What do I do if the sole of my hiking boot falls apart in the backcountry?

[NavaHip]

Duct Tape or some type of cordage. Replace your boots when they get worn? Thats actually the simplest answer or in my case do the Cody Lundin thing and dont wear shoes at all? Shoes are the Achilles Heel of man kind. Our feet were healthier when we had no shoes and our backs didnt have problems because its the way we were meant to walk. Just the musings of yet another Bush Hippie!

[Hendo59019]

isn't that why everybody carries duct tape?

[eli]

Assuming you haven't any duck-tape, If you have fire and can find a couple of cans, birch bark tar would be my choice. Ideally, you can harvest the bark from living or dead birch trees and produce enough birch oil/tar in a few hours to keep your gear together.

If you cook the oil down to a thick tar, you can also pack this into a reed for a 'glue stick' source of tar as you make your way to safety. Just light the end of this and apply the softened tar to your gear for repairs.

[lfos847]

I think duct tape is the quick answer. I always include glue sticks in my kits. A lighter and a glue stick will repair many things.

[Warren Miller]

Duck tape is the best choice if you carry it, but a sock or other piece of cloth tied around it should get you out as another option.

[Smitty]

Right on, PAShooter! I keep several feet of it wrapped around my water bottle and it goes everywhere with me. Have used duct tape to keep "hot spots" from turning into blisters on my feet to patching up a shredded pair of rain pants, leaky tents, broken tent poles and more. The thicker Gorilla tape that's out now works really well, too.

[PAShooter]

Duct tape, always carry it.

[pineywoods]

If you are armed, you might be able to kill something and use strips of the hide to wrap around the boot and keep the sole more or less in place. Also, the leaf of the yucca plant has very tough fibers and you could use this temporarily, even though you'd probably have to replace it a few times before you got to help.

You might also use the duct tape from the little roll you have in your emergency kit.

[bigjake]

Pine resin,which is sun hardened sap found on the trunks of pine trees,makes a sticky water resistant glue when softened with a flame.

[mesarich]

Limp, lol, Not sure on this one, but I would bet someone on this site could tell you.

[UrbanViking]

What do I do if the sole of my hiking boot falls apart in the backcountry?