Not a tale of epic survival. Just a minor event in which I failed (half way) to prepare.

Yesterday was the first not too cold not raining Saturday in a long while. Mrs. T and I went for a walk in an arboretum near home. A very pleasant outdoor environment in a seemingly endless suburbia.

I wore my 15 year old high quality hiking boots. In their early days they faithfully took me through numerous Boy Scout hikes and high adventures with my two sons, including 150ish miles in Camp Philmont, the BS jewel in NE New Mexico.

When we were about halfway through the intended hike (farthest from the car) the right sole suddenly came almost entirely off. Only a small portion at the toe remained attached. No problem, I will simply pull out the duck tape that I keep in my back pants pocket and....wait....where is my duck tape!!! I left it in my other pants at home!!! Grrrrrr

Alternate plan, tie it on with paracord. That was still in my vest, as always. That worked sufficiently well to get me to the car.

Somehow I simply cannot remember to check every pocket when I change clothes. All the thinking and preparing that I try to do and when I needed an item it was not there.

Maybe a 2 is 1, 1 is none situation?

Mr Thompson, maybe you need a small shoulder bag? No need to shift stuff from pocket to pocket, just grab the bag.

Good job working the problem.

And the timely reminder that I need to replace my boots is welcome.

I wear a multi-pocket vest. That is where the paracord is carried. For some reason I never put duck tape there. From now on there will be.

As I've said many times, experience is the best teacher. I second the EDC bag, something I always carry; I recognize that is not for everybody.

Until experience proves me wrong, my EDC bag is at the right balance between too much and too little.

My weekender bag, the next level up, is still being beta tested.

Jeanette Isabelle

Wow, a seemingly simple thing like that could ruin your day. As I think about it, I would not have anything on my person to fix something like that. I guess I'd have to take out the shoelace and make that into an improvised sole binding/shoelace for the walk back home.

I'm surprised that a sole would be glued (rather than stitched) on to a hiking boot (assuming yours were glued - I can't imagine a stitched sole just falling off). I remember way back when as I bought a pair of hiking boots for backpacking, the salesman was telling me all about the "Norwegian welt" that held the sole on and how robust that was. But that was back in the day when a "hiking boot" was more like what we might call a "mountaineering boot" today. Those old Vasque (or was it Raichle?) brand leather boots were super tough, super thick, and super heavy. I remember having to do a significant amount of break-in to get the boots ready for the trail. Modern hiking boots are probably a lot lighter and higher tech. I haven't bought a new pair in decades. I guess I should go look into some. But I'll have to remember to carry some duct tape or paracord for emergencies. Thanks for the heads up ... I never would have thought of this problem.

You felt nothing irregular prior to failure? I’ve never had a catastrophic failure with boots, always a gradual warning of doom — graceful degradation.

Vests are great. Lots of pockets — enough that a regular inventory is necessary. I’ve had some items seemingly lost that turn up in my vest pocket with a change in weather.

Since those bygone days, which I remember well, "hiking" boots have grown lighter, and much easier to break in (often you can go right from the store to the trail), concurrent with the shift from stitched to glued soles. Glued soles seem to be about as reliable as stitched - I have experienced stitched soles separating, even with those famed Norwegian welts.

Today's hikers generally wear out as a unit - when the sole is shot, so is the rest of the shoe, and it is time for a new pair.

A small roll of duct tape is a good thing to carry in your essentials bag. I used some recently to repair a companion's shoe whose sole had separated. Good for lots of other sticky situations.

The sole seemed like it was cracked and crumbling. I do not wear these shoes often. They probably have a lot fewer miles on them than many of you folk would put on them. I did not feel the damage before this last use but surely it was happening. I would have thought it would take longer than 15 years to degrade the sole material.

To carry the duck tape I pull about 3-4 feet off a roll then re-roll it into a 5 inch long flat. Fits into the back pants pocket nicely, almost unnoticed.

I had the same thing happen with a pair of Nikes some time back.

On someone's recommendation I had a couple of feet of duct tape tucked in a vest pocket. I carry it wrapped around an old credit card. Makes a pretty flat package and stiff enough to peel easily.

I miss my Fabiano (...Nicoles?)...I burned through four sets of vibram soles, before the inner part of the uppers disintegrated...

Most of the old boots soles came away too, if they were mistreated. Very few Vibram soles were nailed, screwed or sewn on. Only the mid sole.

The take home lesson should be

Don't dry wet boots by the fire.
Don't leave your boots in a hot car.

Either will cause the glue to release.

A fix that will work for several hundred miles is to drill holes thru the midsole and sole, (assuming you have the outside stitched old school boots) and sew them with bailing wire. Otherwise, twist wire into a basket under the shoe with loops up the side an inch or so that can be laced with cord over the top like crampon straps. I have had luck with hikers getting several days of use this way too. Duct tape comes off in snow and wears off fast in scree.

My favorite were the Pivetta boots. Best edging boot that still had lots of flex and breathed way better than modern mountaineering boots. Perfect CA high country boots for off trail.

Craig
I had a pair of Clark’s air mover shoes, after retirement I stuck them in a box under the bed. 10 years later I put them on an left the house, drove to a appointment. Got out of car and the sole we’re laying on the floor boards. Just wore socks and tossed them when I got home.

The Chounaird Sewing Kit is back on the market at Patagonia and, with the addition of a spool of fine wire as Clearwater suggested, could accomplish the temporary reattachment of a sole better than duct tape.

https://www.patagonia.com/product/expedition-sewing-kit/12000.html

This article describes how to make your own for cheaper, and how to use it. I keep meaning to make up several for the EDC bag and vehicles.

https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/76028/

Drilling through a Vibram sole and mid sole would surely try one's level of sanctification, especially in adverse weather.

Glad I still have my original Chouinard sewing kit; don't remember what I paid for it, but it was much less than $29. I have never had to put it to serious use, but it has been worth carrying several times.

I am definitely a fan of duct tape for quick field repairs of shoe soles. If only they made duct tape with a sticky rubber backing...

I had a similar experience 6 years ago with a pair of Clark's chukkas. I thought these were a high quality boot and they were in good shape with leather uppers and shallow lug soles. I was about 5 miles back in the woods along a small river when one of the soles separated and fell off while I was walking. I wrapped it with some cordage and headed back to the truck. About a mile before I got back, the other sole came loose and fell off. I walked the rest of the way on the leather that wrapped under, and the insole. The only thing I could think of was that I had gotten gasoline and salt on them while standing in the slush at a gas station that winter, and it corroded the stitches and bonding materials.

40 some years ago when I was working as an arborist, I wore my very expensive Wesco climbing boots ( decades later now priced at $395/pair) to help muck out the family barn. For whatever reason the stitching attaching the midsole to the welt gave way. Fortunately home was less than 100 yards away. As the uppers were pretty badly scarred by that time I decided not to have them resoled. Knowing what I know now, it probably would have been worth the money to have them resoled.
The other boot was fine: the sole survivor.

"sole survivor" --groan...!! (actually, good rotten pun)

I read that this is an issue about polyurethane, the plastic material from which most modern boots and shoes are made. Polyurethane is porous and, within years of production, and even if the shoe was never used, air seeps through and made the soles crumble.
This issue is some sort of a nightmare for hardcore sneakers collectors, who might pay thousands for a pair of never used Air Jordans from the 1980s, only to find out that their soles are falling apart at the slightest touch.

Here's a link to article in Wired on the matter.

https://www.wired.com/2015/05/sneakers/