Treat a hot spot the hour you feel it. Waiting until camp is how a hot spot becomes a blister, and a blister becomes a zero you did not choose.
- Stop. Dry the skin. Dirt and moisture under tape make a blister, not a fix.
- Cut a piece that covers the hot spot with a small margin. Round the corners so they do not peel.
- Lay it on with light tension. Smooth from the center out. Wrinkles shear skin.
- Do not wrap a complete circle around a toe or ankle. That is a tourniquet.
- Leave it on until it lets go. Peeling it every night undoes the point.
Socks matter as much as tape. A dry pair at mid-day on a wet trail is not luxury. It is maintenance. If a shoe is creating the same hot spot after two days of tape, the shoe is the problem.