Even though hiking does not require a lot of equipment one item which is crucial is a good pair of hiking boots. The right pair of hiking boots will give you comfortable support and have the traction which you need for even the trickiest of surfaces. A bad pair of boots however can make a day’s hiking utter misery.

Hiking over any reasonable distance will put considerable stress on both your feet and ankles, which is then transmitted upward to the legs and affects your back and indeed your entire body. While most people think in terms of blisters from bad boots, the main problem is not the possibility of developing blisters but is in fact a lack of solid support.

The right boots will provide the springiness and stiffness which your foot and ankle need. You have to be able to push against the ground, whatever the surface conditions, with assurance and know that your boots will support you. Without this support, sore feet and ankles, or even twisted ankles, are effectively guaranteed.

A lot of boots today are made from specialized materials but, perhaps surprisingly, leather remains a large component of the best hiking boots. Leather has been used for many years to make shoes and boots and is still used today because it is resilient, water-resistant, has good stiffness and outstanding moisture and thermal properties.

When we talk about comfort it is all too easy to substitute the word luxury nowadays but, when we are talking about hiking boots, comfort is a necessity instead of a luxury. You need to be able to walk for long distances without getting blisters or experiencing chafing and you need to be able to keep your boots on for long periods of time without excessive cold or heat or a build-up of moisture becoming a problem.

Get a pair of hiking boots which feel right on your feet and that doesn’t simply mean buying a pair of boots which are the right size. Get boots which feel good the minute you put them on and don’t be fooled by the old saying that ‘they are going to feel a bit uncomfortable until you break them in’. Your boots will naturally wear in, but if they don’t feel right when you buy them then they will rarely feel right later on.

Don’t forget too that hiking boots are not shoes. They should feel stiff and have very little give on the outer sole and around the ankle if they are to do the job which they are designed to do.

You are going to be scrambling over slippery gravel, wet rocks, flaking hills and muddy trails and, despite the fact that no boot can cope perfectly with every eventuality, a good pair of hiking boots, such as today’s Asolo, Timberland or Vasque hiking boots, will come pretty close.

Modern hiking boots make use of a variety of materials and geometries to reduce slippage on wet rocks and maximize sticking power on flaking hill grades and Vibram lugs with some type of tread ought to be a minimum requirement. These boots look a little like car tires, but with a bit more plastic and a bit less rubber.

There are of course other things which you should look for, such as gusseted tongues which keep out gravel and stones, but the main features which have been covered here, and that you will find on most discount hiking boots today, will provide you with a very good starting point. Really serious hikers will probably possess several pairs of boots designed to cope with different types of hiking but for the novice one good sound pair of boots will do to start with and, if you buy the right boots, they will last for several years.