Lightweight Boots
Five Ten Pursuit
$150, 2 lbs. 6 oz. (men’s US size 9)
Sizes: men’s 7-12, 13, 14
fiveten.com
I don’t personally anticipate a future in military special ops or SWAT—which these shoes were designed for—but after wearing them while hiking and scrambling with a 30-pound climbing pack in Idaho’s Castle Rocks State Park, plus off-trail hiking and on a technical descent of a slot canyon in Utah’s Capitol Reef National Park, I think the Pursuit is a great dayhiking and scrambling shoe.
Its biggest strength is the Stealth Phantom sticky-rubber outsoles, which glommed onto everything from steep granite slabs and slickrock to vertical slot-canyon walls in a long, horizontal chimney traverse. The oval lugs bite well on sandy and gravelly surfaces, too. The shoe has enough support and rigidity for carrying moderate loads, a cushioned, soft landing, and generous padding in the tongue and around the collar. The leather uppers and reinforced heel resist abuse and the mid-cut height protects your ankles. While the shoes are not waterproof, their high breathability ensures they dry quickly. My only quibble is that the intricately close lacing, intended for finely adjusting fit, is a little overdone.
—Michael Lanza