How to Choose Hiking Boots

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This waterproof midweight hiking boot is spry, supportive and comfortable thanks to Strobel construction and durable polyurethane midsoles.
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View all Vasque Men's Backpacking BootsBest Use | Backpacking |
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Footwear Height | Over-the-ankle |
Footwear Closure | Lace-up |
Waterproof | Yes |
Upper | Nubuck leather |
Lining | Gore-Tex/nylon |
Midsole | Polyurethane |
Support | Nylon plate |
Outsole | Vibram rubber |
Weight (Pair) | 3 lbs. 6 oz. |
Gender | Men's |
Crampon Compatibility | Strap-on |
7 | 7.5 | 8 | 8.5 | 9 | 9.5 | 10 | 10.5 | 11 | 11.5 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | |
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U.S. Men's | 7 | 7.5 | 8 | 8.5 | 9 | 9.5 | 10 | 10.5 | 11 | 11.5 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
U.S. Women's | 8.5 | 9 | 9.5 | 10 | 10.5 | 11 | 12 | |||||||
UK | 6 | 6.5 | 7 | 7.5 | 8 | 8.5 | 9 | 9.5 | 10 | 10.5 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
EU | 39 | 40 | 41 | 41.5 | 42 | 42.5 | 43 | 43.5 | 44 | 45 | 46 | 47 | 48 | 49 |
Foot Length (in.) | 9.8 | 10 | 10.2 | 10.4 | 10.6 | 10.8 | 11 | 11.2 | 11.4 | 11.6 | 11.8 | 12.2 | 12.6 | 13 |
Measurements are stated in inches.
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I spend a large amount of my time in the outdoors, A majority of my outdoor time is spent in Whites boots; these Vasque boots were used for causal wear, and day hikes. These boots were also used for everyday wear in the winter months. I went through two pairs of these boots in two years. The first pair had the soles split laterally right underneath the front pads of my foot. REI exchanged this pair for a brand new pair, fast forward to a year later and the soles have begun to split again. This is extremely frustrating because I have been a long time Vasque customer, the quality is not what it once was. Buy these boots if you want to replace them a year from now.
I've used these boots for hiking constantly. I'm 6'2" 230# I average 4 to 6 mile a day everyday rain or shine crossing creeks, rivers, across trees etc.. These boots have never let me down.. My 1st pair has over 4500 miles on them my 2nd has about half that now they have never leaked or gave me blisters nothing these are awesome boots yes they do crack with age you can see in the photos the wear and tear but they havent come apart or leaked ever. I spend a lot of time in the Trinty Alps on a lot of granite and just love these boots.
These boots were nice at first waterproof and what seamed to be durable. I went ahead and bought these because of the brand (I have had great luck with other boots from Vasque) but disregarded the other reviews that said the tread would crack and come apart to soon. Much to my dismay that is exactly what happened to my pair after not so many miles in the rocks and some easy duty on the sales floor. So if you are after a real hiking boot look elsewhere.
I probably have 60 miles on these boots and the outsole and midsole is already split just behind the ball of the foot on the right boot and in the same spot but on the outside of the left boot. I've owned Vasque boots prior to the move to China manufacturing and never had a problem like this. I'd pin the problem totally on Vibram but I've read that the "Contact Outsoles" for these boots are proprietary Vasque soles. Another issue I've had with the outsoles has been the lack of traction on moist rock. While hiking with other people who have different boots, I've been the one slipping. Not cool! On a slightly postive note, I've had no problem with water penetration so far but that probably wont last with the growing cracks in the soles. This will be the last pair of Vasque boots I'll own.
Second pair of these that I bought. Liked them because they were comfortable and I never got blisters in them. With the first pair, the soles just disintegrated, but I was happy with a season and a half, not much, but I had about dozen or so fourteeners without any blisters or pain. This second pair started fine, but then, mid-hike, the sole (bottom later) just peeled off. After no more than 50 miles overall, in my fourth hike only. Not fun. So, the same problem on two successive pairs I bought. Cannot be coincidence. Both design (now you can easily see where the weak point is) and manufacturing flaw. Beats me why they do not have the same type of sturdy sole that they have on Scree model. Well, every respect to upper portion which makes them so comfy and avoids blisters and stubbed toes, but the risk of walking back without the traction portion of the sole is a bit too much trouble. Buy them once Vasque clears up their act. Watch out for the same type of sole on their other shoes.
I am a long time buyer of Vasque this is my second pair of this same model boot. However, unlike my first one that lasted over two years, this only last a season. See picture att. I only use it for hiking and Backpacking. It has poor traction in rainy weather. I found out the hard way on Mount Monadnock. I was slipping everywhere. Needles to say, I will not be buying another pair. The only good thing I can say is that it is water proof, used it crossing Lye Brook in VT.
I've purchased two pairs of these boots. The soles of each boot are now split across the ball of the foot where the boot flexes the most. The first pair lasted 3 years before the splitting occurred, the second pair failed after 18 months of light use. These boots are very comfortable and the uppers of all 4 boots are still in excellent condition. Purchase these boots only if you are willing to consider them disposable.
