Shoes - A Back Packer's Challenge

Size 11 - Price $12

When trying to carry everything you'll need for several months on the road in one backpack, one of the biggest challenges is the choice of footwear. In everyday life we've become accustomed to using different shoes for different pursuits - hiking shoes, running shoes, dressy shoes, sandals etc. It would be easy to half fill a backpack with several pairs of shoes to suit the different activities we expect to encounter over the course of 5 months. Obviously we need to compromise, so I chose a comfortable pair of all purpose Ecco shoes which I broke in before we left Canada. Now that we've settled into a daily walk routine around hilly Sandy Bay, I decided to get a pair of running shoes. Because I'll abandon them in Tasmania when we head for South East Asia, I wasn't about to pay Nike prices for 'temporary' running shoes. K Mart  had just the ticket - Nike knockoffs for $12! Contemplating the supply chain, I was left to wonder who made what from my new runners, and to consider the kind of profits the big name companies must be making if it's possible to produce knock offs for $12 a pair!

Pen looking over the Derwent River on our morning constitutional. (Note - it ain't exactly summer here yet!)