hiking shoes for AE dress shoe dress boot guy.

[tankerjohn]

Surprisingly, most hikers are moving away from boots and going towards trail runners. Unless you are carrying heavy loads, have significant ankle issues, or will be in heavy snow, a full boot may not be the way to go. Most trail runners have plenty of grip, a rock plate in the sole, and functional materials like gore-tex, all in a much lighter package. You can always add gaiters for rain and even light snow. I use Brooks Cascadias when I hike. I've also used Merrel's trail runners. I'll admit, there's more stylish options to have, but like was said previously, when you are a few miles deep on a trail, function often trumps form.

That's interesting, but doesn't really surprise me. For one thing, that's what we all did as kids. Maybe there were some rich kids whose parents bought them special hiking boots, but I'm going to guess that the vast majority of us just wore whatever sneakers or "tennies" or Air Jordons we wore everyday. For another thing, trail runners are a good economical choice that can serve as a hiking shoe or running shoe for most recreational purposes. Especially for day hikes on groomed or established trails, you just don't need anything super duper. But I've also read that the majority of thru-hikers on the big trails like Appalachian and Pacific Crest pretty much ditch their heavy, chunky hiking boots and big packs like two weeks in for running shoes and ultralight setups (if they didn't start out ultralight to begin with).

[TheJasonaissance]

Surprisingly, most hikers are moving away from boots and going towards trail runners. Unless you are carrying heavy loads, have significant ankle issues, or will be in heavy snow, a full boot may not be the way to go. Most trail runners have plenty of grip, a rock plate in the sole, and functional materials like gore-tex, all in a much lighter package. You can always add gaiters for rain and even light snow. I use Brooks Cascadias when I hike. I've also used Merrel's trail runners. I'll admit, there's more stylish options to have, but like was said previously, when you are a few miles deep on a trail, function often trumps form.

[flatbear]

danner is always a good option

[gunbarrelsequence]

My first post on these boards so let me begin by saying hello!

I've been hiking regularly for about 25 years on trails ranging from my local state parks, to Grand Canyon rim-to-rim hikes and at least 30 National Parks. I concur with many of the posters above. Optimally, you want a "real" hiking shoe (meaning, made a reputable manufacturer known for making hiking shoe), with good traction, ankle support and a nice sized toe box so that you avoid losing toenails on more challenging hikes. At minimum, a good trail runner will suffice if you're going to just do light hikes on reliable terrain with minimal elevation changes.

My go-to hikers are low-cut Asolos with Gore-Tex. They're versatile and not so "hikey" looking that I feel silly wearing them off the trails. I've been wearing this particular pair on upstate NY trails 2-3 times a month for the past 2 years and they hold up well.

I've also got a pair of Salomon boots that have great ventilation for when we hike out in the Southwest (which, thanks to COVID, I haven't been able to do in about a year). Great ankle support for steep climbs on dry terrain and slickrock, but they keep your feet cool. Not the prettiest boots but really versatile and comfortable.

Finally, I've got a pair of Danner Mountain Lights for hikes in cold, wet situations or light snow. (Plus, they also allow me to feel like I'm Daniel Craig in SPECTRE when I'm wearing them.) Pricey, but impeccably well-made and durable. But these are serious boots for serious hikes.

TL;DR: It all depends on what your hiking goals are; but if there's one piece of advice I'd have, it's to buy the best hiking shoe you can afford, make sure it fits perfectly, and make the "look" of the shoe secondary.

[armedferret]

i will advice you go for Adidas Original 3M shoe

Nothing provides support, traction, and waterproofing when hiking the backwoods like a good skate shoe eh?

[motosacto]

Keep in mind that

1. Columbia likely uses the same Asian factory/contract manufacturers as many other mainline brands.
2. Shoes like those use the same construction methods as walking/running shoes.
3. Walking/running shoes are generally designed to last 500+ miles for actual running.

So... if you're hiking on dirt and not ripping the crap out of them on rocks, they should be good for 50+ 10 mile hikes. Substandard manufacturing or poor materials could lead to the soles delaminating, but my guess is they'll probably do just fine.

For comparison, I have a pair of Asics trail runners that I got for $90 at REI and wore for probably 1000 miles (too much I know). I used them for dirt running and day hiking. The liner around the heel shredded and started messing with my Achilles area, but the soles had plenty of life left.

Your mileage may vary...

[evanparker]

They did great on their kind of introductory mini hike. 5 miles and they felt great the whole time. I almost expected them to explore or something for $79 but they really seemed to do ok. There were even some pretty rocky parts, and some frozen mud partsand they did just fine on those too!

