Vasque  Breeze 2.0 Mid GTX Hiking Boots - Women's

I have walked El Camino Frances to Santiago de Compostela this past August, took 31 days we had hot weather, cold weather and rain pouring weather for 3 days non-stop, We had elevation gain up to 4000 feet in harsh terrain and asfalt, this have been the best boots for this journey, I saw thousands of pilgrims and all different brand names of boots from different countries. Most of the people developed blisters and friction to their feet, I had none. During this walk I encounter 4 different individuals that wore the same boots, asked how they work for them and I got the same outcome as the one I was experiencing. Thank God for those boots I am a lucky one that may the right choice in buying them.

There have been things I have liked about the two pairs of Vasque Breeze 2.0 GTX hiking boots I have owned since December 2013 (e.g., balance between light weight and ankle support, Gore-Tex protection), but the drawbacks outweigh the positive aspects at this point, and I feel compelled to warn others about the quality issues I've experienced so that they can make an informed decision about their purchase. 1. I've owned two pairs in less than a year and a half because I had to return the first pair when the stitching on the side of one boot started coming undone. I hadn't used the boots on many hikes at that point, and nothing happened specifically to stress or damage the area where the stitching came out. I think the boot was simply poorly constructed such that the stitching would come undone from exactly the activity for which the product was designed: hiking. I gave Vasque the benefit of the doubt, hoping the defect was an uncommon one and not a sign of bigger quality issues. Now I'm not so sure. 2. I used the boots on a 10-day hiking trip in April 2015 that involved hiking in the deserts of Utah and Arizona. Within a couple of days, the boots started feeling uncomfortably tight around my toes and the sides of my feet. It turned out that lots of sand was getting into the lining of the boots through the mesh panels, and it was collecting in large pockets between the lining and the outer wall. It was difficult to get the sand out, and, of course, more sand got into the boots with each subsequent hike, so shaking sand out offered only temporary relief. I’ve spent probably another half an hour shaking, massaging, and banging on these boots to try to get the sand out since I’ve returned from the trip, and there’s still a ton of sand in there, which I can feel when I’m wearing the boots. I called Vasque’s customer service on 4/22/15 and learned that this is a known problem; the openings in the mesh are too large, so sand and silt pass through easily. Vasque is looking into putting better mesh into later-produced Vasque Breeze boots, but there is no commitment or plan yet; I was told I could call back in several months to see if a decision has been made. Thus, if you are planning to hike in an environment with sand or silt, I strongly recommend against buying these boots. If you are planning to hike in other environments, I still think you’re taking a gamble. It boggles my mind how such an obvious issue was not planned for in designing this boot in the first place, and I find this an unacceptable problem given the price tag for this product.