Walking on wet rock, mud and leaves

How do you avoid slipping on wet rock, mud and leaves? Slow down, shorten your steps, keep your feet flatter and your weight directly over them, and choose the surface with the most texture: lichen-free rock with visible grain, mud with grass roots, leaves with something firm beneath. No technique makes slippery ground safe, but a few habits make a slip less likely and less dramatic when it comes.

Grip is a matter of how much friction the ground and your boot can produce between them, and how much sideways force your step puts on it. A smooth, heel-first stride on a wet surface asks for a lot of friction. A short, flat-footed step with the body over the feet asks for much less. Most of what follows is about making the second kind of step.

Why wet surfaces slip

A thin film of water between boot and rock acts as a lubricant, which is why rock that looks only slightly damp can be treacherous. Algae, lichen and moss add a slimy layer, and polished stone worn by thousands of boots has little texture left. Mud is slippery because it moves: the surface layer shears away from the firmer ground below. Fallen leaves hide whatever is beneath them, and wet leaves compress into a slick mat, particularly on a slope or over wood and stone.

A slip usually begins with the foot sliding forward at the moment of landing, or backwards as you push off. Both of those moments put sideways force on the ground. Reduce those forces and you reduce the chance of a slide.

Flat feet and short steps

Land with as much of the sole as you can, rather than on the heel. A flat foot spreads the load across the whole boot and makes more of the tread work. Take shorter steps than you would on dry ground, so the foot lands closer to the body and under your weight rather than out in front of it. A long stride throws the foot ahead, braking hard at the heel, which is just the condition under which boots slide.

Keep your knees slightly soft and your hips above your feet. Leaning back or forward moves your weight away from the foot that is gripping and invites a skid. Soft knees give you a little reserve if the foot does move. This is the same alignment described in why balance is more than standing on one leg, in which stability comes from being ready to adjust and not from holding rigid.

On slippery ground the sequence matters: place the foot, feel whether it holds, and only then let your weight go onto it.

Choosing where to step

Rock is not uniformly slick. Rough, coarse-grained surfaces grip better than smooth ones, and a dry-looking patch beats a shiny one. Avoid stepping on the green or black coating that marks permanently wet stone, and on painted markings, metal and wooden boardwalks, which can be slippery in damp weather. Where you can, step on the edge of a rock where there is texture, or between rocks on firm earth rather than across the top of a smooth boulder.

In mud, the edges of a path are often grassier and firmer than the churned centre, though walking on them widens the path and damages the verges. Many paths have a marked line for this reason, and on sensitive ground the usual advice is to stay in the middle and go through the mud. Look for stones, roots and tufts of grass that offer something firm, but test roots before trusting them; a wet root is as slippery as wet rock.

Leaves deserve extra suspicion because you cannot see what they cover. A pile on a path might hide a rut, a stone, a root or a patch of ice. Where possible, scuff the leaves with your boot to feel the ground, or step on the clear edge. On a slope, a covering of leaves over firm clay can behave like ice.

Slopes, steps and bends

Everything above counts for more on a slope. Downhill, the forward-sliding foot is a bigger risk, so step shorter still and keep your hips above your feet; the ideas in walking downhill without fighting gravity apply directly. Zig-zagging gently across a steep muddy bank, or taking the route that uses the natural steps, can be more sensible than going straight down.

Turn with small steps rather than pivoting on a planted foot, since a twisting boot can slide as easily as a forward one. Lift one foot, place it at the new angle, and then bring the other round. Hold the turn until you have settled before starting off again. On wooden steps, bridges and boardwalks, take extra care at the edges and in shade, where moss and algae build up.

Boots, poles and judgement

Footwear matters. A boot or shoe with a deep, aggressive tread on a firm, rubbery sole grips better on mud and wet grass than a worn pair; smooth, worn soles are an obvious thing to replace. Sticky rubber grips wet rock better than hard compounds, though no sole will cope with every surface. Clean mud off the soles when you can, since clogged tread loses grip.

Poles can add support on wet ground, and getting the technique right makes them far more useful. Plant them where you have tested the surface and be ready for the tip to slide, since a skidding pole can pull you off balance. Rubber tips are better on bare rock.

Tiredness plays a big part. Slips become more likely late in the day, when concentration slips and the legs are less quick to correct a small slide; see how balance changes when we are tired. If the path ahead is a steep, wet, exposed slope of smooth rock, a sodden bank with a drop below it, or ice, the sensible choice may be to find another route or turn back. A fall onto rock can injure even an experienced walker, and a changed plan costs nothing but time.

If you fall and are in pain, cannot put weight on a limb, hit your head or feel unwell afterwards, stop, get help, and see a doctor as soon as you can. Otherwise, treat a slip as information. Where was the ground slick, and what could you have done differently with your step? That small question is useful, and it makes the next muddy path a little easier.

Books worth reading: More on choosing routes and kit for wet days is on the Outdoor Skills & Survival shelf at Outdoor Books.