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Very sorry. PF is the worst. I struggled for 10 years off and on. I found that insoles and special shoes just made it worse (though I do have flat'ish feet). I'd usually pair those insoles/new shoes with rest/activity reduction, so from the outside it seemed like it made it all better. Looking back, I was just letting the tissue heal without addressing the dynamics that caused the tendon to become overloaded - or worse, catering to the dynamics that keep the tendon overloaded with the shoes/insoles. Lots of stretching is something I really regret too. My body was trying to protect itself by making the muscles tight, and the way I did stretching was me trying to tell it that I knew better. I really should have thought about why things were sore and tight, and carefully and intentionally strengthened muscle groups through range of motion. I had a rapid recovery after strengthening my hamstrings and glutes, lots of heat rather than ice, and was extremely serious about rest with active recovery. Eventually I switched to zero shoes, except when I am hiking and I need more support. But ... I had the financial (and emotional) capital to just take it easy. I think that kept the tissue from getting damaged in a way that takes a super long time to heal. Probably sounds cliche, but I look back on my PF with gratitude. It allowed me the time to find balance - both in my body and in my life. Really glad you are talking with Morgan. She helped me a ton.

Dealt with PF for years after a bad triathlon training ace, to varying degrees. All the normal therapy did little to nothing. Finally custom orthotics used in every shoe, did very narrow carbon fiber in bike & hiking shoes, slightly more flexible in running shoes (DIY foam press imprint I mailed back). Like any tendon repair, need to take the load off, and tendons don't stretch much. Mine was mid-arch PF, not heel.

I had to sleep in the dorsiflexion splints to get rid of my PF. They are super dorky, but it got the job done. No being barefoot ever, even if you get up to pee in the night. Squishy shoes only. Sorry you're having such a struggle!

I'm so sorry to see this. It must be so frustrating for you. I did have Plantar Fasciitis years ago which was helped by custom orthotics (I am a nurse and I spend a lot of time on my feet) but what worked for me has no relation to your feet. I think the Yukon trip will be great and not to much walking. ♥

I have healed from so many issues using a ketogenic/ carnivore diet for a year and a half. You might look into it. Many others have been healing by correcting their metabolism.

Welcome to getting older. I struggled with PF for years. Trying new inserts/shoes helped some. Losing bodyfat/weight helped a little. It hasn’t bothered me for the last couple of years. I think partially because I started to cycle my training and incorporated weight training and running during none hiking months. I try not to hike at all for 3-6+ months a year now. I definitely dialed back my hiking intensity in multiple ways! Traditional deadlifts, squat-variations, lunges, push and pull upper body variations + lots of calf strengthening seemed to help me tons. But, that’s just me. It took years to figure it out. Dealing with PF is a mind f@ck that sucks the joy out of hiking. It’s pure hell sometimes.

What kind of coffee do you drink when youre home?

Darn the luck, get better soon! Looking forward toward your Yukon trip.

Damn. Good luck to you. Get better soon!

Thanks!

I'm not sure what's best for your feet in this situation, but the version 9 of those New Balance Hiero is coming out end of February, like double the cushioning of the ones you were wearing, they look more like those Altra Olympus you used to use.

Struggled with pf for years. Arnica tablets were a game changer. Cheap too. You should give it a try.

Great to see you and Jen doing well. Looking forward to seeing your upcoming adventures. Take the time you need and try to not make it worse before better. 😉. 🌄🌄. 🏞️🏞️.

Go easy Matt... Go easy!

Get Jen to narrate - she has a way sexier voice than you anyway - LOL

Looks like you may need to live a more sedentary lifestyle for a couple of years and let your body heal properly. Make gear review and hiking technique videos - plenty of interesting content that you can make without hiking or doing strenuous things. It takes time for our bodies to heal and you can't rush it or push it.

Thank you for the update. Sounds like your fallowing great advice. Best wishes for futher healing in a timely manner.

