jeepmedic46
Expedition Leader
Looking for recommendations for a good hiking boot. I'm getting back into hiking, day hikes with some overnight trips at first. Progressively doing longer trips as well as search and rescue.
Good hiking boot
- Thread starter jeepmedic46
- Start date
4runnerteq
Explorer
My 2cents. Dont use a boot at all. I havent hiked or backacked in boots for years. Trail runners are much lighter, easier on the foot and more flexible. If they get wet they dry quickly. I wear Solomon XA pro 3d now. Wore Vasque Velocity until disconinued.
http://rayjardine.com/
http://gossamergear.com/
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/index.html
http://rayjardine.com/
http://gossamergear.com/
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/index.html
What is your budget planned hiking area and weight of pack carried?
If I want something nice and light I will often rock a low top approach shoe. I really like the current line up from LaSportiva. Nice and rugges. I also have the Salomons and like them. If I am going for a full on boot I go all the way for a set of Aslo's The full leather line is awesome. I have had several pairs over the last five or six year. Of course if you want to go all out you can have a set made for you. Nicks custom boots does a nice job and there are the Limmers out the new england area. unless you plan on heavy loads and nasty teriian grab a hiking shoe your feet will thank you for it.
If I want something nice and light I will often rock a low top approach shoe. I really like the current line up from LaSportiva. Nice and rugges. I also have the Salomons and like them. If I am going for a full on boot I go all the way for a set of Aslo's The full leather line is awesome. I have had several pairs over the last five or six year. Of course if you want to go all out you can have a set made for you. Nicks custom boots does a nice job and there are the Limmers out the new england area. unless you plan on heavy loads and nasty teriian grab a hiking shoe your feet will thank you for it.
OCD Overland
Explorer
There's a big thread on boots already if you'll look, but I've become a Lowa fan myself. Though I think once you get to a certain quality boot, it's more about how an individual brand fits your foot rather than one being all that better than the other.
IdaSHO
IDACAMPER
+1 on Lowa
Thats all I wear these days.
Light hikers for everyday, and tall full height boots for backpacking.
Damn good boots.
Christophe Noel
Expedition Leader
There are almost too many good recommendations to be made to have them be productive. Your first step is to decide what type of boots you're after. That will be determined by the terrain you will be hiking, the weight you will be carrying, and there's ample room to also take into consideration the overall health and strength of your feet. It is true many people get away with hiking in light and flexible trail shoes, but for those with a propensity for foot and ankle injuries, that isn't always a smart option.
I tend to advocate for protecting your feet appropriately. Foot injuries really suck.
I tend to advocate for protecting your feet appropriately. Foot injuries really suck.
2025 deleted member
Well-known member
I agree with Christophe. I like to have a little more boot than I need, it would suck to have a foot/ankle injury when you still need to hike out a day with a heavy load.
Christopher Noel - pretty much sums it up on how to choose a boot, the most we can offer is maybe a particular brand that your not familiar with.
Christophe Noel
Expedition Leader
The other key element to this is relative to fit. Not all boots fit all feet, so recommendations have to be taken with a lot of latitude. There is also a tremendous variance in boot quality which always correlates with price, and subsequently how frequently you'll go through this buying process. Some boots on the lower spectrum of price are made with lesser quality materials and can and do poop out quickly. People buy Merrell Moab boots annually because they're cheap....in every sense of the word. On the other end of the spectrum are people who plunk down $250-400 on boots made of premium materials by true craftsmen, and those boots can feasibly last a lifetime of hard use. It's simply a matter of how you shop to some degree.
Like all things, there are entry level brands and there are premium brands. I for one tend to like the legacy brands, those made (or headquartered) in a certain region of Italy where boot making goes back decades, often in the same shops where boot making began. That's Scarpa, Asolo, Crispi, Salewa, La Sportiva, Zamberlan, Alico etc. There are other great boots from Lowa, Hanwag, Soloman, and loads of others.
It's somewhat safe to say you get what you pay for. To a point. It definitely applies to the lower end of the buying range. Not always on the upper end.
Like all things, there are entry level brands and there are premium brands. I for one tend to like the legacy brands, those made (or headquartered) in a certain region of Italy where boot making goes back decades, often in the same shops where boot making began. That's Scarpa, Asolo, Crispi, Salewa, La Sportiva, Zamberlan, Alico etc. There are other great boots from Lowa, Hanwag, Soloman, and loads of others.
It's somewhat safe to say you get what you pay for. To a point. It definitely applies to the lower end of the buying range. Not always on the upper end.
hurstjd
Adventurer
I like Vasque. Very comfortable. Mine cost around $220.
http://www.vasque.com/USD/mens-footwear/hiking;pgid=t_VIoY7hzKJSRpH3W9sj2KDR0000WuH9QPFI;sid=PdaqAsai64qrApPljnijgQ6oRo0cqb35i33RWXAJ
http://www.vasque.com/USD/mens-footwear/hiking;pgid=t_VIoY7hzKJSRpH3W9sj2KDR0000WuH9QPFI;sid=PdaqAsai64qrApPljnijgQ6oRo0cqb35i33RWXAJ
2025 deleted member
Well-known member
I hear you on the fit. I really wanted a pair of Asolos, but the minute I put them on I knew they were not right for my foot.
mezmochill
Is outside
lowa, wife loves merrill
Trail runners are really amazing in what they can do. I was skeptical at first but since giving them a legit shot and being open minded about it have found they are far superior to boots. I live in Western New York and even use mine in early winter and late spring with thick heavy socks when I know they'll get wet. They dry so much faster. Also I think its like 1 lb on your feet is equivalent o 8.2 lb's on your back as far as energy needed. Not sure how true that is but hiking is way easier in runners than boots.
DaveInDenver
Middle Income Semi-Redneck
Word.
All I can add is don't get hung up on brand, find the one that fits (I'm a Scarpa foot). Definitely, definitely, find a boot fitter you like (or comes highly recommended) and take your time and listen to his/her advice.
I would also suggest getting custom footbeds. That was kind of an epiphany moment for me when I got my first set. I went from a terrible skier to a dangerously mediocre, for one. But I wear them (move between) in my hikers, work boots, everything other than my Chacos and sneakers.