creek fording strategies

[oldranger]

I used the crocs expeditions this season. They don't have holes in the front of the toes and have velcro straps to secure the heel to your foot. Worked great at fords and I also use it as a wading shoe when fishing. The velcro holds the shoe to your foot even in sucky mud. When done fishing the, rinse off the shoe, shake it a little and since it doesn't absorb water it is ready to be a camp shoe (it also doesn't get heavier after using it to ford).

Mike

[giantbrookie]

Interesting discussion. On most of my earlier trips, I either simply sloshed in the boots, then drained them and wrung the socks out afterwards (obviously not entirely satisfactory) or tried it barefoot. I suspended the latter habit when a friend of mine bashed his toes up real bad on a rough crossing (an Edyth Lake from Cherry Lake trip as I recall). After years I have begun to tire of the seriously horrid odor from the damp boots plus multiday funky foot--enough to chase every living thing out of the backcountry except mosquitoes. Yes, I am seriously considering packing something light to put on my feet for crossings. On a recent dayhike when I thought I'd do some wading to fish (shallow shoreline around a lake), and I took some Tevas in my dayhike but never pulled them out of my pack because I ended up falling into the lake and getting wet anyway before I could use them.

[SSSdave]

Since I bought a pair of these lightweight 9 ounce waders a few years ago creek crossing below thigh depth has become fast and simple:

http://wiggys.com/moreinfo.cfm?Product_ID=5" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Keeps my boots and pants dry. After use they hang off the back of my pack and quickly air dry. Make sure the size bought fits over one's boots. These are only to be used infrequently as they are certain to puncture if one wears them too often. One needs to be careful to not walk on sharp rocks like rough granite bedrock or other objects that might puncture the rubber. I only use them infrequently for crossing streams or occassionally wading into lakes and streams for photos and give them a leak test before trips.

[cmon4day]

I use a water shoe made by Salomon. It also serves as my camp shoe. Pretty light weight, dries fast, and has a descent sole for tripping around camp.