Lay bith of you have achealthy , successful 2025

My plantar fasciitis treated with shots and arches. I was a UPS driver then I got shin splints I got carpal tunnel from carrying that board and then I blew my lower back out. Oh, there’s more but anyway.🎉 wondered what happened to you I enjoyed watching your videos I truly did

Been missin Y'all bro. You get that foot taken care of. I'm ready for you to get back on trail. Lol ✌️

My plantar fasciatis issue was never healing because I slept with my toes pointed, the fascia started to heal overnight, then I'd tear it loose again every morning when I stood up.. So I wore a light ankle brace that kept my foot in walking position all night, and I'd be able to walk in the morning without pain. Between that and arch supports, it did get better.

I am praying for your recovery too! 🙏 I am so grateful you have a peaceful and safe haven to stay at with Jen ❤ Thank you for keeping us posted 😊

Chronic pain is tough. Kidney stones are chronic pain in a microcosm; no individual pain is that bad over a second. It just doesn't end, and endorphins get depleted.

Ooh surly what a good choice of steed.

Try acupuncture

Praying for your recovery, I love hiking with you since my COPD stops me from my hiking. Love getting to see the sights you share with me.

I'm sorry to hear your recovery is not going as well or as quickly as you hoped. I'm glad you and Jen weren't caught in the fires. That the Yukon trip is still on is wonderful news for your fans. Good luck with your recovery, and all the best to both of you.

rooting for you guys here on the east coast.

Being a nurse that worked 12 hours on my feet. The only thing that helped my plantar fasciitis was a shoe that was a strong arch support that took the pressure off the heal. The other option is a shoe with a high heal that puts the weight on the ball of the foot.

Thank you for the update. I can commiserate with the sinus issue. Thankfully your sinus symptoms are a raspy voice. I caught a cold last year which lingered and then morphed into acute respiratory attacks. It turned out I had a long term occult case of sinusitis with a fungal infection (it had been asymptomatic for several years) which finally reared its ugly head suddenly causing the severe respiratory attacks and emergency hospitalization, vision disturbance in my right eye, and a dental problem that will likely result in an extraction not to mention the operation that will be needed to clear out the fungal growths. I'm also medicated to the eyeballs. It's because of this sinus issue that I've been "away from the keyboard" and not sending occasional comments. Glad to hear you are getting that CT. Many people think sinus issues are a minor annoyance -- and in many cases that's all they are -- but definitely best to nip lt in the bud. Don't give it a chance to develope into a more systemic problem. Take good care. Rest. Heal. Looking forward to your further adventures!

Best of luck for your recovery. I use the Zwift app with my indoor bike to keep me motivated, doing rides and races. With my old (65) arthritic knees I can no longer do training runs, the indoor bike gives me a great cardio workout and Zwift keeps it interesting for me. I had planar fasciitis, nasty, but fortunately mine completely healed after a few months. Hope yours does too, I love watching your videos, started when it appeared in my TH-cam feed as you were entering Massachusetts on your long walk north. That was an unusually wet summer!

That hump in the middle of the insert is great for preventing stress fractures. I have an abnormal alignment in my left upper foot that has lead to 6 stress fracturs. I have special inserts that are just the middle hump and have not had a fracture in 15 years.

Thanks for the update dude! I'm glad you're taking care of your feet, there's nothing more important. If you responded well to steroids, it makes me think that acupuncture might help. Acupuncture stimulates blood flow and your natural healing cells, endorphins, adenosine for anti-inflammatory effects and pain relief, and more. I know you hate medical advice, just putting that out there!

thx for the update, sorry for your distress! nice looking place, walking on concrete sucks! hi to jen

Some things in life are bad They can really make you mad Other things just make you swear and curse When you're chewing on life's gristle Don't grumble, give a whistle And this'll help things turn out for the best And Always look on the bright side of life Always look on the light side of life

