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Crazy_Al
07-10-2012, 11:17
What are the most popular shoes to wear on the AT ????

Llama Legs
07-10-2012, 17:27
non-goretex trail runners. take your pick.

scree
07-10-2012, 17:31
In addition to my Fivefingers, I'm partial to Salomon XT Wings (either 1 or 2) and XA Pro 3D, non-goretex. I've seen a lot of people wearing Salomon's, quality-wise they're at least in the same league as the old late 90s Montrails.

waasj
07-10-2012, 17:44
New Balance 572's
do it for me. Non goretex and lightweight too.

Shae
07-10-2012, 17:49
Lots of Merrell Moab Ventilators on the Southbounders this year.

Red Hat
07-10-2012, 18:04
Like Llamalegs said, pretty much any non goretx trail runner. I am partial to the New Balance All Terrain 800 series. I bought a pair of Merrells in VT when I couldn't find a replacement for my NBs. The fast folks like Jennifer Pharr Davis and Natureboy seem to prefer Salomons.

Miner
07-10-2012, 18:33
Given that most people fail to finish an AT hike, are you sure you want to use the shoes they were using?

rocketsocks
07-10-2012, 19:01
Aasics GT-2160's seem to work just fine and dandy, light weight, breath well, cheap, sold everywhere sneakers are sold.

kayak karl
07-10-2012, 19:14
Given that most people fail to finish an AT hike, are you sure you want to use the shoes they were using?
as long as they didn't fail because of feet problems, sure :)

Crazy_Al
07-10-2012, 20:19
non-goretex trail runners. take your pick.

What is wrong Goretex ????

kayak karl
07-10-2012, 20:46
takes forever to dry

10-K
07-10-2012, 21:11
takes forever to dry

Hot too. Especially when they warm up. Once in VA I took off a pair of damp goretex boots that had been wet from the day before and steam came out - no lie.

Wise Old Owl
07-10-2012, 21:13
1+ Gortex is not recommended - your tootsies need to breath FREEDOM....

rocketsocks
07-10-2012, 21:14
Hot too. Especially when they warm up. Once in VA I took off a pair of damp goretex boots that had been wet from the day before and steam came out - no lie.Not steam, it was a rain cloud in your boot, no lie.

Crazy_Al
07-10-2012, 21:42
Lots of Merrell Moab Ventilators on the Southbounders this year.

Mid-height or shoe (short) ????

Pumba
07-10-2012, 21:50
So it seems that trail runners are more popular than boots these days?

Rasty
07-10-2012, 22:05
Spring to fall Moab ventilators for me (non gore-tex). Winter time use Vasque sundowners with gore-tex for light snow.

Sarcasm the elf
07-10-2012, 22:29
I switched over to trail runners last year and love them for three season hiking. Like folks have said, they are lighter, cooler and dry much faster than goretex boots. I added superfeet insoles to mine which add some extra rigidity to the soles and makes for a much more comfortable time when scrambling over rocks. I personally use Vasque Velocity trail runners, which I like a lot, but I should mention that other people's reviews on the model have been mixed.

Before that I used Vasque Breeze GTX, one of the most comfortable lightweight boots I've found.

In the winter, I use a pair of Scarpa boots, I think the model is called Kailash, but I'm not sure. They're waterproof and a bit heavier so I usually only use them when it's below freezing.

moocow
07-10-2012, 22:50
Saw a BUNCH of different kinds of boots out there this year. It really surprised me considering the praises of trail runners nowadays. In trail runners there were plenty of people wearing the Solomon XA Pro 3D.
The most popular shoes overall were probably the mid Merrell Moab Ventilators.

Keep in mind that there are always a lot of boot/shoe changes as thru-hikers go along. It's a popularity contest early on, and it takes a while for people to figure out it's about finding the shoe that works for their them.

I will give a shout out to the shoes that worked for me: Montrail Mountain Masochist. 950 trail miles on one pair and still going. Confession, I had to do a little superglue job on the sole in Pearisburg.

SunnyWalker
07-10-2012, 23:42
Good shoes.

kayak karl
07-10-2012, 23:48
Good shoes.
Gene Epsy called me the day before i left on my hike and he said "it's all about the shoes. you need good shoes" guess it hasn't changed in over 50 years :)
oh, he also said KAYAK is a stupid trail name :)

Zippy Morocco
07-11-2012, 01:55
Masochist is a great shoe. I am. Currently using the Inov-8 315 and like it a lot.

Rasty
07-11-2012, 08:53
Good shoes.
Gene Epsy called me the day before i left on my hike and he said "it's all about the shoes. you need good shoes" guess it hasn't changed in over 50 years :)
oh, he also said KAYAK is a stupid trail name :)

Only stupid if you got trying to kayak down the trail. Imagine trying to do the sitting inside the kayak shuffle for more than ten feet.

cabbagehead
08-13-2012, 22:50
I've tried on many shoes and the only ones that fit me perfectly were Merrells. Last year when I did a big hike and needed new shoes along the way, the best ones at the store were the Moabs. They're also popular. My Moabs lasted a few hundred miles, and then broke at the heal. I just bought a pair of Geomorph Maze Stretch shoes. The design is new. It has better heals and treads.

wornoutboots
08-14-2012, 23:01
I just pulled the trigger on new Keens Siskiyou's (Shoe version) today, they are a little heavier than the TargheeII's but much better ventilated

Bucho
08-18-2012, 17:17
as long as they didn't fail because of feet problems, sure :)

Or knee problems, shin splints, stress fractures or injuries from a bad fall.

