Superfeet Berry

When you buy a boot, ya gotta buy an insole. The money goes into the boot and not the insole, so it can mean the difference between an adequate boot and a great comfortable fit. Matching up the insole to the boot can be the most critical part of your boot system.

I hike in Keens and everything is great, except a couple incidents where I had heel slippage on the ups and toe smacks on the downs. I decided to get Superfeet and was worried about the fact once I got them, I was stuck with them, or I would have to buy a new set and try them out too.

But REI encouraged me to spend a lot of time walking around in the store with them in my boots. So I did. Like 40 minutes. After comparing the various ones I selected the Berry. Not too much arch, which I need to be careful of but it was just enough to snug down my heel in the back. My feet have never slipped in the heal again. That combined with better lacing technique made my boot system perfect!

I wore them every day on an 8 day trek to Mt Everest Base Camp and know that my hard working feet were treated to less pain than prior to having them in my boots. They hold up very well. I gave my boots away, but took my Superfeet! (I did replace them with the stock insoles, so the Sherpa who got them had insoles!). I have them in my boots always now.

I just trimmed them to size, inserted them and there it was. Never missed a beat and they fit well without slipping around the inside. I simply traced the stack insole on to the raw Superfeet. I don't really have pictures of demoing the trim, but it is pretty self explanatory. And the picture below of me at EBC reveals a delighted trekker with happy feet having depended on my Superfeet to carry me all the way to 17, 800 feet!

Take your time trimming. You don't want to wreck the set or have them trimmed too small and create a ridge or edge for your toes or heels to rub on. I have used my Superfeet for 3 years or so and wish I had known about them sooner.

Read the packages to see what each of the colored insoles do, as each color has a different arch, softness, rigidity etc. These berry ones are specifically designed for woman. And they do have a deep and narrow heel cup as they say they do. That is what locked my heel in.

I do NOT have narrow feet, so don't think the heel cup may pinch or not wrk. It is perfect for cradling your heel and stabilizing it. The ball of the foot is cushioned well and all day heel strikes and ball push offs are so well handled that the fatigue factor after 7-9 hours of hiking is greatly lessened.