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Hello everyone,

I was wondering if it would be a good idea to have a pair of water shoes in my back pack and hike up wet smooth rocks with them (in summers).
Since I will be using them on parts of class 3 or 4 trails where it is impossible to hike up with hiking boots due to the lack of traction,I would like to hear your advice and make sure it is safe.

Also do rock climbing shoes and approach shoes work well on wet surface?

Thank you very much!

Water shoes are great for summer hiking - light, breathable, quick-drying. In general, though, they're not designed for class 4 stuff. They might slip off your foot while you press on an edge or a toe, for example.

Surprisingly, many water shoes also have terrible traction on wet rocks. I don't know of a good way to predict which, you'll just have to give it a try.

Rock climbing shoes on class 3 have two main problems: 1) comfort, or rather lack thereof; 2) they tend to pick up bits of dirt and sand, which causes them to become much less grippy. This problem gets much worse when they're wet. They're far from immune from slipping when wet and clean, too.

I'd be interested to hear what folks do when they have to climb in wet canyons in places like Colorado and Utah.

I find a lugged Vibram sole is superior to a smooth soled rock shoe on wet rock. An approach shoe with sticky rubber would be the ticket for wet rock.

Yury wrote:

xshen0612 wrote:Since I will be using them on parts of class 3 or 4 trails where it is impossible to hike up with hiking boots due to the lack of traction ...

Could you please provide more details.
Class 3 and lack of traction?
It's seems strange to me.

Wet smooth stone slab, picture is class 2.

Is this what you are looking for?

http://fiveten.com/products/footwear-de ... eer-yellow

Try a waterproof approach shoe.

I wouldn't recommend it. Water shoes are mostly designed to dry quickly after being submerged, rather than grip wet surfaces. They tend to use cheap, waxy rubber. More like soft plastic than rubber.

But, if you found a pair that had good quality rubber soles, you actually might do OK there. I would second the Vibram and Five Ten recommendations above. And maybe Keens (I am not impressed by Keens durability but their grippiness is actually pretty good). Keens water shoes are actually designed to handle light hiking (Tevas too).

That particular slab in the picture you posted is gonna be a problem for any shoe. It isn't just wet rock. It has lichen and probably some pretty slimy biofilm, not just wet clean rock.

Good luck!

xshen0612 wrote:

Wet smooth stone slab, picture is class 2.

For that, your best bet is probably crampons. (Or hobnails. Any kind of rubber would be pretty hopeless on wet, slimy slabs.

5.10 rubber seems to do pretty well on that sort of stuff. Lugs like on the 5.10 exum guides or canyoneers recommended above. They're replacing the rubber with a harder, more durable type though so I don't know how that will perform. I'm a big fan of my current canyoneers.

La Sportiva trailrunner rubber also does well once you scuff it up a bit and go with the stiffer offerings such as on the ultra raptors.

Naturally, technique trumps the rubber.

Ask the folks who climb Adirondack slides. Lots of good slide climb reports on SP.

MoapaPk wrote:Ask the folks who climb Adirondack slides. Lots of good slide climb reports on SP.

Lower class slides are manageable in trail runners and/or boots reasonably (Bennies Root Canal, Macomb rubble slide, Snowy's Griffin Brook Slide). Mid class slides (Trap Dike exit slides, Beckhorn, Great Slide on Grace, Eagle Slide) are occasionally manageable is some grippier trail runners and boots, however here is the transition, where it is more comfortable in specifically designed climbing shoes, even altogether necessary. The 5.10 Guide Tennis are a recommended pair of approach shoes, however many people choose to forsake approach shoes in favor of climbing shoes, like the popular 5.10 Anasazi. Reason being is that most will prefer to stay in their preferred shoes most of the hike and switch into light, barely noticeable rock shoes, rather than wear a pair of a approach shoes which are a compromise between rock and trail runners. For higher class slabs and slides (Gothics, Big Slide, and so on), rock shoes are fairly unanimous for comfort on rock.

If you are looking at dealing with hikes which involve rocky wet slabs and slides like maybe Allen or Seymour, then an approach shoe might be better. Rock shoes are probably better all around if you are looking at slide climbs anywhere of any type from Snowy to Whiteface and all points in between.

A word on rock shoes- avoid an excessive heel cup in favor for a flatter sole. Such shoes with the heel cup are designed for grabbing holds and reaching around cracks, whereas the flatter sole of the 5.10 Anasazi or a La Sportiva Turantulace lend themselves more to slabs and slides.

The Adirondack High Peaks Forum is a great place for info, and if you are interested in slides there is a Slide Climbing Subforum: http://www.adkhighpeaks.com/forums/