View Full Version : Anybody hike the AT with Danner mountain light II ?
This year I'll be hiking the whole trail in a pair of these. Still breaking them in now but they feel great.
Has anyone gone the whole way with a pair or parts of the trail?
ALLEGHENY
12-24-2013, 20:03
I wore a pair of Danner Explorers the whole way on my 2012 AT thru hike. No tread left but they made it.
I wore a pair of Danner Explorers the whole way on my 2012 AT thru hike. No tread left but they made it.
Sweet deal. I'm hoping i won't need another pair. I'll have shoes too if i need to switch em up
RedBeerd
12-25-2013, 14:19
Danner is good
Danner is good
That's what i read in a lot of reviews thats what lead me to get them. Well there wasn't many American made boots besides danner and limmers that i liked. I would have gone with the limmers if i could find them for the price i got the danners for on amazon
Toolshed
12-26-2013, 02:08
I went through 2 pairs of Danner Mountain Lites during the Late 80's -Mid 90's. Nice boot. At first, I like the flexible midsole and I alsways liked the one piece FGL uppers. My first pair were without Goretex and my second pair with Goretex. (I don't know the options now, but back then my friends also rocked some Danners that had a cordura nylon inset that made the boot lighter). As far as the boot options then, , I like the no GTX one piece FGL better - the boot seemed cooler on my feet and I didnt have pools of sweat after 4 hours of backpacking. This is one boot that you definitely want a wool sock along with a sockliner.
So, I thought I really liked the flexible midsole that Danner offered, until I switched to the Merrell Ridgeline around 96, which had a stiffened midsole that did not flex. I really liked these better than the flexible mdsoles and I found the stiffened footbed was far more comfortable on rocks.
But for the AT, I think there are many better superlight footwear choices. These boots are almost 3.5 - 4 lbs, if memory serves me. I used them for climbing and backpacking in the adirondacks/greens/whites. In fact when I got serious about long distance hiking in 1999, I switched to NB803, then 804s, 5's 6's 7's 8's and on and on ;) I think the NB's are much, much better suited for cranking miles - I wear one pair of socks, my feet stay cooler and drier and I can move faster..... Good luck with your choice, though.....
They are heavy I got size 13 wide so their probly heavier than normal and they do seem like they will be hot, but i'm gonna try and stick it out. If it comes down to it i will have some New Balance with me that i can wear, either if my boots get wet (i assume the leather will take a while to dry) or if they are just too hot.. I'm thinking either NB 1099, or some NB 989 or something like that. I luckily have two outlets around me so i'll go there soon and figure out my second pair for the trail.
RedBeerd
12-27-2013, 12:52
All the trail crew veterans wear danners out west. They hike in them as much as they work in them and I've worn a pair for work. Great boots but if I were solely hiking I'd definitely go with something else.