How to Pick the Perfect Hiking Shoe
This blog is written in partnership with Danner Boots
I began hiking at twenty three (to impress a boy, of course) and that first trip was up a loose scree slope in the Canadian Rockies. I was wearing nothing but a pair of barefoot street running shoes, a tank top and a pair of athletic shorts I brought with me along with nothing more than a store bought water bottle for hydration - not even a single snack. A few short years later I was introduced to backcountry camping and with that came the realization of how little I knew about the outdoors and the skills and gear needed to explore these spaces safely and comfortably. And so I did what I knew and then sent myself down a rabbit hole of gear research from top to bottom with a lot of time spent on the the bottom… of my feet. I planted myself firmly into the camp of believing that in order to protect my feet and ankles I would need a pair of sturdy, heavy hiking boots. And for years that is just what I did. And my feet would throb and my legs would be sore and I had bouts of tendonitis and lost toenails and felt as though that was the way that life in the outdoors was meant to be lived. That was, until until a few years ago when I began trail running and fell in love with moving faster (and lighter) in the mountains. With this came an exploration into my belief system - my gear became lighter and with it my shoes. I was introduced to the Danner 2650 in 2017 and they quickly became my go-to all around trail and travel shoe. Lightweight enough for small trail runs but sturdy enough for multi night backpacking trips; I rarely leave home without them. Today I am running (no pun intended) through Danner’s 2021 trail shoe lineup including the 2650.
my review of Danner’s trail shoe lineup
Trail 2650
A LIGHTWEIGHT and sturdy trail shoe with waterproof GORE-TEX liners and grippy Vibram outsole.
I have been wearing the 2650’s for four years now as my go-to trail shoe. They found a sweet spot with me in trying to pack lightweight for international travel when space and weight are my biggest concerns. They have a sturdy enough sole to provide excellent support for hiking and backpacking, but are flexible enough to hold up as trail runners just as well. These are my go-to all around trail shoe when I am only able to pack one pair of shoes and have a variety of activities planned.
The 2650’s come in three versions:
Original (womens /mens) - Made with a durable suede and lightweight textile upper exterior to create a shoe with modern performance and timeless Danner® durability. These are non-waterproof and offer an EVA footbed.
GTX (womens / mens) - This is the waterproof version of the original, with a leather exterior, and Gore-tex liner these are 100% waterproof and breathable.
Campo (womens / mens) - The warm weather hiking version of the 2650 - the campo is made with a highly abrasion resistant upper, combining durable leather with lightweight, abrasion-resistant textile panels. I found this version to fit slightly higher than the other two versions of the 2650.
Specifications
Weight : 18oz (Campo and original) / 21oz (GTX) per pair
Height : 3”
Footbed : Ortholite (Campo) / EVA (original and GTX)
Shank : TPU
Heel-to-Toe Drop : 8mm
Lining : Non-waterproof (Campo and Original) / Waterproof (GTX)
Liner : Mesh (Campo and original) / Gore-Tex (GTX)
Outsole : Vibram® 460
shop womens / shop mens
JAG
The lightweight alternative, best for easy trails and urban streets.
My recent trip to the Yukon was my first time traveling with the JAG shoes. They are the most fashionable of the Danner shoes with a retro feel and come in both a short hiking boot as well as the shoe. I ended up using them primarily for around town and short trails. The shoe version does not come in a waterproof version (the JAG hiker does) but instead are a really lightweight and breathable option for a city shoe/trail shoe crossover. I do find these to fit slightly wider than all of the other Danner shoes and boots I have tried (if you are between sizes maybe size down or if you have a wider footbed this may be the shoe for you!).
Specifications
Weight : 22 oz per pair
Height : 3”
Footbed : OrthoLite
Lining : Non-Waterproof
Liner : Mesh
Outsole : Danner® Waffle
shop womens / shop mens
trailcomber
Quick-drying and breathable, it's Danner’s lightest hiker to date.
These are a lighter weight option from the 2650 but provide a similar fit without the weight. The Trailcomber is more of a minimal trail shoe with a 4mm offset from heel to toe, this provides a more natural feel underfoot with slightly more width in the forefoot for added stability. These are a really great option for trail runs (they feel like a barefoot runner), short hikes and nature walks. They dried quickly when they got wet (they do have a removable insole), have the same vibram sole we all know and love and are really breathable (I probably did not need to wear socks with them). I would not recommend them for backpacking - for that I would go wth the 2650’s as the trailcomber sole in being lightweight cannot offer the same support.
Specifications
Weight : 16 oz per pair
Height : 3”
Footbed : OrthoLite
Heel-to-Toe Drop : 4mm
Lining : Non-Waterproof
Liner : Unlined
Outsole : Vibram® Trailcomber
shop womens / shop mens
Rivercomber
Drainable, quick-drying river shoe with superior traction on wet surfaces.
These are my first and only pair of water shoes. They are super lightweight and they dry fast (again, have a removable sole). I was hesitant about their ability to grip to rocks in rivers and lakes since the bottom of the shoe appears very smooth, but they exceeded all of my expectations. They held my foot and the rocks securely - no slipping around in these shoes! The Rivercomber is built to be both durable and quick-drying. They are designed for stream crossings and river floats, canyoneering and Class III rapids.
Specifications
Weight : 17 oz per pair
Height : 3"
Footbed : OrthoLite Shank Nylon
Heel-to-Toe Drop : 4mm
Lining : Non-Waterproof
Liner : Unlined
Outsole : Vibram® Rivercomber
shop womens / shop mens
why Danner?
I started wearing Danner because of the aesthetic (and the movie Wild) and found that their boots and shoes fit me well and that their values align with my own. I had switched to, and still use, the Danner Inquire Chukka Mid Hiking Boots for a lot of my longer backpacking trips. In addition to comfort, and aesthetics, I was searching for a pair of boots that didn’t require any break-in period. I also use these a lot in less than ideal weather situations (the higher waterproof shaft helps keep my feet warm and dry and if they get water inside they dry very quickly) and fell in love with a lot of their boots - you can check out my full hiking footwear blog here. Currently, thirteen of my nineteen pairs of hiking footwear are made by Danner which is indicative of how much I love the brand and the products they make.
365-Day Warranty
If you suspect your purchase isn’t up to their unrelenting standards, or is defective in any way, they want to make things right and offer a 365-day warranty across their entire footwear line. So you can try your boots and if they don’t work they stand behind their products. Some footwear, including my Mountain Cascade Light boots are part of Danner’s recrafting program. This means that (for a reasonable cost) even after the 365-day warranty you can have parts replaced, get restitched, etc.
Thank you to Mitchel Jones and Michael Sugianto for help with the images featured in this blog.
*Please note that some of the links above are affiliate links, and I may earn a small commission on any purchase made - at no additional cost to you. As always, all ideas and opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own. Thank you for your support!
This summer while waiting for a ferry that we just missed I got to chatting with the car in front of us and to my delight he works as a superintendent with Parks Canada. I peppered him with questions about his favourite hikes, the best parks and even learned a thing or two about how to properly use frequent flier miles. But somewhere just shy of an hour into the conversation we stumbled upon backcountry safety. He told a story of learning to backcountry ski in Roger’s Pass, how (rightfully so) he got chewed out by a group from Canmore when he and his friends rode a far too dangerous line. That they went, tails tucked between their legs, took the classes, picked up the gear and got the certifications. With more people than ever getting out of the city into their own little pieces of paradise there has also been a vast upswing in Search and Rescue calls this summer. He told us stories of calls that the parks had been receiving, about people with so many SAR