Excellent question, Ken!

I’d strongly suggest not using gtx shoes for typical three-season conditions on the Colorado Plateau. Your socks will get sweaty. Some well-known hikers on the internet will tell you some shoes are better than others due to the sand issue. I think that’s nonsense as shoe fit and type of shoes ends up as more important than the specific shoe. Find a shoe that fits well and I’d strongly suggest stiffer shoes for scrambling over the rougher route in the canyons vs. a maintained trail ala the PCT. In other words, I’d not suggest Altras!

Long pants and short gaiter combos (ala Dirty Girl or similar) are also a combo that works well to cut down on the sand in shoes. Other than well-maintained trails I rarely wear shorts for most of my hiking out on the Colorado Plateau at this point.

Finally, you could “embrace the dirt” as I do but I suspect that’s not a good strategy for most! 😉
https://www.instagram.com/p/CNoK0zHFc7H/

I know you hate talking about gear, but I’m all ears because when you do talk you have something to say.

I’m wondering about the sand in the shoes problem. “Wired” says something like, “If you don’t like sand in your shoes, don’t do the Hayduke” e.g. Southern Utah. I’ll do a variation on Across Utah anyway, but was wondering about any strategies. Some backpacking light posts suggest good (although limited) experience with gore-tex shoes (anathema to myself and most other serious backpackers) not because of being “waterproof” but because of the membrane blocking sand fill. Not much use when you are walking through deep mud and muddy streams I suppose.

At any rate, since I don’t live close it’s hard for me to experiment, so any advice you might offer on strategy or gear would be welcome.

Thanks

Jamal, thanks for stopping by! I just finished last night and hitched to Grand Junction this morning. What a stupendous route you put together! Thank you. Mile for mile, the best multi-week hike I’ve done. Wow!

Hopefully the poor man’s pack raft won’t act too poorly. 😉

Have fun!