Now that summer has arrived, despite the wet weather, I decided to go through the gear and chuck or giveaway the worn footwear and replace that which needed replacing.

Many of you will recognize the dislike of removing well broken in gear… stuff I’ve been happy with for years. At the same time, the companies move on and you sometimes can’t replace stuff. However, sometimes, stuff works out.

I’ve been wearing Five Ten shoes for a long time. It started way back when I was hiking and climbing. Their slippers were a standard amongst the crowd, and I very quickly fell in love with their Guide Tennies (the down to the toe lace adjustment, super sticky stealth rubber, and supportively stiff soles) and have worn them ever since (about 4 pairs worth at this point).

Naturally, looking to replace some light hikers I’ve had for a while, I turned to them and found their Camp Four model a mid ankle style that I like for hiking (not too high, not too low), a sole stiff where it needs to be, a nice fitting heel cup, and the down to the toe lacing. Some were suggesting a half size larger, but I found my regular size was best.

It’s been a few days and I can assure you they’re as good as one would hope. They’re light, comfortable, have the right balance of cushion to stiffness. They’d make an excellent hiker even with a heavyish pack (although I’m from the “go light” school myself (Tuckerize that pack!)).

Anyway, If you’ve never tried Five Ten, give them a whirl, they have a nice range, are a family owned business, and produce some of the stickiest rubber for hiking and climbing. (The pair of Teva sandals that I use for river running has 5.10 stealth rubber on the bottoms… they are so much better than everything else I’ve tried on slick wet rocks.)

More gear stuff (which everyone seems to ask me about) as I have time.

Disclaimer: I have no relationship with Five Ten other than that of happy customer.