Introduction
The question of which shoes are the best is asked much too often by people expecting a cut and dried answer.
The issue
The problem has several parts:
- Shoe fit is very foot dependent.
- Which shoe is best for which use differs a lot.
- Manufacturers quality isn’t always reliable.
- Special uses.
Shoe fit is very individual
The most important factor for a shoe is that it works well with your particular foot.
One outdoor professional I respect a great deal has narrow feet. What works well for him won’t work at all for me.
Many people handle low arches or no arch support well. Salomon Odyssey Triple Crown Magic was that sort of shoe. It made a big splash in 2018 and 2019 or so and seems to have disappeared.
I don’t see it in surveys of long trail hikers and the places I checked on line had sold out and not replaced their inventory.
Other people like arch support or need shoes that rotate some to take the stress off their knees (shoes that lock in your ankles tend to generate knee problems).
Some people do not have a problem with their feet sweating. They can walk in 98+ degree heat for miles in waterproof shoes and be fine.
Others need as much breathable shoe surface as possible.
The bottom line is the most important thing a shoe can do is fit your particular feet well.
Most common shoes used by thru-hikers
For 2024 and the Appalachian Trail (from thetrek.co — links as they set them up):
In order of satisfaction/rating:
- Topo Athletic Traverse
- Topo Athletic Terraventure
- Topo Athletic Pursuit
- Merrel Moab
- Hoka Speedgoats
- Topo Athletic Ultraventure
- Altra Lone Peak
- Altra Olympus
- Salomon, Brooks and La Sportiva were also popular
For 2024 and the Pacific Crest Trail (from Halfway Anywhere:
- Topo Athletic Pursuit
Men’s/Women’s- Topo Athletic Traverse
Men’s/Women’s- Merrell Moab
Men’s/Women’s- Brooks Cascadia
Men’s/Women’s- Topo Athletic Ultraventure
Men’s/Women’s- Hoka One One Stinson
- Topo Mountain Racer
- Topo Terraventure
- Altra Timp
For the Continental Divide Survey, these were the results:
- Topo Athletic Terraventure (Men’s/Women’s)—highest rated
- HOKA ONE ONE Speedgoat
Men’s/Women’s- Altra Lone Peak
Men’s/Women’s- Altra Olympus
Men’s/Women’s- With two more Topos and Brooks Cascadia rounding out the list
Best for what use?
For example, if you are road walking (maybe a Camino) what you want is much different than what you might want or need for bushwhacking.
That comes out in satisfaction for the same shoe on different trails since the trails are different from each other.
Hiking in desert sand has its own issues as does hiking when heat is an issue. https://andrewskurka.com/recommended-footwear-for-desert-backpacking/.
Surprisingly, trail shoes for hikers (which are more robust than trail runners, Merrill Moabs being the prime example) are often not as popular as trail runners designed with joggers in mind.
Hikers often gravitate towards cross-over shoes (shoes between a trail runner and a trail shoe ) as well.
The Terraventure is a prime example of a cross-over shoe.
Manufacturing quality
There were shoes that were great for six hundred miles or more on trail that went to less than three hundred or even failing at one hundred miles as manufacturing quality control slipped or intended defects were introduced.
The current quality of manufacturing—not that of years past—is incredibly important in finding the “best” shoe for a thru-hike.
Special uses
The most common example of a special use that is outside of the norm is waterproof shoes focused on winter/snow use.
Another difference is whether the shoes are used to carry heavy loads or for a lighter pack or standing at work. Those are all different uses that the same shoes might be put to.
Finally, cushion can make a difference for some people. It makes it easier to adjust to hiking. Cushion also affects road walks and trails where you might want to have a rock plate for — either in addition to cushion or where a really thick cushion can take the place of a rock plate.
My suggestion—find your own best shoe
This starts by going to a place where you can get shoes fitted to your feet. I took my daughter to a great place in Charlottesville that spent more than half an hour and fitted her to excellent shoes that have been perfect for her.
https://www.raggedmountainrunning.com/
Buy a pair from such a store and see how that pair works for you.
It also helps to pay attention to what others are using on the trail you want to hike but don’t let that alone control your final decision.
Postscript, shoes I have used
I started with cross trainers by New Balance. NB discontinued the ones I used which had cushion and used their A1 last.
I tried some basketball shoes (some are similar to cross trainers) but discovered that rocker action doesn’t work for me.
Then I picked up some REI garage sale shoes by Vasque (the Breeze) and then some NB 400 cross trainers/trail shoes.
I then moved to Altras. Those messed up my knees. Other than almost crippling me they were great. I hobbled into an REI and switched to Northface Ultra 109s which worked well for me as did their successor the 110.
They were especially good for walking around town.
For a section hike the guy at REI recommended some Merrills (not the Moab) that were best suited to walking on carpet. Every stick or pebble hit my feet as I hiked.
Salomons were next. They were just a little too narrow for me so I had foot pain all the time. I replaced them with La Sportiva Wildcats that were great but they were too active (so I rolled my ankles a lot with them).
They felt really great but lasted me only from Katahdin to Rattle River before the rocks had sliced up my uppers. So I needed new shoes.
That led me to the Merril Moabs I got from a hiker box. They were great. I’ve bounced in and out of Moabs from time to time, the last time because of quality control issues that they have since resolved.
I tried Hoka ATRs (Stinsons) and really liked them. I left Hoka over durability issues in later years that gave me shin splints before three hundred miles. I also tried Speedgoats and had the same problem with the shoes not lasting.
I haven’t bought Hokas since.
It seems that they have fixed that durability issue, but I’ve moved on to Topos. I started with Ultraventures and am now using Terraventures for improved durability and because PMags liked them.
https://pmags.com/gear-review-topo-athletic-ultraventure-3-shoes
https://pmags.com/gear-review-topo-terraventure-4-trail-running-shoes
I do road walks and town trail training in Phantoms which I’m considering for a Camino.
I have a pair of Moabs I bought as “boots” for an ice axe class and a pair of La Sportiva Ultra Raptors (a great shoe) in my closet. The Raptors are Wildcats with less stack and better protected uppers.
They last longer and are less likely to roll my ankles—the change in stack makes them more stable.
I’ve tried the new Topo Mountain Racers which are great for trail but not for roads. I’m waiting to hear how they do for durability.
Bonus link (not about shoes)
On a completely different topic https://pmags.com/start-here-my-unofficial-outdoor-guidebook is a great read.
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