I’m a shoe bigot. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Italian-made shoes rule and everything else is a compromise. The good folks at Lowa gave me a scare when I glowingly reviewed a pair of their boots last winter (another review to follow, this time for the fantastic Weisshorn), but upon further inspection I realized many of their kicks are made in Italia. Phew, back to my prejudices.
Enter Salewa. The German manufacturer of mountain hard- and softgoods recently jumped into the technical climb/approach/hike category, at least within the US market. Their shoes have certainly made a splash, especially their alpine boots which feature a climb/walk mode that adjust via Allen wrench. I’m hoping to test-run a pair of those this fall season, but for now I’ve been focusing on summer pursuits.
I scammed a pair of their Firetail technical approach shoes ($120; 15 oz. with my orthotics in ’em; 13.3 oz. without; and for the record, made in Asia, rather than Germany) a few months back. I’ve already declared my undying love for LaSportiva’s “Ganda” and SCARPA’s “Gecko”, so I chose the Firetails for a slightly different application–longer approaches and hiking with a pack, rather than full-on scrambling/climbing. The distinction is subtle, but I’d say a dedicated approach shoe has sticky, “dot” rubber, rather than any lugs. The sole and midsole on an approach shoe are typically quite a bit more flexible and/or sensitive than a more hiking-devoted shoe, too.
The Firetail sports an EVA midsole and polyurethane shock absorber in the heel, adding some weight and decreasing sensitivity for fifth-class climbing–but importantly it makes the shoe much more supportive, especially with weight on one’s back. The lightly lugged sole (Vibram‘s “Tech Approach”) offers vastly superior traction over an approach shoe when on wet, muddy soil, too. These are the exact reasons I went with the Firetail; I wanted to use it as a capable shoe on days on which I knew I would be hiking for a while with a pack and with climbing challenging enough I’d be using a dedicated rock shoe, instead of a sticky approach shoe like the Ganda.
Bullseye. I’ve done 30 days in the Firetails, including two approaches to the Easton Glacier on the south side of Mount Baker, in the Cascades. With a pack stuffed for crevasse rescue and mellow ice climbing, the Firetails were supportive enough to feel good, grippy enough to latch onto damp Washington trails, and lightweight enough to justify leaving the mountain boots on my back until the last possible moment.
I’d hoped the Firetails would be up to walking with a heavier pack and indeed they are. I still need them to be sticky, though, when crossing slabs or scrambling off-trail and to that end they’re very good, not great. They’re not a Ganda, Cirque Pro, or Gecko, but if you already own a sticky, high-quality approach shoe, then the Firetail fits a nice niche, letting you schlep more gear without banging up your feet. They’ll still do a few low-fifth-class moves, too. They’re great shoes, even if they are a German brand made in Asia. There, I said it.
Salewa makes a Gore-tex version, which I avoided, thinking I’d prefer a cooler, better ventilated shoe. The Firetail sports plenty of mesh, making them comfortable on hot days–of which I had a few, walking in/out of Lumpy Ridge and Eldo. My pair happen to be all black, which defeats the purpose of a cooler shoe, but there’s a gray version available. If you’re going for a hot-weather shoe, then I say stick with a cooler color like the gray.
So far durability has been fine, including the plastic exoskeleton around the heel. I imagine you could resole these, but I bet the mesh will be blown out by the time I wear through the sole. Stay tuned and I’ll post more as I beat these up further.
Bigots hate changing their minds and when it comes to shoes…well, I might just have to. These pesky German brands are doing a good job of offering quality footwear to rival the Italian stuff. My old man’s rolling over in his grave reading those words, but Pop, I gotta give credit where credit is due. Good job, Salewa.
