Shyheels

You and me both, mate

Vibram soles seem to be the best all-round sole for the canals - in my experience anyway. As you say, smooth soles would be disastrous. Gum boots are great for muddy towpaths but not for locks and swing bridges and the like. I like a really sturdy sole. I’m fortunate in having a couple of pair of knee boots with Vibram soles

Yes, I always worry about the fragility of stiletto heels - or at least their perceived fragility. I have one pair which I kind of consider stilettos that have heel tips of perhaps 10-12mm. I really love them and feel much more secure walking in them than the two pair of truly skinny stiletto boots.

That’s a great idea. I’ll definitely contribute thoughts to that thread I don't think cowboy boots or anything with a heel would give you any advantage in shifting lock gates. I travel a lot on the Leeds & Liverpool which has probably the heaviest lock gates on the network and I'm a single hander. The more of your boot that's on the ground, the better. as you will have no doubt noticed at the locks they often have little brick ridges within the arc of where you push the beams to give your feet some purchase as you shove the heavy gate beam. Bear in mind too that it isn't just a matter of shifting lock gates open and closed - there's mooring on the lock landings and scrambling up slippery lock ladders as well, some of which can be quite high. Lemonroyd Lock on the Aire & Calder, for example, is about 16 feet and the ladder wet and covered with algae. Sensible shoes - work boots, really - are a really good idea.

As I’ve mentioned before I think I must be the only person living on the canals who owns a pair (three pair in my case) of stilettos. I saw a thread on a canal boat forum listing things boaters never own. Top of the list? Stilettos. And a chorus of snorting joking agreements followed. To be sure only an idiot would try working the locks or doing any of the physical work of moving a boat down the canal in stilettos or any sort of high heel, and they wouldn’t be practical on muddy towpaths. And there is not much room for extraneous possessions on a narrowboat. So I may we’ll be unique. at least a couple of boaters now know I wear stilettos, as I was wearing my OTK black suede stiletto boots this morning while writing. I looked out just before dawn and noticed the light was beautiful so I grabbed my camera and went out on the bow - while I was shooting several went past walking their dogs. I could tell that a couple of them noticed, but nobody said anything. People here may not own stilettos but they are a bohemian lot - were all a bit odd and that’s more or less understood

I understood your meaning, and from your description of her I'd say you're exactly right: someone who loves wearing heels.

Those are what I would term simply “high heels” . Stilettos are much thinner, as the name implies - like the needle-thin blade of the dagger of the same name No. It’s very stable. There is no current and there’s not enough reach for the wind to generate any waves. That said, the wind can jostle a narrowboat. Not violently but in really powerful cross winds there is detectable bounciness. Even a modest wind can adversely affect the handling of a narrowboat. If the wind is much over 16mph you’re usually better staying where you’re moored.

I am in the same boat as regards stilettos. I love the look, especially the 12cm height in boots, and I have three pair of stiletto boots. They are my office wear and I can’t imagine that changing. For several reasons. Although my stiletto boots are all very classic designs, a stiletto heel just seems to extravagant to be “me”. Although, as I say, I do like them. Perhaps it’s a lack of confidence - one that is helped along by the fact that I’m not proficient enough at wearing them. Ive also no place to wear them other than at my desk - muddy towpaths and stiletto heels would be a disaster. And when I do go out in nice boots, when I am moored in a town, I have some lovely chunky heeled ones that simply feel more “me”.

Start with something low key and ambiguous like chunky heeled ankle boots

We seem to be very much alike in our approach. I always dress for work, starting with heels and picking out something that works with them. In my case, since I live on a narrowboat on the canals - not in a marina or boatyard, but as a continuous cruiser moving along the network, working locks and swing bridges and mooring along muddy towpaths, my clothes are of the more hard-wearing sort - jeans and jumpers and boots. On days when I am moving the boat I don't wear heels - but I do wear nice leather knee boots. But when I am moored and working - writing stories - I am nearly always in heels. And I make sure that my jeans and jumpers and dress shirts make a presentable appearance. t

She sounds like an interesting and dedicated wearer of high heels. If you were wearing heels yourself you could probably get away with a reference - perhaps something along the lines of how nice it is to see another person in heels these days, thereby making the conversation about society and fashion trends at large rather than an observation about her personally.

As a freelance who works from home I can dress as I please - and could if I wanted to sit around all day in my pyjamas, as a lot if people did during the pandemic. I always try to make an effort if for no other reason than to remind myself I am at work, and so create an at work vibe. I have found that wearing heels is really helpful in this regard. It’s like the foundation. You feel you need to live up to your footwear - at least in a smart casual sense. I have my faucet dress code as it were - nothing flashy at all, just nice heels, jeans, shirt or jumper.

I am convinced that I am probably the only narrowboat dweller who even owns a pair of heels - no big surprise I suppose given how life is lived along the canals, the easy bohemian style of most boaters, and how little space there is aboard a narrowboat for anything non essential. My boot collection takes up an inordinate amount of space. I wear heels all the time indoors but walking along towpaths is an impossibility and wearing heels around locks would be dangerous in the extreme. I am known though for always wearing nice knee boots - low heels - everywhere so that’s something. I’m the only one though

I bought a pair many years ago to wear around the garden. Easy to slip on and slip off, can be hosed down if they get muddy and as garden wear they’re great. I’d never wear them out in public though. I should add that mine are nothing fancy, just the straight standard Croc

Yes that’s very non committal. Could mean anything - or nothing.