How to lace your hiking boots

You've been tying your laces since nursery school. But if your hiking boots rub, you tend to get blisters on your heels or you're battling a high instep, it's worth learning a few more lacing tricks. They can solve all sorts of problems.

Two zones Basic tips High instep Heel lock On the trail

Two lacing zones

First and foremost, your hiking boots have to fit – in size and shape (check out how boots are built). How you lace them and how tight you pull different sections then lets you adapt them to specific terrain and situations.

Lower zone

Holds the front and middle of the foot – across the instep. Tightened properly, it gives you support on technical terrain – e.g. when scrambling on rock or wearing crampons.

Here the laces usually run through eyelets (or pulleys).

Upper zone

Wraps around the ankle and helps prevent sprains. Lacing in this section also helps lock the heel in place, which is exactly what stops blisters forming.

Here you hook the laces around metal hooks. The first (and lowest) pair of hooks is usually a locking pair – the laces jam firmly in them, holding the heel in place.

HOW DO YOU STOP LACES COMING UNDONE?

When you wrap one end of the lace around the loop made with the other, add one extra turn – and your laces will never come undone on their own again. You can still untie them perfectly normally when you take your boots off.

Asolo Greenwood EVO GV

5 tips for lacing properly

Centre the tongue

If it slips to one side or the other, it will start to press as you walk and rub your shins raw.

Keep your ankle straight

Otherwise you won't tighten the upper zone properly. Lace your boots with your foot and shin at a right angle – ideally sitting on a chair or a step.

Split the zones with a knot

If you want the lower zone of your boots really tight while leaving, say, the upper zone looser, tie a knot where the laces cross above the last eyelets.

Hook from the top down

For an even snugger fit around the ankles, thread the laces through the hooks from top to bottom. If, on the other hand, you want a looser upper zone, skip the top row of hooks.

Don't wrap your laces

Wrapping laces that are too long around the boot collar restricts the natural movement of your feet. Use a double bow instead, or get shorter laces.

Lacing for a high instep

If your boots rub across the instep, try parallel lacing, which reduces pressure there – without compromising a proper tightening of the lower zone.

Lacing to lock the heel

If your heel lifts as you walk, even slightly, you're heading for blisters. A heel-lock lacing holds the heel in place absolutely reliably.

Adjusting your lacing on the trail

After the first few hundred metres, hiking boots always loosen up a little. The boots warm up, the lining gives a bit, the laces settle. Stop and adjust your lacing – it's completely normal.

After several hours of walking, on the other hand, your boots may start to pinch. Your feet swell – that's normal too. So loosen your laces a little again.

Lacing for the climb

In the lower zone, tighten the laces moderately – not fully tight, but enough to keep your foot in place. In the upper zone you can leave the lacing on the looser side – so your shins can flex forwards and backwards, but without your heel lifting.

Lacing for the descent

In both the lower and upper zones, lace up good and tight – for better support on rough ground and more stable ankles.

How do you stop laces from snapping?

On some boot models, Asolo uses tiny pulleys instead of classic eyelets – the so-called Micro Pulley System. As well as reducing lace wear, they also let you tighten your boots better.

Asolo Kongur EVO GV

Lace care

Dust, sand and other tiny particles damage laces. So take them out now and then and wash them in warm water. And there's no harm in giving them a spray of waterproofing – they'll last longer.

how to care for the whole boot

Footwear Repel Plus Grangers