Sometimes you might do a long, planned out, full day or even a several day hike across tough ground, other times you might do a fast paced low gear, session of trail walking. We’ve got the idea of walking the entire Cornish coast path and in the future, plan on doing long stretches of it over weeks at time. It would be amazing to know you’d seen every beach, bay, cove and inch of coast around the beautiful county.
On a sunny day like we have fortunately had many of recently, you might not have long enough to do an epic expedition but we have been using these times to do short fast burst of the coast path and get more and more of it ticked off. This fast trail walking style of hiking is a lot less gear dependent and you can get away with taking next to nothing except yourself and a bottle of water. The only piece of kit you really need to invest in is a good pair of walking shoes.
I’ve got some great boots but I didn’t have anything that was particularly light, good for hot weather or that you could really get some pace up in. That’s why I invested in the Keen Versatrail Hiking shoes just in time for summer. They are a high performance shoe that has been designed especially to be lightweight and help you tackle trails fast. I really do love these shoes and they will be getting a large amount of use over the coming summer months.
When you first put them on you will really notice the comfort that comes from the foam tongue and breathable mesh upper. They have a sort of elasticated lace system which give the shoes a firm grip on your feet whilst allowing for some freedom of movement – this really give them a custom-fit feel. The Versatrails are available in several colours, I opted for the green which I found bright and striking. The shoes have a bold, sporty appearance and look like something you can imagine a top athlete running in.
Although looks are important you can judge outdoor equipment on what it looks like. The comfort during and after a walk has got to be the judge when thinking about hiking shoes. Luckily, this is probably where the Versatrails excel the most. The have a full-length layer of cushioning which absorbs shock. The footbed is made of duel density of PU and has a molded midsole. All of this has been designed and anatomically engineered to provide excellent arch support and to cradle the natural shape of your foot.
If you’re after a pair of hiking shoes which you can walk all day in and still have your feet feel fresh at the end of the day, then I strongly recommend the Keen Versatrails. They’ve clearly been really intelligently designed to fit feet well and support them. Their mesh construction not only keeps them extremely light weight but also highly breathable. I really like their secure lacing system which gives you infinite possibilities to get the fit just perfect. On a hot summer day when you need to walk at pace, I can’t think of a better pair of shoes to wear.
