Boots: lightweight with limestone resistant soles

[focusonbalance]

Hi all, wondering if anyone has a pick for lightweight hiking boots with limestone resistant soles. Buddy of mine is asking as his vibrant soles got chewed up by a hike on predominately limestone.
Thx

 

[nartreb]

As rocks go, limestone is downright soft. I suspect your friend just got unlucky with bad quality control on the batch of rubber that went into his boots.

For me, the best lightweight hiking boot is usually a trail runner -- but it depends where you hike. Lots of rain or wet grass? Chance of deep snow? Dangerous snakes?

 

[Mike P.]

To add to what nartreb said, what is he wearing and calling lightweight? The pair that fit his feet best would be the one to wear. Depending on his ankle strength and his "typical" hike, you could be looking at a wide range of shoes/boots. I have found, (at least in the brands I looked at), that lightweight shoes made by a boot company seem to be more durable than a trail shoe made by a sneaker company.

 

[focusonbalance]

I had suggested to him that his boots were likely old as rubber/plastic will decay overtime especially if not used, but still wanted to ask for him as question to me. I just wanted to post as I don’t proclaim to be an expert and wondered if there were truly boots made for limestone as I’ve never heard of anything.

 

[bignslow]

Yes, limestone as a rock is soft and will easily degrade with wear, but the surface is very sharp (almost like a rasp). The mountains out here (Bear River Range in Northern UT) chew up shoes much faster than the Whites/Adirondacks ever did (both the rock itself and the moon dust getting into the textile and causing abrasion from within).

I used to be exclusively in Sportiva Raptors in the NE, but out here I hike in the Mutants since we run into a lot of "loose over hardpack" conditions and the lugs of the mutants help a lot with slippage.

 

[focusonbalance]

Thanks, I will surely pass that on.