Montrail D7 Shoes Owner Review

Andrew Henrichs

October 19, 2005

 

Biographical Information

Name:  Andrew Henrichs
Age:  24
Gender:  Male
Height:  6’ 2” (1.88 m)
Weight:  190 lb (86.2 kg)

Email address:  a_henrichs@yahoo.com           
City, State, Country:  Glenwood Springs, Colorado, USA

Backpacking Background

   Most of my backpacking has been in the mountains of Colorado and Wyoming, as well as the desert in the southwestern US.  I’ve gone winter camping several times, but I still prefer backpacking in the warmer months.  Most of my trips are 2-3 days, but I have taken several trips of 5-6 days.  This past summer, I was fortunate enough to have thru-hiked the 476 mile Colorado Trail over 35 days.  Recently, I have been leaning towards the lightweight side of the spectrum. 

 

Product Information

Manufacturer:   Montrail (www.montrail.com)

Year of manufacture:  2004
Listed weight:  2 lb / 907 g (pair of size 9 US)
Weight as delivered:  2 lb 8 oz / 1134 g (pair of size 15 US, yes 15)

US Sizes Available:  7-15 (mens) 5-11 (womens)

EUR Sizes Available:  40-49 (mens) 35.5-43 (womens)

MSRP:  $90.00 US

Product Information

These shoes can be viewed on Montrails website.  They can be found in the “Fusion” Category. 

 

Description:

Montrail D7s are lightweight approach shoes.  The upper material is a grey synthetic suede-like fabric which breathes well, but is not waterproof.  A rubber rand covers the toe and wraps around both sides of the forefoot, providing abrasion resistance.  There is also a patch of rubber behind the heel, wrapping slightly forwards.  There is a Montrail logo on this patch of rubber.  The shoes have orange accents along the side of the sole.  The inner material is also orange.  There is an orange pull loop located behind the heel.  They feature a waffle-patterned Vibram sole which grips very well on rock.  The laces feature reinforced eyelets, and extend almost down to the toes, allowing one to snug the shoe quite tight for technical rock climbing. 

 

  

Test locations:

  I’ve worn these shoes at elevations ranging from 4000 ft (1200 m) to 14420 ft (4395 m).  These shoes have taken me all across Colorado (literally) and into the deserts of southwestern Utah.  Temperatures I’ve experienced while wearing these shoes have ranged from over 95° F (35° C) down to 25° F (-4° C).  I’ve worn these shoes while hiking in the sun, rain, snow, wind, sleet, hail, and mud.  They’ve carried me across slickrock, through sandy washes, up loose talus slopes, across treacherous granite ridges, and up limestone and granite rock climbs. 

 

Fit: 

  I have big but narrow feet.  As a result it’s tough to find shoes that fit.  My heel is particularly narrow, which only compounds my problem.  These shoes are one of the best fitting pairs of shoes that I’ve every owned.  Thanks to the lacing extending so far down the toes, I’m able to snug up not only the toes, but also the heels.  The result is a great fitting shoe and very few foot problems. 

 

Description of One Trip:

I actually own two pairs of these shoes.  I’ve owned the first pair for about a year, and bought the second pair in June of 2005.  They quickly became my favorite shoes for hiking.  I wear them for nearly every day and overnight hike that I take.  I love them for climbing 14ers (peaks over 14,000 ft / 4267 m) in Colorado.  They bore me safely over an extremely exposed, unroped downclimb while traversing a ridge at 13000 ft (3960 m).  The Vibram soles grip extremely well and give me a lot of confidence in my footing.  They can be used for easier technical rock climbing, and I’ve found them to be quite adept at it.  The one complaint I have is that these shoes don’t edge well when used for rock climbing. 

The true test of these shoes came this past summer when I used them to thru-hike the 476 mile (766 km) Colorado Trail.  For the most part, they performed admirably.  My average pack weight was 40 lb (18 kg), although my pack weighed up to 60 lb (27 kg) after some resupplies.  Although the soles rightfully show signs of wear, they held up fantastically over the length of the trail.  Likewise, the outer material of the shoe proved to be very tough.  Over 500 miles (805 km) later and the outer shoe showed only minor signs of scuffing.  Although these shoes worked extremely well, there were a few areas I had some minor complaints.  When carrying a heavy pack and walking over rough terrain, I could definitely feel some rocks and branches through the sole of the shoe.  By the end of the journey, I had become used to this feeling and wasn't bothered by it.  Also, I question the durability of the inner material.  On the Colorado Trail pair, the material behind the heel began to break down within the first week.  By the time I finished, it looks as though a small animal has been chewing on the inner material of the heel in spots. 

These shoes are not waterproof, which was an initial concern while heading out on the Colorado Trail.  With the use of some lightweight gaiters, I found that I didn’t need these shoes to be waterproof.  While they most certainly got wet, they dried out fairly quickly.  Towards the end of the CT, I had three straight days of rain.  My shoes were absolutely soaked.  The sun finally broke through on the afternoon of the third day, just as I set up camp.  I left the shoes in the sun the rest of the day, and by the next morning, they were nearly dry.  I also hiked through a fair amount of mud on my CT trip.  I was very impressed with how quickly the mud began to dry and flake off of the shoe.  This is also one of the few pairs of hiking shoes I've owned where I did not replace the factory footbed.  It is comfortable and offers fairly good support to my slightly flat feet.  It is removable, which significantly aids drying when the shoes became wet. 

 

Summary:

  These are great shoes.  Not only are they fairly lightweight, they climb well, can bear a significant load, and provide good support.  I will continue to use them for lightweight hiking and/or backpacking trips.    

 

Pros:

Great fit

Excellent traction

Nimble shoes

 

Cons:

Some concerns about durability

Poor edging on technical climbs