Blaze Physio saved my PCT thru hike, so I’m hopeful for you. I highly recommend Barefoot Science inserts as they too got me through my PCT thru hike (side note: one of the first things Morgan asked me was what inserts I was using and she was very happy to hear my answer.) They are from Canada so can take a little extra time to get by mail (and of course if tariffs continue that could be a dealbreaker - maybe order some now to try out while the tariffs are on hold?) I rage-quit/retired in 2021 (fellow tech person here) and after camping/van lifing for a while my husband and I built a cabin in an extremely rural area to act as our (low-cost) basecamp when I’m not thru hiking and we’re not traveling. It’s been nice to have a place to store what little crap we own (and allowed us to close out our storage unit) and to relax and feel at home when off trail. No interest (or appetite for the cost) in buying a place at this point, though being so rural has its drawbacks. No hiking trails, for one. That place you’re staying in looks awesome. I’m hitting the CDT SOBO come June after having to skip last year. I already watched your CDT series but plan to watch again. There really aren’t too many SOBO TH-cam series out there for some reason. Keep on keepin’ on, good luck with your feet.

Thanks for the update, Matt. No medical advice offered. Sounds like you are engaged with the right people.

Jeepers, Matt. You're commin' apart at the seams! (Been there. It's an age thing ;) ) Thinking of you and Jen! Onward. Forward.

In the meantime, the turkey bar in Ramona is fantastic.

But hey, those insoles are green!

Matt, get some OOFOS. They come in flops & shoes. Had heel problems 2 years ago and now I'm fine. They feel like walking on marshmallows. Trust me, can't wait to see you back on trial.

Sorry to hear about the foot progress. I totally relate to not being able to hike thanks to a knee injury during the snowstorm last month here in MD. My winter hikes keep me sane and I haven’t been able to walk more than a couple blocks at a time. My dog isn’t happy about the situation either. Hope your feet start to cooperate soon!

Sorry you are still having to deal with that. Keep your head up. Hopefully it turns around soon. Looking forward to seeing the yukon trip.

Suggest walking around in Birks. That foot injury takes months to get over.

Sorry man, that sucks about your feet. That sounds like an annoying hiker de-buff. But you gotta look on the bright side. It's not a case of Enthusiastic Double Gonorrhea. So there's that. :)

Thanks for the update. I had been wondering how it was going. Remember that your highest and most important goal is to get healed up. If you have to bail on the wilderness class that is just part of the healing process and has to be done whether you like it or not. Send ing you healing thoughts and prayers.

__ Just tossing this one out there, no need to respond. Deanna Hanson's Block Therapy is kind of interesting because it often has you doing stuff that's nowhere near the pain. I was skeptical but I never get back pain and for no reason my back went in to a spasm for three hours and I was getting a little desperate and Deanna's thing for backs is to forget about the back and do some cockamamy thing where you lie on a very hard rounded thing on your bellybutton--the front not the back!--and you have to do the crazy breathing and dang, it worked. Not even Iyengar yoga worked but block therapy did. And I've been cheating and not even buying the blocks, just using round hard things. I'm guessing she'd not have you poking the foot but instead putting a very painful hard bamboo block in your calf and doing the breathing and making it as painful as possible. Kind of the opposite of physical therapy and massage: not near the pain, not relaxing. You have a good pain threshold so it might work for you. Everything she does begins with abusing your bellybutton with excruciating pain, as far as I can tell. Then go around seeking pain nowhere near the original pain. Enjoy!

Hang in there and keep following Blaze's advice 👍☮

Took me a year to get over plantar fasciitis… definitely painful. Hope yours improves sooner. I will be starting Grand Enchantment in a few days.

I had PF after my last pair of jungle boots wore out. The podiatrist tried orthodics which helped for a short time. It ended up that I had to go back to combat boots with the punji plate. These have worked for 16 years now. Try some WD-40 on the trainer. Heal fast. Good Luck, Rick