Stuttgart - The main thing to consider when buying hiking footwear is the kind of hiking for which it is intended, notes the Stuttgart-based magazine Outdoor in its October issue.

Multifunctional shoes are fine for day tours and long walks in uplands, the magazine's experts say. Similar to athletic shoes in form and wearing comfort, they provide nearly as much support as proper hiking shoes do.

Someone planning weekend hikes with a heavy pack should choose hiking boots, however. These boots are also suitable for simple hikes in the mountains and provide reliable support in difficult terrain. Waterproof inner lining keeps the hiker's feet dry.

Hikers who venture into the wilderness for many days at a time ought to go with real trekking boots.

Thanks to their especially high and firm bootlegs, Outdoor points out, they give sure support even when the hiker is carrying a heavy backpack.

High-quality mountain boots are advisable in high mountains. Their narrower form and better lacing improve sure-footedness in very steep terrain, Outdoor says. Mountain climbers should also wear mountain boots for vie ferrate ("iron roads," i. e. prepared routes with fixed cables, stemples, ladders, and bridges) and glacier tours. (dpa)