Salomon mens Quest 4 Gore-tex Hiking Boots

The outsoles are nice and grippy. The toe cap is protective.The fit is narrow, and I have narrow feet, so *for me* they fit extremely well. I bought men's size 9.5, which is the size I wear for boots. (My normal shoe size is 9, but I buy a half-size larger in boots to accommodate thicker perspiration-wicking wool hiking socks, and so my toes won't hit the toe of the boot). If you have wide feet buy a wide size.They keep your feet dry in dewy or wet grass. Add gaiters, and they keep your feet dry in tall wet grasses.[Because of the way I lace boots (using non-slip surgical loops between eyelets, finished off with a non-slip double knot), I found the original nice bootlaces to be a bit short, so I replaced them with longer 94 inch Rhino laces. (Note: Salomon Quest 4 GTX High Rise Hiking Boot lacing eyelets are made of plastic - not metal - so DO NOT PULL HARD AGAINST THE EYELETS while lacing. You'll end up breaking these eyelets if you do. And if you use rough kevlar-based shoelaces (like Ironlace Unbreakable Laces) they'll saw right through these plastic eyelets tout de suite. No bueno. If you opt for strong laces, remember that these boot eyelets are PLASTIC, not metal... so opt for SOFT strong laces.]Break-in period is minimal. They felt broken in after two short 3 mile hikes.They're lightweight - so excellent for hiking uphill.They provide underfoot support when hiking with a 45 pound backpack, or while rucking 45 pounds.The outsoles were made for all types of *natural* terrain, and will last a long time if hiking on grass, across fields, on mud, soft trails, etc. The lugs will wear down fast if mainly used for hiking on asphalt and concrete.I suspect I'll likely get 500 to 750 miles out of these boots. I'm also betting that regular asphalt hikes would wear the outsole lugs out in less than 500 miles.My full leather Zamberlan hiking boots are much stiffer, and required one month and 100 miles of short hikes to break in. They're heavier. But I've already put 200 miles on them, and have used them on harsh stony trails, skree, talus, granite, and on asphalt... with no wear so far on their outsoles. They'll likely last at least 1,000 miles, maybe more. And they can be resoled.Salomon Quest 4s are made to be worn until kaput - then recycled.If I'm going to spend the whole day doing a lot of quick-paced hiking on soft trails with a lot of ascents, the Solomon Quest 4s are lighter and much less tiring than heavy-duty hiking boots.Salomon Quest 4s are great for what they are intended to do. Just know, because they are made of lighter, less durable materials, they will not last as long as heavy-duty hiking boots.But they're comfortable and great for fast hiking and ascending on soft trails.

These are the best hiking boots I’ve owned. Stable, dry, and comfortable, no painful break-in. Grippy. Heel is locked in, plenty of ankle support, roomy toe box. Shank is stiff without feeling unnatural. Just about perfect, at any rate. I would expect glued construction to lead to delaminating years from now, but that’s pretty much how it goes these days. Heavy by today’s standards, I guess, but I don’t notice, or care.

I absolutely love this hiking boot. It is durable, comfortable, supportive, and very stable.I have a tendency to roll my ankles while hiking. I have long worn Lowa Renegade GTX boots and find them incredibly comfortable for more casual trail walking on very level, frequently maintained trails. However, I still tend to roll my ankles on trails that are a bit more uneven, especially when descending steeper terrain.Preparing for a guided hiking trip in Alaska, I decided to upgrade to a burlier boot. I tried maybe a dozen boots. I even looked at the Salomon Quest 4 GTX and rejected it previously. However, I was given some bad advice by a salesperson, who noted that the boot runs big and advised me to size down by 1/2 (I normally wear 10-1/2 and I tried a 10). It seemed to fit, but I couldn't get the comfort dialed in and moved on.Eventually I exhausted the other possibilities and came back to the Quest 4 GTX. This time I went with my normal 10-1/2 and it was a world of difference. While the very generous toe box allowed me to seemingly wear the size 10, the 10-1/2 fixed all the other fit problems I experienced in my first try. Definitely a good boot for me afterall!Break-in time was quite substantial. There is a strip of plastic along the sides of the shoe near the bottom, from midfoot to the heel. I think this helps increase the rigidity of the structure and comprises part of the incredible stability I feel when hiking with this boot. At the same time, this plastic dramatically increases the break-in time I experienced. I managed to get it just barely get it minimally broken in with daily walks for two weeks prior to the trip (supplemented with time using a mechanical shoe stretching device (that includes some movable bumps to help with bunion relief). By the 2nd or 3rd hike in Alaska (these were around 6-8 mi hikes each) I deemed them fully broken in and very comfortable.By contrast, my Lowa Renegade GTX boots required little to no break-in to get to the same level of comfort. In fact, I've never had a boot take as long to break in as the Quest 4 GTX. That said, the Quest is definitely the more supportive boot, and I had a lot more confidence on the trail and ZERO ankle rolls the entire trip.The other criticism I have for this boot (although I have this criticism of almost every hiking boot): the insole is just adequate. That said, it's quite common to buy third party insoles. My favorite for hiking boots are the Superfeet Trailblazer Comfort and Superfeet Adapt Hike Max. The Adapt insole is a little bit more flexible or less structured than the Trailblazer and, at least for me, works better with the more structured Quest 4 (whereas I tend to go with the Trailblazer on my softer boots). That said, I did the entire Alaska trip with the Trailblazer insoles.One lacing tip: because of the very generous toe box, I used a variant of the heel lock lacing method (search for "hiking boot heel lock lacing" and you'll find some good videos). I think I only really needed this technique on steeper trails (especially descending); on easier/flatter trails I could probably skip that and just lace the whole boot normally.With my use of a heel-lock lacing method, I think I can see why the salesman tried to have me size down. He was concerned that the roominess of the Quest would allow my foot to slide around too much, causing blisters and risking "toe bang" on extended descents. However, at least in my case the smaller size compromised the fit in other ways and I'm experienced enough with alternative lacing methods that I was best off with my normal size. My advice to you: try both your normal size and a half-size down and make your own choice.Other things I like:This boot has a very high top, which helps even more with preventing my ankle from rolling and increasing clearance when going through water, although it also makes the boot a bit hotter (especially when combined with the GoreTex).The waterproofing is excellent; we encountered both heavy rain and even snow at Denali and while the outside leather eventually got soaked throuh, it never penetrated the interior.Finally, I really appreciate the hooks used for the lacing. While I still love my Lowas, in additional to occasionally rolling my ankles, I really wish they'd improve their hooks. I often have the laces slipping out while tying the Lowas and have even had them slip out while hiking...which I have learned to compensate for with lacing hacks. No such problem with the Quest GTX hooks. They grab the laces very well and make lacing up much easier compared to my Lowas. They've also never slipped off during hiking.

I have worn military boots and hiking boots hardcore from around ‘85 to ‘14.And have continued to do so as a civilian for the past decade. Merrel and Salomon have been the two go to brands. Merrel was typically priced a little better and I used those more often. However, their quality/QC, sizing, durability got spotty and I shifted to Salomon most often. The. They were a little spotty as well. The fit and quality on this model seems 5 out of 5 stars. Design is 4 out of 5.The top three lace points are hook only, and I find solid pass through lace points more reliable. Also, there is no lace point on the tongue. I worry about tongue drop and security when I start putting them through their paces. Overall, 4.5 out of 5 and pleased with this choice.