Ah, the hiking boot vs. trail runner debates, or should I say wars? Each side makes its case, and then things slowly deteriorate into fighting and bloodshed. Just like the never-ending religious struggles between Christianity vs. Muslins, Tea Party nutjobs vs. the Rest-of-Us, etc. It's the nature of our species. Give us a cause/belief, any cause/belief, and some of us will try to kill the other over it. The contentiousness in the world today reminds me of the movie "Ghostbusters" where a type of energy enveloped NYC, causing everyone to argue/be disagreeable with everyone else.
On the "what to wear on my feet" topic - I've climbed Mt Lassen several times. It's a relatively easy, short dayhike, with alot of 'bang for the buck'. For those familiar with it, you know that not far from the actual summit the ground levels out, and enters a volcanic field of rather nasty, sharp, rubble as it gains the last bit of elevation. It's fresh - the last eruption was in the early 1900's and has weathered little. A slip/fall is going to draw blood or worse. In any case - one day I'm sitting on the summit (on a small pad) when a woman and her 3 teenage children appear, all in good spirits and quite animated. After making sure the kids all have food to munch on, the mom starts visiting with me and the other hikers. I couldn't help but notice that she and her children were barefoot, and no one was the worse for wear. As offhandedly as I could I commented on that, and she laughed, saying she had been drawn to a lifestyle many years ago, pre-motherhood, and hadn't worn shoes in many years, and had raised her children the same way. Said both she and her kids loved going barefoot, and lived at lower elevation nearby, the winters were mild and they never needed shoes/boots due to the cold. I've seen the occasional barefoot hiker over the years, but never on such sharp, volcanic rock.
As for stoves - I never carry a stove on 3-season dayhikes or short backpacks. I carry food which doesn't require heat. When doing a snow/glacier climb requiring an overnight (or two) I do carry a stove to melt snow/ice for water. As soon as there's liquid in the pan, it's filtered and more snow added. The combined weight of filter, stove and enough fuel to melt is less than a stove and enough fuel to bring the water to a boil. This year I noticed the snow rangers on Shasta use the same method. Much more efficient in terms of weight.
