Reviews > Footwear > Sandals > Keen Venice > Kathryn Doiron > Initial Report

Keen Venice Sandals - Initial Report

Product Information:

The Keen Venice sandal is billed as a trail sandal. It has a sturdy rubberized sole with a leather covering for the insole. The straps have a leather facing and a soft, black, stretchy material on the underside. The rubber of the sole comes up over the toe to provide a toe cap. The sandals are laced with shock cord with a toggle at the top. There are two finger loops to make pulling the sandals on easier, on located at the back of the heel and the other located at the top of the tongue. Both finger loops are made of webbing and are double sewn into the leather of the sandal.

I have wide and large feet as such, I chose the men's sizing as I have found that men's footwear is in general, a little wider. I found that the 9 1/2 gave me a good balance between being wide enough in the toe and allowing some sliding space. The leather straps are not firmly sewn to each other, but rather are held in place by a stretchy material. This allows me to tighten the sandal to a comfortable fit but still have some give to the straps. I can also pull the sandals on and off without having to loosen the shockcord too much. After wearing the sandals to and from work, I have noticed that my winter soft feet are a little tender where the ankle straps rub. I have also noticed that the ankle straps may be a little high or I have low ankles as the straps sometimes hit my ankle causing a little tenderness. I have not noticed any highly abrasive points, and I find the insole to be comfortable. The insole has little in the way of form fitting, there is a suggestion of arch support but there is no toe ridge.

Having worn Keen sandals before, I expected the sole and overall feel of the Venice sandals to be similar. The impression I got from the website of the Keen Venice was that of a much more open sandal that would prevent heat and sweat build-up but might allow more rocks and debris to easily enter the sandal. The openness of the Keen Venice was more than I expected from looking at the pictures. I wonder if the open frame-work of the sandal is a good middle-ground between good air flow and debris repellant.

I plan on wearing these on my Sunday morning hikes and all extended, overnight trips. I will also be wearing them as often as possible, either going to work or on kayaking trips. I will look into how comfortable they are and if the open design helps prevent sweaty feet. I will look at how much debris the frame-work lets in and how hard it is to kick debris out with the closed toe cap. I am especially interested in how well the soles will grip rocks either under dry, dusty conditions or under wet conditions. I will look into how well the straps keep the sandal held to my foot without losing any toes, and while allowing some movement. I will look into how well the sandals protect my feet from trail debris and twigs. I am interested to see if the fit will feel different once I have extra weight on my back. I will look to see if a load makes a difference. I will look into how easily washable the sandals are and how well they hold up to washing. I do not know if the sandals will require a machine washing at any point over the test period but if so, I will look into how well they held up through the process. In general, I will look into how well the sandals fit, how well they perform on the trail and comfortable I find them.

Estimated Field Conditions:

Most of my overnight camping will take place in the White Mountains in New Hampshire. I have a few trips planned that will include an extended trip to the top of Mt. Washington, at 6000 ft (1829 m). Expected temperatures can be anywhere from 10 to 70 F (-12 to 20 C) depending on season and elevation. Weather on Mount Washington is very unpredictable. Expected weather conditions in the White Mountains in the spring can be from wintery to springlike, rainy or snowy, with driving winds depending on elevation. Depending on the trail I chose, it may be relatively easy or steep and rocky.

I have a trek planned into the 100-mile (160 km) wilderness in Maine for mid-summer. I expect the weather to be around 40 to 70 F (4 to 21 C) and wet with lots of bugs. This would be a 10 day trip and any equipment I bring would see lots of hard use. Altitude over the 100-mile (160 km) wilderness varies from just above sea-level to just under 4000 ft (1220 m) with a final summit of 5200 ft (1585 m) on Katahdin. I expect the trails to be relatively well traveled but to be very rough and unimproved. I also expect to encounter at least 3 - 5 stream crossings if not more as Maine does not believe in building bridges. This will give me ample opportunities to looking into wet crossings. I will also see how well wet sandals perform and how fast and well they dry.

I also have a weekend car camping trip planned for Mount Greylock in Massachusetts in July. I expect the weather to be around 60 to 85 F (15 to 30 C) and mild with some chance of rain. Atiltude gain over this trip would be from about 2500 - 3491 ft (762 - 1064 m). I expect the trials to be relativey well traveled and easy hiking with some rough areas.


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Reviews > Footwear > Sandals > Keen Venice > Kathryn Doiron > Initial Report