New Boots

When I first started walking, but was at the point trainers weren't cutting it, I went for the cheapest equipment I could find in case it was a phase. I managed to find a pair of Regatta Meresville hiking boots on sale on Amazon for £12, bargain, and though I have done me well through a number of long walks there are a few issues.

First off, they are slightly too big. This is a common problem for me because I am between sizes, a 3 is too small, a 4 is too big, and not many companies do half sizes. With a pair of thick woolly hiking socks they don't feel excessively large, but on my long walks I have developed blisters right on the end of my toes. There's no way a blister plaster would stay in place on the tip of each toe, and the only reason I can think of for this is if my foot is sliding forward and squashing the end of my toes. I've looked into the possibility of getting some good quality hiking insoles with a heel cup but they are shockingly expensive, about four times more than the boots!

The second problem is purely aesthetic. I'm the type of girl who lives in a grey hoody, black jeans and Doc Martens in my day-to-day life. Being out and about in black jeans and brown boots just looks wrong to me. There is also the fact the boots are a bit triangular from the side, and I don't like how flat the sole is - I don't think it affects the comfort, it's purely aesthetic.

So, I've been walking for the best part of a year, and decided it was time to treat myself to some new hiking boots. Black, moulded sole, bit more padding. Also a higher ankle, definitely a boot, rather than what I would term a shoe boot. After much hunting around the closest I could find were the North Face Chilkat II. But they were a bit more expensive than I really wanted to fork out. More hunting, but nothing else appealed and I definitely wanted the Chilkats. I finally found a well priced pair on a sports retailer on eBay - and due to my tiny feet I can fit into the kid's ones, meaning no tax, so cheaper again.

They are again slightly large, but being snow boots there is a lot of padding inside. I very much like the moulded waterproof lower half of the boot. They offer excellent ankle support. We're forecast snow over the next week, so I'll look forward to (literally) putting them through their paces!