DEAR GEAR MAVEN:

Could you define the functional role of gaiters?

Sarah Callan

Annie's Answer:

	Ask the Expert Annie Getchell Gear expert Annie Getchell believes the key to happiness is buying quality gear and treating it with tender loving care. Meet Annie Answer Archive Gear Forums

Glad to. Gaiters are those tube-like puttees that are more or less like raingear for your boots. Because gaiters are generally constructed of a water-resistant shell material, your boots stay dryer (and cleaner) inside and out when you slosh through ankle-deep brooks or mudholes. Therefore, your feet remain snuggly and less blister-prone.

No serious hiker should be without a pair. Not only do the leggings protect and prolong the life of feet and leather footgear, they make the wearer less inhibited when faced with mid-trail quagmires.

Also, as all of you good Leave No Tracers know, when hikers choose not to sully their precious feet and tiptoe around the path, they contribute to a high-impact, highly infectious condition known as"trail spread." You've seen it: a wet spot along your favorite hiking route that's expanded to three or four times the width of the path.