Saprogenic
08-20-2012, 09:26
Picking shoes depends on the person. Trail runners are good if you plan to never leave the trail. Even some boots like Asolo TPS, they're made for trail hiking, once off the trail, bushwacking, they get torn up. Basically, if your not much of an outdoorsman, and plan to spen all of your time on the open trail, you can wear what you feel is comfortable. If you actually enjoy being in the bush, I'd consider full leather boots with a rubber rand. My Lowa Tibet Pro's are great, I see them lasting quite a while.

bflorac
08-21-2012, 02:56
The most "popular" are ones that fit. Fit is and should be the #1 reason for picking boots. EVERYTHING else is secondary.

For the record, I use New Balance. There are better made boots out there but these fit my wide feet like no other boot.

YoungMoose
08-21-2012, 11:31
I do not recommend the moab ventilators. i couldnt even get 75 miles out of them doing backpacking trips this summer. I was really disappointed. Multiple spots on the sole came off. Some of the seams where ripping. They are really comfortable but are built well in my opinion. I may just had a bad pair but i am not going to find out with another pair.

garlic08
08-21-2012, 11:56
There was a poll on this a couple of years ago. I can't find it now, but somewhat over half replied that trail runners were their choice.

I also saw an earlier poll, about ten years older, and most replied that boots were their choice. So apparently the trend is changing. Who knows, in ten more years "minimalist" shoes or something else might be highly popular.

But hikers aren't supposed to do what everyone else is doing. That's one reason many hike. It's good to learn from what others are doing, and some learn faster than others. But don't let trends sway you away from something that feels right to you.

BenLeaman
08-25-2012, 16:30
I wore 2 pairs of Montrail Mountain Masochists, 2 pairs of Brooks Cascadia 7s and a pair of Asics Gel Kahana on my '12 thru hike. I loved the Brooks and Montrails but severely disliked the sole of the Asics. Wet rocks + Asics Kahana = sore ass

The Merrell Moab Ventilator Lows were very popular but it seemed that they did not last, at all.

Bucho
08-26-2012, 16:22
The Merrell Moab Ventilator Lows were very popular but it seemed that they did not last, at all.

Last year Supa Chef had over 1,000 miles on his when I ran into him. A bunch of us picked up our own after that, I hiked 700 miles on mine at which point I'd finished the AT and I haven't heard any bad experiences with them from my friends.

Bucho
08-26-2012, 16:29
There was a poll on this a couple of years ago. I can't find it now, but somewhat over half replied that trail runners were their choice.

I also saw an earlier poll, about ten years older, and most replied that boots were their choice. So apparently the trend is changing.

The gear has gotten a lot lighter. I ran into a guy who hiked the AT back in the 80's with an average pack weight of 90 pounds. Trail runners would have been a terrible choice for that kind of weight but for me who would complain bitterly if I hiked out of town with more than 25 pounds they were a much better choice than boots.

Gillum
08-28-2012, 18:40
Love my Inov8 Terroc 330....

Bucho
08-30-2012, 17:10
I do not recommend the moab ventilators. i couldnt even get 75 miles out of them doing backpacking trips this summer. I was really disappointed. Multiple spots on the sole came off. Some of the seams where ripping. They are really comfortable but are built well in my opinion. I may just had a bad pair but i am not going to find out with another pair.

That's miserable, did you try contacting Merrill?

Chaco Taco
09-03-2012, 22:04
remember, Maine is where hiking shoe go to die. My Montrails got shredded pretty quickly in The Whites

wornoutboots
09-04-2012, 13:27
I just pulled the trigger on new Keens Siskiyou's (Shoe version) today, they are a little heavier than the TargheeII's but much better ventilated
These shoes did not perform very well at all on my last section! Too hot & too heavy! I'm going to pullt the trigger on some trail runners even though I am concerned about not having protective toe & heal boxes. Hopefully I'll get some decent use out of these (Siskiyou's) locally in the cold weather?

Bucho
09-05-2012, 13:45
remember, Maine is where hiking shoe go to die. My Montrails got shredded pretty quickly in The Whites

My girlfriend had absolutely terrible experiences with two pairs of montrails on the trail, I don't think terrain is the issue.

Drybones
09-05-2012, 14:43
The question of best shoe would make for an interesting poll. Data from a couple of thousand hikers would be interesting to see.

rowan
11-04-2012, 15:43
by the end of this year's nobo season, I would say that nearly 50% of hikers were rocking the brooks cascadia. lots of folks ended up summitting in merrel moab vents, only because the on-trail selection gets really lousy the further you travel north. also saw a lot of folks using the salomons, x3 ultra bla bla whatever... non GTX. The salomons seemed to fall apart really quickly, but they also do a great job of backing their product and it was not unusual to talk to someone who had just received a free replacement pair after a simple phone call.

msupple
11-04-2012, 19:15
The most "popular" are ones that fit. Fit is and should be the #1 reason for picking boots. EVERYTHING else is secondary.

For the record, I use New Balance. There are better made boots out there but these fit my wide feet like no other boot.

I totally agree. I tried several of the one's mentioned here but wound up with a pair on Inov-8 trail runners because they fit my foot like a glove. I love them.

Cat in the Hat