Remember to Adjust/Retie Your Shoes

Your shoes don’t stay tight all day. As you hike, your laces will gradually loosen allowing your foot to move around inside your shoe which can lead to blisters

Look out for Moisture

Your foot will sweat inside your shoe. No duh! As the moisture builds your feet become soggy which leads to the blisters forming on the bottoms of your feet, especially around the balls and toes. Sock liners or merino wool socks can help remove this moisture from your feet helping to prevent blisters.

Break-in Your Shoes

New shoes are stiff. As a result, they don’t flex well with your feet which leads to increased rubbing and more chance of blisters. Wear your new shoes around for a week or so and break them in. If there is no time for a proper break-in, then be sure to follow the other hints here to help you out.

Pre Wrap Your Feet

For those more prone to blistering or feel the onset of a blister, wrap your feet using Leuko tape or Kinesiotape. These tapes are strong, flexible, and don’t lose their stickiness, even when wet (on a long hike, wrap some tape around a hiking pole, this will prevent the need for carrying a whole roll). You can also purchase Mole Skin (padded band-aids specifically for blisters). Other tapes like micropore tape or even duct tape (if you are desperate) can help too. Band-Aids will work, but they usually fall off rather quickly and become annoying. 

Make Sure Your Shoes Fit Properly

I know this sounds silly, but sometimes we think they fit, but they don’t. Make sure your toes are not hitting the tip (this will get painful when walking downhill and there’s nothing you can do for this on the trail). In the store, put the boot on and leave it untied. You should be able to comfortably push your index finger between your heel and the boot. If you can’t it’s too tight and your toes will curse you. If you can place 3 fingers, then it’s too big and your heel will rub.