thoughts on Keen Marshal WP hiking shoes

[knotcher]

first post...wooohooooo!!

i've been hiking in Keen Voyageur boots for a while, but i've reduced my pack weight and i'm thinking of moving to a more lightweight shoe. Tried the Keen Marshal WP's at REI yesterday along with the new Durand low profiles and the Targhee II cross trainers. The Marshals were my favorite...they fit the best and were the lightest. my big concenr is with the sole. it's very flexible (aka, not much support) and thin (aka, i can feel ever rock i step on).

i wonder if anyone has any thoughts on these shoes, others, or my concerns.

- i hike mainly in NC and VA (typically sections of the AT)
- average hike is a 20-30mile weekend trip
- base pack weight is under 13lbs
- hike with poles

http://www.amazon.com/KEEN-Mens-Marshall-Hiking-Shoe/dp/B00ANH4ISA/ref=cm_cr_pr_bdcrb_top?ie=UTF8

[Dogwood]

Those are my goals too. Getting a shoe that fits like the Keens do which are the best match overall for my foot characteristics that I know of with my extremely wide forefoot high volume high instep. I haven't trail tested the Marshalls butr have worn them in stores. I have low and mid cut versions of the Targhee II and Voyaguers. To me the Marshalls are more closely approach a trail runner/low cut hiker. The wt savings is about 5 ozs per pr compared to the Targhees.

http://outbounddan.hubpages.com/hub/Keen-Marshall-Review

[misterfloyd]

If you look on Keens website they have targhess is wide sizes now. I called them and confirmed this. Shoes should be matriculating out to the stores soon. I will be in line. I'm hoping they can handle my fred flintstone feet.

Floyd

[Kerosene]

My opinion is that I would be happy with a more flexible "trail runner" on the southern AT, but I found that my Inov-8 RocLite 295's did not provide enough support for Maine. My feet were pretty beat up after hiking the northern 220 miles, with the outside of one foot bruised (or stress fracture?). I'm pretty sure that I would have loved them south of Front Royal.

If you are generally a weekend hiker and your feet don't tend to sweat very much, then stick with the waterproof boots. My feet sweat quite a bit, and on an extended hike your boots will get wet at some point. Waterproof boots take forever to dry out, so you end up walking in wet boots even when it's not wet. I've been much more satisfied with breathable boots since I converted 4 years ago.