. Try to air them out and put neosporin on them. To prevent we used to put the every useful duct tape which would reduce friction.

If you are leaving tomorrow for a trip, your feet will be hurtin', regardless of that you do. The best thing is to try to relieve any pressure on the blisters by taping foam over the area, with a hole cut out over the blisters. Fairly thick foam, such as that on a closed-cell pad. If you use something like Molefoam, use a couple of layers.

I've had heel blisters before and they are painful. So as far as covering them with Neosporin or leaving them open to the air, I don't think makes much difference. The important thing is to keep the pressure off the blisters when your boots are on.

You're right FrankPS, I'm not going to be a happy camper by the end of this trip! I hadn't tried moleskin/foam donuts because there wasn't enough space in my boots (and I was having a hard time keeping anything in place they way the boots rub there), but I'll load that in the kit as the rentals should have enough space. Thanks

Check out this book... Fixing Your Feet by John Vonhof. I bought mine at Mountain Tools. Lots of text-over 300 pages, with prevention and treatments including taping techniques. Id go with lots of air and neosporen for now. Tape the hell out of them later. I haven't had good luck with the duct tape sticking. Tincture of Benzoin first (to help the tape stay put)and then strips of tape, then a bit a Vaseline over that to allow the sock to move with out pulling on the tape. I just got off Rainer and used a light hiker synthetic for wicking and a light wool sock over that for warmth - movement between the two socks and not on your skin. If you don't have the volume though, that wont work, Just go with a med weight sock, lots of tape and stick on toe warmers. Good luck.

Ouch! Sorry for your pain. Hope you'll enjoy your trip anyway. You've gotten some good advice here. You know this now: it's not the boots you're breaking in, it's your feet.

Feet change sizes just with the passage of time, let alone, say, a significant change in weight. A full backpack will add a half-size in a heartbeat. When you buy your next pair of boots, maybe bring your pack with you to the store? :)

Worst case I ever saw was a guy who showed up the morning of a week-long, 65-mile backpack trip with new boots. In the box. With the tags still on. Oh yes, and cotton socks. By the end of the first day, about 10 miles, he pretty much had blisters on his blisters.

Go get some Spenco 2nd skin blister pads right away. Buy some wide sport tape to cover whatever foam, etc that you put over the blister.

duct tape.

When you are not hiking (resting and especially sleeping), make an aloe vera poultice with gauze pad and sports tape (the same tape you use for taping for crack climbing).

Put a generous ammount of aloe vera gel saturating the pad and then some extra on top of that. Use a brand of aloe gel that is only aloe without extra ingredients, except for whatever preservatives they might use. Fresh aloe plant is actually the best, but don't worry about it if you don't have a fresh plant.

While hiking, tape up your heel (after washing and drying) with the same sports tape. Use a thin liner sock with your hiking sock. Hope it heals/heels fast!

P.S. You will find that aloe heals a lot faster than one of the antibiotic ointments since it does have antibiotic properties and supplies healing nutrients from the outside.

P.S.S Nature's Life Aloe Vera Gel herbal Blend is one to consider buying since it has added herbs that contribute to healing.

There is an awesome product called Spyroflex, or Duct-tape works wonders. OUCH!

+1 for duct tape

Curt Nelson wrote:Check out this book... Fixing Your Feet by John Vonhof. I bought mine at Mountain Tools. Lots of text-over 300 pages, with prevention and treatments including taping techniques. Id go with lots of air and neosporen for now. Tape the hell out of them later. I haven't had good luck with the duct tape sticking. Tincture of Benzoin first (to help the tape stay put)and then strips of tape, then a bit a Vaseline over that to allow the sock to move with out pulling on the tape. I just got off Rainer and used a light hiker synthetic for wicking and a light wool sock over that for warmth - movement between the two socks and not on your skin. If you don't have the volume though, that wont work, Just go with a med weight sock, lots of tape and stick on toe warmers. Good luck.

This is a great resource. The bottom line is you have to find what works for you. I used to race ultramarathons and tried a lot of different things. For me duct tape makes things worse b/c it doesn't breathe. I've had good luck with tincture of benzoin + SpyroFlex pads cut to size +/- that brown stretchy medical tape. For non-heel areas I use SportsShield (basically silicone lube).

i would seriously consider taking the bigger boots with you. if your boots did that much damage in 2 hours.... man, i can't even come up with an analogy of what your feet will probably look like at the end of the trip. hope it all works out ok for you.

Duck tape
Wool Socks
Bigger boots.

Ouch!!!!

what's 'duck tape'?

slim wrote:what's 'duck tape'?

Silly goose! (I realize your comment was in jest) "Duct tape" is used to seal sheet metal ducting seams and has many other uses.

"Duck tape" is used to tape ducks together to make what is called a "herd of ducks"! Ha!

I saw the posting title...was going to recommend Valtrex....
But you could try a pair of pantyhoes/nylon stockings cut to fit as a thin layer under a decent pair of smart wool socks.

Splenco burn pads are the fastest healing thing I have found. Check the bandage area at your local pharmacy area.

Skin heals better in a moist environment. The best way is to use vaseline or neosporin/polysporin ointment and apply dressings over it to keep it moist, and change it twice a day. However, will it heal in time? Probably not, and it would take a few days to fully heal.

You might have an easier time just to let it dry out, and then protect it with duct tape/moleskin or whatever your choice is. Goodluck on Baker!

Thank you all for the great suggestions!

Certainly, the most important part of the recipe is getting into a pair of boots that aren’t going to destroy my feet by being too small. Mind you, not everybody rents a size 14 plastic boot! However, I should have a pair waiting for me. So… “For Sale: La Sportiva Nepal EVO GTX size 47 app. 6 days use” will be my next post. I have definitely taken a huge stride up the learning curve on how to fit stiff mountaineering boots this week! Unfortunately, it is a painful (and expensive) lesson.

Curt, that book has to be a wealth of great information. I wasn't able to get a copy, but just reading the articles on Vonhof’s website I picked up a few tips and techniques I think will be helpful.

Kinesiology tape seemed to be the general tape recommendation from Vonhof (super sticky, breathable, flexible, and meant to be applied for long periods of time). I also have blister pads; though I searched everywhere I could think of (both gear shops, Walgreens, Wal-Mart) and didn’t find any second skin. I’ve used second skin before and it is awesome stuff – will try to find it in Seattle when I land there. I also have some Moalfoam to try as well. I was wearing high quality wool socks when this happened on Monday. I’m going to give liner socks a try with the larger boots.

Thanks again and I’ll post and an update for anyone who searches the topic when I get back. Maybe with a picture… if it’s not too gruesome!

Wow.. flashbacks from boot camp. We used 100mph tape. Look at the bright side.. you're going to have some nice callouses back there once they heal.