Fording Rivers - Barefoot or booted?

[Harvestman]

Lots of people saying that if you wade across in boots then change your socks afterwards. Why not take your socks off first, and have bare feet in the boots for the crossing? Then you can put the dry socks on afterwards.

Personally I'd cross barefoot. Your feet can 'feel' their way along, you might have better grip, and most river stones are water worn and rounded anyway. Keeps boots dry too.

 

[Limaed]

And that's part of the fun

Santaman your a braver man then me, I'm a carp swimmer and not keen on freezing my plums off:

 

[santaman2000]

Santaman your a braver man then me, I'm a carp swimmer and not keen on freezing my plums off:

View attachment 19209

LOL. I've been tubing down rivers like that (at least parts of them were like that) Freezing? Hardly, the water was warm enough, as was the ambient air. But in icy water it would indeed be another story.

 

[Chiseller]

Get a cheap pair of aquasocks, great for fording rivers, costal foraging and letting your feet breath at night round camp. Very light weight.

Or crocs.....I wear mine most of the time on bumbles these days anyway.

Or there's these.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWK4jH_F6kc&feature=youtube_gdata_player


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[rg598]

If I know that my boots will get submerged, I always take them off. Wet boots will stay wet, and no amount of dry socks will help the situation. Last month I fell in a river, and had wet boots for the next two days. It is miserable. I haven't had any issues with sharp rocks yet. The rocks in most rivers tend to be well rounded.

I know some people who carry camp shoes that they use for crossing, but I just can't get myself to bring the extra weight.

 

[Hog On Ice]

earlier this week I was hiking the Slickrock Creek Trail up to Wildcat Falls and back - a total of 16 crossings - it was not worth the time to take the shoes off and I use trail runners - not boots and _NOT_ Goretex with thin polypro socks (Wigwam sock liners) generally after crossing it will take a few hours to dry out but based on past experience I know that my feet don't really suffer from the wet until about the third day of constant wet so I am not concerned about getting my shoes wet - they dry fast enough for me. btw Slickrock Creek is well named in that the rocks tend to be a bit slippery - enough so that 2 of those 16 crossings I ended up sitting in the creek

 

[Shewie]

For river crossings on backpacking trips I just rolled up my trews and walk on through, my Salomon Speedcross soon dry out, with a pair of light Sealskinz for the evenings if needed. Light socks dry out in the shelter overnight ready for the next morning.
On bushy trips I'm either in my canoe, so booted correctly anyway, or I'm likely to have unlined leather boots if I'm tramping, in which case I'd take them off for the crossing. If they get a good soaking they do dry eventually but it does take a couple of days, I'd rather not have to bother trying to dry them. Saying that I can't remember having to cross many rivers on a bushy trip.

I've voted for neither as I do both

 

[widu13]

Before I would have said take them off, but I recently walked in my eVent boots and at the end of a hot day my feet were wrinkled without even doing a water crossing! Now if my feet are going to be damp/wet anyway what's to lose by keeping them on for the occasional crossing. I'm going to switch to meshed walking boots anyway soon for all of me 3 season walks.

 

[Toddy]

Depends on what I was crossing. Usually boots on, 'cos I'm sodden wet most of the time anyway, and wet boots are normal in a lot of areas. Lace them up tight and go for it. Two pairs of socks and I don't blister even if sodden wet. If I'm not working, not crossing lots of water, then I take them off and paddle, but if the rocks are really slippy sometimes I've left a pair of socks on for a grip, and just put dry ones on at the other side. Socks dry out quicker than my boots

I've eyed up those water shoes a few times, and admit I'm tempted. The local Lidl's though size up to 2 for the kids, or 5 and up for ladies.....see that missing bit? 3 to 4, that's the size I need
Three times they've had them in and nothing to fit me. I reckon I'll end up buying on ebay.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[bullterrier]

I keep my boots on. Many rivers in NZ are actually the route in to wherever you are going, so you can be crossing the river every ten minutes. This is also the reason many people wear shorts or shorts and polypropylene long johns all year. My boots are the all rubber Skellerup Hiker worn with good thick wool socks. You used to be able to get a similar all rubber walking boot called the Viking or similar in the UK.

