Dating Disasters·
HEELS ON THE TRAIL
On a scenic river trail, a couple argues as one partner insists on dressing for dinner while the other asks for casual attire suited to rough, unpaved paths.
Who's wrong for the trail heels?
Be one of the first to vote.
On a river trail where most people show up in sneakers and workout clothes, one woman kept arriving dressed like she was headed to dinner.
The poster, a 30-year-old who walks the route with a 30-year-old girlfriend, says the trail takes about an hour each way and is usually a casual, sporty scene. But the girlfriend's outfit was never casual: a maxi skirt, high heels, and, on one recent walk, makeup done as if the pair were going out for the evening. The poster says it looked "really out of place."
The first few times they went, the poster noticed it immediately. The trail is paved at first, but the end section turns unpaved, and that's where the shoes became a problem. According to the poster, the girlfriend struggled there, and other people on the trail looked at her and made comments, especially about the heels.
After one of those walks, the poster finally said something. Next time, they told her to "dress more sensibly."
The girlfriend said it was fine.
It didn't stay fine for long.
On a recent walk, she showed up in the same kind of outfit again: long skirt, heels, full makeup, the whole look. The poster says they felt embarrassed walking beside her and reminded her that they had already asked her not to "dress like that for this specific activity."
That was the point where the conversation turned sharp.
The girlfriend said the poster was "being controlling" and insisted "that she can wear whatever she wants." The poster says they aren't trying to police her clothes in general, just asking her to match what they see as the setting. To the poster, a river trail filled with walkers in casual gear is not the place for high heels and a dinner-ready outfit, especially when the shoes make the unpaved stretch difficult.
The poster also says the attention from other trailgoers made it feel even more pointed. People looked. People commented. And from the poster's perspective, it was hard not to wonder whether the girlfriend was doing it on purpose.
Now the dispute is simple and direct: one person thinks the request was reasonable for a specific outdoor activity; the other says it crossed into control.