Salewa  Wildfire NXT Approach Shoes - Men's

Sizing first. These are the same size as my Salewa Alp Trainer 2 and Wildfire Canvas'. They're the same size as my Hoka and Saucony running shoes and a half size bigger than my On Cloudflyers, Salomon Quest and X Ultra mids. I was looking for a multi use, summer shoe and wanted to buy something during the recent sale. I wanted the shoes for light summer hiking, daily dog walks of 2-3 miles, as well as for daily use and running errands. I am not going to be wearing them for climbing. These are very good shoes and i recommend them, but they were my third choice. Choice 1 was the non-GTX Salomon X Ultra 5, but i didn't want the color that was available in my size. Choice 2 was the Salewa Pedroc Max, but the color I wanted was not available in my size. Choice 3 was this Wildfire NXT. These fit great, look great and have the option of an insole insert, that can fill the toe box to make it more narrow, for better climbing. I tried it out for just regular wear and ended up taking it out. It wasn't bad at all, just a better fit for my daily use without it. I have a wider foot and the toe box has plenty of room with a mid cushioned sock. The shoes are well cushioned in the heal and decently cushioned in the fore foot, but sit low enough to allow for good ground feel. My dov walks can be a combo of sidewalk, grass and singletrack. I have two complaints. The tongue is attached with fabric on both sides but does not have any sort of lace loop. Not having a way to secure the laces to the tongue allows it on both shoes, to slide to the outside, placing the padding on the tongue not where it was intended. It hasn't been a major issue but it's not something that should happen and could have been easily fixed by Salewa. Second is that the heal slightly slips and there is no way to tighten the shoe enough to pull it up to prevent this. So, and I'm sure I voided the warranty, I drilled additional holes on each shoe through each side of the plastic support, to run the laces through farther back, to better pull up the heal. This is exactly the way most running shoes and the Pedroc Max are built. This has made an enormous difference in both how the shoes fits and more importantly performs.

I found these shoes to be a one-trick pony. On dry rock, the grip was impressive and I felt very secure. However, the moment I encountered wet terrain or loose dirt, that confidence vanished. The traction in these conditions was poor, leading to a slippery and unstable feel. If you exclusively need a shoe for dry, technical rock, these might work. But for all-around use in varied conditions, I cannot recommend them.

Slippery even on some dry surfaces. I’m pushing 60 years old, and a fall is not something I want to contend with. Not really sure what to do with these now.

Was hopeful , really wanted these to work. Every step I took my foot would move. Not what you want when your climbing around

Really comfortabel and Great grip on trail and rock. Been using in lofoten.