[mark4]

If you only wear them hiking and you only go hiking a couple times month, maybe even weekly if it's mostly dirt trails as opposed to naked rock, it should take years and years before the soles wear out. It's wearing them around town on concrete and asphalt - do a lot of walking on those surfaces and the soles wear out a lot quicker. I usually wear a pair of running shoes to walk in and the tread wears out in the heels in a matter of a 3-4 months. I generally average about 15K steps a day though so they get a lot of mileage. I have a pair of cheaper waterproof hiking boots I wear for walking around town in wet weather. My more expensive ones, the Oboz Bridgers, I only wear hiking and those are a few years old and still fine.

[idvsego]

nice. hiking shoe soles are kind of like tires. its a balance between long life and maximum traction. I consider a good set of shoes to have about 300 miles in them. a less expensive one...200. that seems like a lot but with a mix of casual stuff and all day stuff, I average maybe 10 miles per hike. So 20 hikes out of a sub $100 boot/shoe is a win for me. A lot of people say "I've had these boots for 10 years" but they have walked in the local park or worn them to work vs backpacking with a 30-40lb load on you. Its VERY subjective, is all Im saying. I hope you remember to post back as you get some miles on these.

[evanparker]

I guess I didn't have any doubts they would not look good when I got them, but I can confirm they do look pretty neat. The real question is if I can get ten hikes out of them lol. I guess we will see! I am going to try to go for a few mile solo to break them in and see how it goes.
Observations so far - the soles are very very sticky and soft rubber. Probably not good for longevity on a real trail but whatever. The shoes are also lighter lighter than any of my GYW shoes by quite a bit. The entire construction o fbthe shoe just seems like a hightop basketball sneaker maybe, with the slightly stiffer foam sole.

They fit exactly as branock'd, and very comfortable out of the box.

[idvsego]

I remember buying a target pea coat as a try out before i got my Sterlingwear one. It was incredibly informing. I now wear my 'adult' oeacoat nearly ever day.

i also did the same thing before a spend a few hundo on a nice harrington jacket, my merona one actually became my frequent scooter riding coat! it's greatly loved. the nice one has been used every spring since! it's super awesome and i am so happy i bought it, and wouldn't have ever bought it if it weren't for its $40 counterpart.

sometimes you get surprised too. I got the same merona one. I do like it and plan to upgrade it when it wears out...which might be never at this rate lol.

[mark4]

I remember buying a target pea coat as a try out before i got my Sterlingwear one. It was incredibly informing. I now wear my 'adult' oeacoat nearly ever day.

i also did the same thing before a spend a few hundo on a nice harrington jacket, my merona one actually became my frequent scooter riding coat! it's greatly loved. the nice one has been used every spring since! it's super awesome and i am so happy i bought it, and wouldn't have ever bought it if it weren't for its $40 counterpart.

Yup...this is what I did to try out raw demin (DSTLD - they were $75 and everything else at the time seemed to be $200 and up) and waxed cotton jackets. I was looking for one but Barbour was super expensive back then (circa 2012) and Bellstaff even worse. So I saw a Land's End oilcloth jacket that looked pretty good and was made of the same British Millerain materials that those more expensive brands use...waited until after Christmas and got one at around $125. Honestly, it's so nice I've never seen the need to go higher end.

[evanparker]

I remember buying a target pea coat as a try out before i got my Sterlingwear one. It was incredibly informing. I now wear my 'adult' oeacoat nearly ever day.

i also did the same thing before a spend a few hundo on a nice harrington jacket, my merona one actually became my frequent scooter riding coat! it's greatly loved. the nice one has been used every spring since! it's super awesome and i am so happy i bought it, and wouldn't have ever bought it if it weren't for its $40 counterpart.

[jvargas]

I follow start small philosophy all the time. It’s a great way to try things as it takes me a long time to decide I actually should try a new style piece. I will admit it took me forever to get around to buying chukkas.

absolutely nothing wrong with a little "gateway drug" lol. this is the smart route actually. Anytime Im trying something new, I go with a low cost option. For clothes, Target is a great option there. I wasnt sure about cardigans so I grabbed one on sale from Target. decent cut and stuff but low cost barrier means Im not out a lot if I dont actually use it. I think you made a good decision. Not like you were sitting there waiting on my approval or anything lol.

[idvsego]

I think part of my turnaround on the danners was also that i've never really owned a pair of "hiking" shoes, and while i've certainly gone hiking on my sneakers a number of times, i just don't even know how aspiring to be a guy who "owns hiking shoes" or "goes hiking every other weekend" is going to go :-D

at least for $79 it won't be too expensive to find out? i'll probably buy the danners if i can manage to actually wear out the Columbia shoes, i feel like it won't take long time anyhow, but i guess we will see huh?

absolutely nothing wrong with a little "gateway drug" lol. this is the smart route actually. Anytime Im trying something new, I go with a low cost option. For clothes, Target is a great option there. I wasnt sure about cardigans so I grabbed one on sale from Target. decent cut and stuff but low cost barrier means Im not out a lot if I dont actually use it. I think you made a good decision. Not like you were sitting there waiting on my approval or anything lol.