 

[Elen Sentier]

And that's part of the fun

Depends how easy you break or bits of you crumble !!!

 

[santaman2000]

Yeah i'm getting older now too Ellen. Gotta sort out the difference between my memory of what I once could do and the reality of what my body's now capable of.

 

[Marmite]

Same as above, depends on water type and how deep. Generally use sandal or water mocs but if none available then really depends on whether I can see the bottom or not. I wouldn't want to regularly wade in boots to protect them and am happy to barefoot across river rocks (when I can see them).
But my word of caution is I have a (now) faint scar on my right foot from wading a soft bottom lake about 15 years or so ago now, the water was waist deep and I was retrieving a footy, unfortunately I guess I found a glass bottle in the bottom and didn't even feel it till I stepped out the water and blood was pooling everywhere (6 inch slice from the ball of my foot to my heel, good 6-7mm deep) ,so if in deep water then my feet are now covered and I'll have to deal with drying the boots later. Having said that if I had some spare clothing or anything else (t-shirt etc) then I probably try to put some kind of foot binding/wrap together (no need to cut up just wrap around whole) and they'll be easier to dry on the other side than boots and easier to stitch than a foot

 

[Chiseller]

Too tired to read through all the replies now but I do try to keep my boots dubbed. If they are good boots, you should be able to synch them skin tight .....make the crossing without water damaging or getting past the collar. Socks off if they are taller than the collar.

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[redandshane]

Boots off for me if its higher than my boots or shoes
Did that very thing on sunday

 

[swright81076]

Lots of people saying that if you wade across in boots then change your socks afterwards. Why not take your socks off first, and have bare feet in the boots for the crossing? Then you can put the dry socks on afterwards.

Personally I'd cross barefoot. Your feet can 'feel' their way along, you might have better grip, and most river stones are water worn and rounded anyway. Keeps boots dry too.

In am ideal world barefoot would work, but when you see river beds with old broken pallets, rusty nails, bicycle bits, it ain't worth the risk IMO. Personally I'd just go for it, hoping that my boots are proofed enough, or if I knew there'd be a crossing on my bimble, I'd have appropriate light footwear for it.

touched by nature

 

[rg598]

Ignore what I said earlier. I didn't realize UK rivers had so much man made sharp stuff in them.

 

[santaman2000]

In am ideal world barefoot would work, but when you see river beds with old broken pallets, rusty nails, bicycle bits, it ain't worth the risk IMO. Personally I'd just go for it, hoping that my boots are proofed enough, or if I knew there'd be a crossing on my bimble, I'd have appropriate light footwear for it.

touched by nature

These I'd avoid like the plague. I've had nails go through my work boots and an inch or more deep into my foot. Granted that wasn't while in the water though.

 

[santaman2000]

Same as above, depends on water type and how deep. Generally use sandal or water mocs but if none available then really depends on whether I can see the bottom or not. I wouldn't want to regularly wade in boots to protect them and am happy to barefoot across river rocks (when I can see them).
But my word of caution is I have a (now) faint scar on my right foot from wading a soft bottom lake about 15 years or so ago now, the water was waist deep and I was retrieving a footy, unfortunately I guess I found a glass bottle in the bottom and didn't even feel it till I stepped out the water and blood was pooling everywhere (6 inch slice from the ball of my foot to my heel, good 6-7mm deep) ,so if in deep water then my feet are now covered and I'll have to deal with drying the boots later. Having said that if I had some spare clothing or anything else (t-shirt etc) then I probably try to put some kind of foot binding/wrap together (no need to cut up just wrap around whole) and they'll be easier to dry on the other side than boots and easier to stitch than a foot

I'm the opposite. I may wear boots in shallow water if I'm worried about cuts; but NEVER in deep water where I might end up swimming.

I also have a scar on the instep of my right foot. I got it while playing in the creek when i was 10 years old or so. Clear water, shallow (less than a foot) and sandy bottom. Never found what made the cut but the only thing I can think of that would be invisible in such water is broken, clear glass. As we were at our usual spot under a bridge, I'm reasonably sure that it was some such thrown out of a vehicle passing overhead on said bridge. Took 6 stitches and a week on crutches.

 

[santaman2000]

Of course the best way to ford a stream is: