I took all my new and old hiking shoes out of the closet and washed them and inspected for re-use or throw-out. Two are in great shape because I seldom use them because they are a bit too small. But four fit perfectly, have a reasonable tread remaining, but have a small hole- all left foot- in the pinky toe side. I bash through a lot of rocks - I bet I lead with my left foot. I use Super-feet insoles that I replace annually so the status of the foot-bed is not an issue.

So, what to do. Is there any way to repair a dime-size hole without making the area stiff or uncomfortable? I have tried Barge cement on some technical climbing shoes in the past, and it resulted in unacceptable stiffness. Should I just leave the hole and deal with wet shoes? The shoes are not waterproof in the first place. All are Merrell light hiker, low cut shoes. The hole is right at the fabric-rubber toe interface.