Originally Posted by rdtompki

Stacey, you will get as many opinions on pedals as there are posters on BF, but SPDs are very versatile. There are "single-sided" road SPD pedals, double-sided SPDs favored by mountain bikers and a version of SPD that has a platform on one side. Every shoe manufacture makes a variety of shoes that will take SPD cleats, some very easy to walk in and some more akin to road shoes with extremely stiff soles. All the the shoes that accept an SPD cleat will permit some amount of walking. There are other varieties of clipless systems that also provide a recessed cleat, but SPDs seem to be most common.

My wife and I use double-side SPDs on our tandem. I can clip in every time without looking and my wife prefers the particular feel of our pedals.

Most we've ridden in one shot is 109 miles so I can't speak to the issues of what sounds like a 300 mile ride (multi-day maybe), but you will absolutely need to avoid a soft-soled shoe 'cause the pressure points of even a platform pedal could get to be a real problem.