Through the Ups and Downs
When it comes to footwear and hiking there can be no substitutions. Being a former Marine I cannot stress enough the importance of maintaining proper foot care and making sure you are comfortable from the ground up. The Vibram sole and Merrell’s claim to waterproof shoes was a great start for me. I purchased the Merrell Moab Mids for the retail $119.99 from Dick's Sporting Goods and felt that I received a good shoe for the money.
I hiked 75 miles in three weeks doing three long day hikes and a many 5k walks during the week. Between streets and paths, hills and flats these shoes held up great and were very comfortable. The cushion in the shoes feels great and offers a lot of support, even after long miles when you can feel the pain in your feet starting.
The overall wear on the outside of the shoe was very minimal and the soles look as new as the day I bought them.
After hiking another 60 miles on the Superior Hiking Trail for a total of over 135 miles my feelings toward these shoes hasn’t differed! The wear on them is minimal, the comfort is snug and plush, all the while offering great support because of it’s mid-size ankle support.
The one major drawback to these shoes, and hiking in general, is blisters. I had quarter size blisters on the inside heel of each shoe. Is this my own walk? possibly, but I’ve had many shoes and only a few have given me blisters. The thing that I found to be a saving grace was after popping the blisters and cleaning them the next two days of hiking (over 15 miles each day) there was no pain or irritation at the site of the blisters.
These shoes were tested over class 5 paths, city streets, prairie grasslands, rocky hills, root-covered forest floors, and, my personal favorite, 1700 ft worth of elevation changes of drastic switchbacks.
Define Waterproof
Now for the issue of waterproofing: it is always a wonky topic so I will elaborate by examples. I filled an Igloo cooler with water and stepped in…no water in the shoes. Waited…still no leakage. After this I felt very confident to take them out on a week long hiking trip on the Superior hiking Trail. The test: 10 hours of torrential downpour. Not exactly standard or fair, but nonetheless that was what they received. I stepped into the pouring rain and walked for several hours. It wasn’t until I had to walk riverside to fill my Nalgene that the shoes became saturated.
The shoes, I noticed, were still offering the cushion and snug feeling…just filled with water. I was very impressed by this, although, not happy that my shoes were sopping wet. I would give these shoes an 8 out of 10 for staying waterproof for several hours, offering support, very comfortable, and losing points for blisters but not many because of the minimal irritation caused afterward.
Synopsis:
Rating: 8 out of 10
Would I recommend these to a friend: YES
You can purchase these shoes here
We're always looking to try new product and see how it holds up being used as it was intended on the trail. If you have any suggestions, comments, or questions please let us know!
See you on the trail!
Go breathe the wild air!
-FCFP
When it comes to footwear and hiking there can be no substitutions. Being a former Marine I cannot stress enough the importance of maintaining proper foot care and making sure you are comfortable from the ground up. The Vibram sole and Merrell’s claim to waterproof shoes was a great start for me. I purchased the Merrell Moab Mids for the retail $119.99 from Dick's Sporting Goods and felt that I received a good shoe for the money.
I hiked 75 miles in three weeks doing three long day hikes and a many 5k walks during the week. Between streets and paths, hills and flats these shoes held up great and were very comfortable. The cushion in the shoes feels great and offers a lot of support, even after long miles when you can feel the pain in your feet starting.
The overall wear on the outside of the shoe was very minimal and the soles look as new as the day I bought them.
After hiking another 60 miles on the Superior Hiking Trail for a total of over 135 miles my feelings toward these shoes hasn’t differed! The wear on them is minimal, the comfort is snug and plush, all the while offering great support because of it’s mid-size ankle support.
The one major drawback to these shoes, and hiking in general, is blisters. I had quarter size blisters on the inside heel of each shoe. Is this my own walk? possibly, but I’ve had many shoes and only a few have given me blisters. The thing that I found to be a saving grace was after popping the blisters and cleaning them the next two days of hiking (over 15 miles each day) there was no pain or irritation at the site of the blisters.
These shoes were tested over class 5 paths, city streets, prairie grasslands, rocky hills, root-covered forest floors, and, my personal favorite, 1700 ft worth of elevation changes of drastic switchbacks.
Define Waterproof
Now for the issue of waterproofing: it is always a wonky topic so I will elaborate by examples. I filled an Igloo cooler with water and stepped in…no water in the shoes. Waited…still no leakage. After this I felt very confident to take them out on a week long hiking trip on the Superior hiking Trail. The test: 10 hours of torrential downpour. Not exactly standard or fair, but nonetheless that was what they received. I stepped into the pouring rain and walked for several hours. It wasn’t until I had to walk riverside to fill my Nalgene that the shoes became saturated.
The shoes, I noticed, were still offering the cushion and snug feeling…just filled with water. I was very impressed by this, although, not happy that my shoes were sopping wet. I would give these shoes an 8 out of 10 for staying waterproof for several hours, offering support, very comfortable, and losing points for blisters but not many because of the minimal irritation caused afterward.
Synopsis:
Rating: 8 out of 10
Would I recommend these to a friend: YES
You can purchase these shoes here
We're always looking to try new product and see how it holds up being used as it was intended on the trail. If you have any suggestions, comments, or questions please let us know!
See you on the trail!
Go breathe the wild air!
-FCFP
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