To start with, let me just say that I liked these shoes so much, I bought a second pair to have in reserve for when I wear out the first pair!
Here's a shot of the new shoe and the old shoe. You can clearly tell how much these have molded themselves to my feet!
The Huckleberry is what is commonly referred to as an "Approach Shoe", which typically means that the shoe is designed to function as a bit of a hybrid between a traditional hiking shoe and a climbing shoe.
I'll list the specs and take it from there.
Details
- Air-cushion, compression-molded midsole made with an EVA center (15% recycled) that cradles the foot and provides cushioning
- Bi-Fit™ dual-density insole board made from 100% recycled polyethylene/polyurethane provides support and stability underfoot
- Board-lasted with a steel shank, providing support, stability and flex in the correct zones
- Poli-Cork™ footbeds are made from foam that's 70% recycled and have active carbon and cork bits to help combat odor and naturally move moisture
- 1.6-mm Perwanger leather upper provides durable, abrasion-resistant protection
- Reinforced rubber toe and external counter for additional protection and abrasion-resistance when climbing
- Medium to narrow width, tapered toe box, medium arch/instep
- 794 g (28 oz)
- Made in China.
That's a pretty bold claim, but one that I'll stand by and elaborate on.
They're pretty light, the sole offers a fantastic grip aided by an unusual, almost random-looking tread pattern. The rubber is sticky enough to provide very decent grip when using them for climbing, which I do quite often. They're not as well-suited for rock climbing as a true climbing shoe would be, but they do surprisingly well.
I've worn these hiking in some very rough terrain. Out near where I live is an area called the Quebradas. Some of the rock formations out there have a simply astoundingly abrasive texture that will literally leave your hands fuzzy with finely shredded epidermis! That kind of rock is absolute murder on most gear, but the Huckleberry's handled the abuse with aplomb.
You can see here the wear pattern and the great sole tread. The new shoe is on the bottom.
They've survived several trips out there and elsewhere, surviving both that and the very abrasive native volcanic rock in other parts of my local area, a testament to the prowess of the engineers at Vibram.
The sole is also exceedingly quiet and on hard surfaces I have to deliberately alter my stride if I want to make noise. My inner ninja viking is quite fond of this!
The leather uppers are also amazingly abrasion-resistant. They show almost no wear, despite the harsh conditions out here. And were only lightly stained by a mine exploration that has left indelible stains on the pants I wore that day. This Perwanger leather appears to have deserved it's reputation as being one of the most abrasion-resistant shoe leathers on the market.
The leather has also conformed to my foot so now they fit even better than they did when I first got them, one of the reasons I prefer leather as a shoe material, rather than most synthetics.
The toe and heel counters are protected by a heavy-duty rubber rand that provides excellent coverage for the toes and is made of sticky enough rubber to work well for toe- and heel hooks while climbing.
The lacing system allows for an almost custom fit and while the tongue isn't bellowed, I've not had issues with debris finding it's way into the shoes while out and about. Only on a couple of occasions have I had to stop and pour sand out and that seemed to mostly have entered through the ankle area. The lacing holes are also reinforced with an aluminum insert and I've yet to notice any wear or stretching of the leather around these inserts.
Moving on to the inside of the Huckleberry, the insoles are a mix of cork and carbon-rich rubber foam that has proven to be quite durable and a very effective guard against bacterial and fungal odor on top of providing an excellent level of comfort and support. The rest of the shoe is lined with what I believe to be Capilene and as such does an excellent job wicking sweat away from your feet.
Despite the wear I've put on these and the very hot weather here in New Mexico, they still only smell like a somewhat new shoe. No hint of foot odor at all. The leather uppers also seem to breathe quite well as I've never found the Huckleberrys to be too hot or uncomfortable, despite the heat out here.
One thing that I really like about these shoes is that despite the steel shank, they feel so natural that they promote a mid-foot stride when traversing rough terrain and slopes, instead of the more typical heel-to-toe stride. There isn't a whole lot of cushioning in these, the sole being quite firm, but this only seems to make them more comfortable, at least to my feet as I prefer a more natural stride.
There are only a few things that I would like to see changed in a new version of these shoes.
One, the midsole EVA foam is exposed on the sides of the sole. This has lead to it becoming fairly chewed up, with chunks of the foam actually having been torn out by the rock around here. Having the Vibram sole wrap up and around this, covering the foam would improve the durability a great deal.
Two, the EVA midsole seems to lose it's cushioning fairly quickly, having compressed significantly in what I feel is a relatively short amount of time. This hasn't really caused me to wear them less as I still find the shoes to be very comfortable. I would suggest trying a different kind of foam. It's not a gross difference but it's noticeable in the following picture.
And thirdly, the rubber toe rand is developing some noticeable cracking, almost like it's drying out. Not sure why this is, but it does seem to be slightly stiffer as if the rubber has aged some and is losing flexibility. Again, a different rubber compound might be in order to get rid of this problem, although it appears to be mostly cosmetic.
This cracking is clearly noticeable in the following picture.
Oh, and I almost forgot. Underneath the insole is an exposed steel rivet that apparently holds together the footboard and the shank. This rivet has developed some surface rust but appears to be holding up well enough. I'd suggest that this rivet either be coated with a rust-preventative or be made from stainless steel or aluminum instead, in order to curtail any rusting issues from causing a structural failure.
Apart from these minor things, I can whole-heartedly recommend this shoe.
It has been an un-mitigated pleasure to wear, looks kinda sharpish and it has opened my eyes to Patagonia as a manufacturer of great footwear. I hope to try some of their other products in this category in the future and I expect to be very pleased!
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