Trail-Running Shoes Buying Guide

Whether you enjoy running on gravel paths or mountains trails—or a little bit of both—the women's The North Face Altamesa 500 trail-running shoes are cushioned and stable for all types of terrain.
Imported.
View all The North Face Women's Trail-Running ShoesBest Use | Trail Running |
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Trail-Running Shoe Type | Light-Trail |
Running Shoe Cushioning | Maximum Cushion |
Heel-to-Toe Drop (mm) | 6 |
Heel Stack Height (mm) | 36 |
Forefoot Stack Height (mm) | 30 |
Footwear Height | Ankle |
Footwear Closure | Lace-up |
Upper | Seamless engineered mesh (62% recycled material) |
Midsole | DREAM foam |
Outsole | SURFACE CTRL rubber |
Rock Plate | No |
Weight (Pair) | 1 lb. 2.4 oz. |
Gender | Women's |
Sustainability | Contains recycled materials |
5 | 5.5 | 6 | 6.5 | 7 | 7.5 | 8 | 8.5 | 9 | 9.5 | 10 | 10.5 | 11 | |
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U.S. Women's | 5 | 5.5 | 6 | 6.5 | 7 | 7.5 | 8 | 8.5 | 9 | 9.5 | 10 | 10.5 | 11 |
UK | 3.5 | 4 | 4.5 | 5 | 5.5 | 6 | 6.5 | 7 | 7.5 | 8 | 8.5 | 9 | 9.5 |
EU | 36 | 36.5 | 37 | 37.5 | 38 | 38.6 | 39 | 39.5 | 40 | 40.5 | 41 | 41.5 | 42 |
Foot Length (in.) | 8.7 | 8.9 | 9.1 | 9.3 | 9.4 | 9.6 | 9.8 | 10 | 10.2 | 10.4 | 10.6 | 11 | 11.3 |
Measurements are stated in inches.
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Walked the last 111km of the Camino de Santiago in these. I tried 4 other pairs before I found these, and I'm so glad I found them. Super comfortable, wide enough in the toe box that they stayed comfy the whole way. Zero blisters or hot spots even though they were the only shoes I wore every day. Recommend.
I've gone through 3 pairs of the Altamesa 300s. They are my absolute favorite pair of trail running shoes. When I saw the 500s come out, I was hoping they would be nearly the same just with a little extra cushion. While I did really like them, they felt a little stiffer and less springy than the 300s to me. All in all a great shoe though. I will always choose NorthFace when it comes to trail runners. I've tried all the brands and keep coming back.
I really LOVED these shoes. I 100% recommend them to you. I went camping for a whole week in Colorado, I did too many hikes, and never took these shoes off. I was afraid they were going to hurt me, so I took an extra pair. I never got to use the other ones. These shoes are light, and the traction is amazing. I always have to use shoe insoles, but with these shoes I didn't have to.
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I bought these shoes more so for recovery and easy runs. They did not work for me. While they claim to be stable, I found the cushion makes them very unstable feeling. So much so, it contributed to a tendonitis flair in one of my feet after the first 20 miles in them. Much prefer the sky vectin to these shoes.
My second pair of these shoes- great cushion, true to size, good support. Two reasons I gave 4 stars- I wish they offered a bit of a more aggressive lug pattern as a "trail shoe" and I do not understand why all the light color choices. They look dirty, worn, and used after only a few runs.
these shoes are amazing if you are standing for a long period of time. I have hiked and been on long runs in them and they are one of my favorite shoes to do it in. I have these in two other colors because they are so comfortable. I wish they came out with more colors.
I use these shoes for work, im walking all night and sometimes stand in one place for a couple minutes. But I love these shoes they are comfortable. The cushion definitely comes in handy so your feet don't hurt. I would recommend and I love them
Super comfy! I've been rocking these for a month now. They're perfect for wide feet like mine. I usually wear a size 8.5 in women's, and these fit true to size. If you have narrow feet, I'd suggest going half a size down.
I never thought that I'd buy shoes this price, but after wearing them, while wandering unsteady trails outside; these are definitely built to last and built for the outdoors. I highly recommend these.
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I've been training and racing ultra distance in TNF shoes for a few years now. The Altamesa takes all my favorite things and packages them into the dream trainer- the best shoe I've found yet. 11/10!