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Ultrarunner Amy Sproston was derailed by trench foot after dealing with flooding and wet terrain.

Hiking the Appalachian Trail, which covers almost 2,200 miles from Maine to Georgia, takes the typical hiker five to seven months. On July 24, Amy Sproston, 48, began a quest to complete it in less than 50 days.

Her goal was to set a self-supported fastest known time (FKT), beating the current record of 54 days held by Heather Anderson. Starting at Springer Mountain in Georgia, Sproston aimed to move for 16 hours each day, averaging 45 miles of hiking, all while carrying 15–20 pounds of her essentials—like food, water and a tent.

Sproston was on track, until flooding and wet terrain resulted in an unforeseen challenge: trench foot.

A condition resulting when a person’s feet are too wet for too long, trench foot causes heaviness, tingling, numbness, and if left untreated, can result in permanent nerve damage or tissue loss. It is estimated that during World War I, trench foot killed almost 80,000 American and British soldiers.

Sproston said, “Your socks don’t dry out, so you end up with wet feet all day, every day. You try to dry them out at night, but it just kind of compounds day after day.”

She was alternating between four pairs of Injinji toe socks and wearing Hoka Speedgoats (the RW Editors’ top pick for long runs on wet terrain). In Hot Springs, North Carolina, Sproston switched to Altra Olympus shoes, which she had never worn before. Though the new shoes provided additional room in the toe box for her swollen feet, Sproston said she still experienced intense pain.

In an Instagram Post that she titled “AT Update: AT 1, Amy’s feet annihilated,” Sproston wrote, “What can I say…it was a wet week in the south and my foot care plan was unprepared to keep my feet dry. Trench foot and lots of blisters added a lot of swelling to an additional foot issue which I’ll just call metatarsalagia. By night 5 every step felt like stepping on thousands of tiny daggers, mainly concentrated in the balls of my feet.”

After resting and consulting with her physical therapist, Sproston decided to bail on her FKT attempt on July 31 in Erwin, Tennessee. Even with her foot problems, in eight days Sproston completed 344 miles, not including 20 extra miles she accidentally logged off the AT.

AT DNF. Major foot issues, depicted here in a comparison of Kristian Morgan’s feet during his successful AT hike (1st image) vs mine (2nd and 3rd images). Someone nailed foot care and someone failed at foot care… https://t.co/NIfkFFSKLz pic.twitter.com/OHPBtbLEJH

“I still can’t walk very well yet. I basically just completely destroyed my feet in my short adventure out there,” said Sproston, who was hiking to raise money for Free to Run.

Since 2016, Sproston has served as an ambassador for Free to Run, whose mission is to use adventure sports and outdoor activities to empower women and girls living in areas of conflict, like Iraq and Afghanistan.

“It’s important for women to be seen taking on big adventures and encouraging and motivating women that they can also take on big challenges, and that the outdoors is for everyone,” said Sproston, who lived in Jordan for the past three years while working for Mercy Corps, an international humanitarian NGO.

Sproston, a longtime competitive and sponsored runner, has completed 80 ultramarathons. She won the 2012 IAU 100K World Championships and placed second in the 2016 Western States Endurance Run, which was her fourth top-10 finish in the race. In 2020, Sproston also set the FKT for the Jordan Trail when she completed just over 400 miles in eight days. But her goal to complete the AT in record time was perhaps one of her most ambitious and meaningful.

“Those trails mean something to me,” said Sproston, who first started trail running on the AT with the Virginia Happy Trails Running Club when she lived in D.C. from 2004 through 2009. “I wanted to take a break from work and go lose myself in the Green Tunnel and think for a while.”

Dubbed the “Green Tunnel '' due to its significant tree coverage, the AT has “an elevation gain and loss equivalent to hiking Mt. Everest from sea level and back 16 times,” according to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy. Only one in four finishes the trail, with approximately 20,000 completions reported to date.

Although Sproston’s attempt was unsuccessful, she is considering a second go around next spring. But, needless to say, she’ll be doing some things differently during round two.

“Foot care is really important on these long trails, so to have a plan for how to fix problems as they come up, especially with wet feet. That might involve slowing down and taking some down time to let your feet dry,” Sproston said. “With trench foot once it gets beyond a certain point, it’s hard to go back... I’d gone too far to fix it by the time I stopped.”

Though you may not be planning to log 2,200 miles in 50 days on the AT, here are some tips to keep your feet happy on and off the trails.

First things first, make sure you are properly fitted for running shoes, and if you are regularly hitting the trails, consider investing in trail shoes.

If you experience dry feet, add a moisturizer like Neutrogena foot cream into your daily routine. Stephanie Marlatt Droege, D.P.M., a podiatrist from La Porte, Indiana, suggests lathering up immediately after bathing. "Applying moisturizer at that time will help retain some of the water from your shower," says Droege.

If blisters are your nemesis, Lowell Weil, D.P.M., a podiatrist in Des Plaines, Illinois, says to apply a skin moisturizer or lubricant, like petroleum jelly or Bodyglide, to the outside of your sock to eliminate friction. And speaking of socks, waterproof ones can be a lifesaver, especially if you know you’ll encounter wet terrain or river crossings.

Ultimately, follow Sproston’s advice and try to be as proactive as possible.

“So with foot care having a plan beforehand and thinking about all the potential issues and just a way to keep your feet happy, because it’s a long way and your feet have to join you for the entire journey,” she said.