Bought this as I had heard good things about Vasque and wanted a hiking shoe that could be used on multi day hikes & treks and can complement the mountain climbing shoes I have. But the soles split in few places on second trek I used the shoe on, given that the terrain was pretty hard (mostly moraine last couple of days), but didn't expect trek grade shoe to not even last two treks.
For starters, I'm flat footed. So, if you're in this boat, this review might certainly help you. If not, please take this into consideration when you read my review. I have no intentions of leading anyone astray with my views. I don't have an REI store all that close to me and I cringed at the thought of ordering shoes online considering 1.) not every brand fits in the same sizes and 2.) being flat footed requires a little more consideration in the decision process. And I'm glad I didn't try the virtual purchase. I spend about 4 hours at an Atlanta area REI and tried on about 20 different pairs of boots. I walked around the store and used their faux boulder to look at heel support, traction, internal slip, etc. If you pronate like crazy or are very flat footed, I'd recommend you give Vasque and Keen a serious look. I was in love with some sets from Asolo and Zamberlin, but they simply ran too narrow for my feet. My feet aren't really wide as feet go, but because my arch is virtually non-existant, I need a wider, shorter shoe - wider toe boxes really help - to compensate for my over pronation. In addition, shoes that have too high an arch cause problems as well. Soloman and Oboz also felt snug in the models I tried on. I looked at some Ahnu, but they were only low cut at the time and felt more suitable for day hiking, but not backpacking under a load. I would recommend that flat footed folks give them a look however, for their fit and comfort if they have a model that looks like it might suite you. The only Keens on the shelf really didn't feel like they'd last over a long period and hundreds to thousands of miles, so the sales rep helped me narrow my scope to Vasque. I tried on the Breeze and Bitterroot in addition to the Wasatch. The Bitterroot felt kid of tight and somewhat less forgiving. If you're in the market for a more ridged fit, these might work well. The Breeze were lighter - hence the name I suppose - and felt like a high top sneaker. In the end however, I had a hard time believing they'd hold up over time and brutal work. So, I decided on the Wasatch. It was no easy decision. My feet have a tendency to cramp up if the fit is too snug and if the arch pushes back too much. I literally "shopped" in them for about an hour to make sure that the fit was good. The rep cut some SuperFeet to size for me and I was out the door. Despite all of this effort and the superb aid of the associates at REI, you can't truly know what a boot will do until you put it to the test. TEST ONE: Easy day hiking The first time I took these out was on a 3 day, 2 night venture in Cheaha State Park. We'd planned on car camping with some friends who backed out at the last minute, so we weren't equipped for more dedicated work gearwise. So we trekked about a mile or two out and set up camp. No issues with the boots. We did 4-5 mile scampers each day with virtually zero load (think water bottle and protein bars, knife and headlamp). and I only had a bit of minor cramping, which usually happens with extended use of heavier shoes. The one thing I DID learn this trip was wet rock traction. I was climbing up the edge of some minor falls and completely slot my footing when my right foot came out from under me. Luckily my hands were in place, but my free leg swung hard into the rock overhang and made a nasty gash on my knee. So, ever since, I've been a bit weary on more flat wet surfaces. Damp, jagged rocks aren't a major problem, but flat ones certainly are, so be warned. TEST TWO: 35 miles, 4 days, brutal terrain, narrow footholds, rain, and heat This is where the rubber met the road, literally. We pushed hard day one and got about 10 miles in with 35-40 lb loads in some very rocky ways. Day one left me with tired, aching feet, but nothing unexpected. Day two started to wear me down. I started getting hotspots and early signs of blistering, so I applied moleskin and used even thicker socks. By that night and another 7 miles in, I was starting to feel it. The next day I had to stop about 4 miles in and add even more moleskins, tape and wrap my entire left foot. The inner seams by the heal were destroying my feet. It got so bad that I was literally moving at elder/walker pace. The last day was brutal and I used every piece of gear I had in my med kit to protect my feet from further blistering and aching. Turned out bad as well as one of our group overshot our exit by 3 miles and we had to trek out looking for him - me with dead feet. LUCKILY, REI has a superb return policy and these are going back. Probably going to stick with my Keen Oregon PCTs for now. OVERALL: They appear durable, but I've heard some reports of the bottoms coming loose or tearing. I didn't experience that in my short time, but wet surface traction is very poor. They are heavy, but that's expected for this type of shoe in my opinion. The laces are strong, but the lacing system isnt all that impressive. IT's a good solution for flat feet IF you don't get the rubbing I experienced. Blistering was beyond horrible in about 4-5 places, but the heals took the blunt force. Both of them ended up scaring despite antiseptic and care. I haven't written off the Vasque brand as a whole, but this experience left much to be desired. I hope they work for you. I give it a "do not recommend" because I wouldn't want anyone else experiencing what I did. Until nest time, be safe and happy hiking.
After one 8 mile day hike and some daily wear, Im very happy with the boots. These boots were easy to walk in than others that I tried because the soles allow a little bit of heel to toe rolling action, where the others felt very flat which led to a harsher contact in the forefoot. Also very nice on rough rocks as well as in mud.