These boots are really great. They are like Hummers for your feet. Absolutely bomb proof. Very comfy too. I don't know what the stink is about being hard to break in because I found them easy to break in. I have only warn them around 12 miles and they are feeling pretty darn good; better with each hike. No hot spots or blisters either in any of my hikes. These are the best boots I have had yet and I have had many. They have great traction, great lateral stablility and don't look too bad to boot (no pun intended). I only see them getting better with time. I have extremely wide flat feet with a very narrow heel. The heel of the boot holds me perfectly snug and there is ample toe room for my tootsies to wiggle. I am going to buy another pair just in case Montrail doesn't make this model anymore. They are really worth the moola. I give these 6 stars out of 5.

Customer Service

Great. Zappos was charging $263.00, but I found them cheaper elsewhere. They refunded me the difference + 10%! No shipping charges either!! Can't beat that. Customer support is way above ave. too I might add. Thanks Zappos.

Similar Products Used:

Montrail Vercors (very nice boot too, but I like Moraines even more), Lowa Banff, Lowa Scout, Scarpa Delta, Tecnica Stratus, Merrell Ridge (not sure)

The quality of these boots speak for them selfs. After a year of breaking them in they are very good boots. I have had merell and vasques. The moraines are by far the best. The soles are very stiff, with the great resoling aspect. The one piece construction keep your feet dry, having my feet submerged in water and still comming out dry. I highly recommend these boots to anyone that wishes to have a nice boot for many years to come. I would have to say the only negitive thing i can say about them is, a few times while driving to a trail sight they hurt the front of my right foot. This being due to holding my foot for the gas pedal. Which i do not beleive was ever meant to be a design feature.

Similar Products Used:

Merrell, Vasques, Timberland and montrail Cristallo

The quality of these boots speak for them selfs. After a year of breaking them in they are very good boots. I have had merell and vasques. The moraines are by far the best. The soles are very stiff, with the great resoling aspect. The one piece construction keep your feet dry, having my feet submerged in water and still comming out dry. I highly recommend these boots to anyone that wishes to have a nice boot for many years to come. I would have to say the only negitive thing i can say about them is, a few times while driving to a trail sight they hurt the front of my right foot. This being due to holding my foot for the gas pedal. Which i do not beleive was ever meant to be a design feature.

Similar Products Used:

Merrell, Vasques, Timberland and montrail Cristallo

I typically carry heavy loads (over 35 kgs) and was looking for a sturdy pair of boots. I personally don't like feeling them tiny pebblesstones under my feet when hiking and I can get rough on the leather when scrambling up the slopes. The morain does this - it protects my feet from the outside world almost completely, i.e, I can walk on almost anything without knowing what i'm walking on - in that sense this is good. Also - these boots never wear out. but.... I've been backpacking with these shoes for over 3 years now and the sole always feels as if I'm walking on stone. After a long day of hauling a heavy pack my feet are screaming, especially in teh heels. I've tried adding internal padding (soles) but you then get the unavoidable blisters from the sides since you've got less room in there. Day hikes are fine - but who needs sucha heavy for this. So unless you have a naturally padded foot (musclefathair? :)) I'd say try else-where. Vasque are comfortable but will wear out. IMO La-Sportiva have the best balance between comfort and Durability.

Similar Products Used:

Vasque, La-Sportiva

From a January, 2004 letter to Montrail: This letter is in regards to a pair of Montrail Moraine AT boots I purchased in the winter of 2000. I’d been eyeing them for months but due to a broken leg in early December, I was not able to wear boots for about two months. Once in an air cast, I stopped in at the local REI and tried on a pair. Though the Moraine’s were the first boots I’d worn in a month or so, I loved the way they felt. Once I was back on my feet, I purchased a pair and have worn them not only hiking and backpacking but on a daily basis as well. I’ve been amazed at their stability and durability over the years. It’s taken just about 4 years for the soles to begin falling off and the treads to have become completely worn down but it’s been an enjoyable 4 years. I know that these are serious boots meant for the most strenuous conditions, but I have enjoyed wearing them so much, they became my everyday boot. Activities have included a fair amount of walking, many a motorcycle adventure (they saved my left foot and ankle in a fall 2002 crash), getting around in the rough New England winters and of course the obligatory light hikes, heavy hikes, camping, and backpacking. Prior to purchasing from Montrail, I had a pair of Merrell’s and though they treated me well, after a year or so, they had worn completely out. Before that, I was purchasing cheap $60 boots that lasted 4-6 months before falling apart. I knew from the very beginning that the Moraine AT’s would be a heavy-duty long-term boot and the old adage holds true that you get what you pay for. Though you have some of the most expensive boots in the store, when you divide that cost over a period of 3-4 years and add in the enjoyment and comfort of wearing Montrail boots, it’s a no-brainer investment. Thank you for showing your commitment to your mission of “Creating and delivering the best fitting, high-performance, and high quality footwear for outdoor and endurance enthusiasts.” You’ve met and exceeded your mission!

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Merrell

These boots are great. I bought them with the expectations of doing multiday trips with heavy loads. I just bought them recently and took them on 2 dayhikes. The first hike, I got a small blister that could have been avoided with moleskin on a heel hotspot. The second trip, I carried about 25 lbs on my back on a rainy day. The trail was very slippery, but I felt the boots gripped incredibly well. And I didn't get any blisters at all, even without moleskin. The boots are a bit stiffer than I am used to, but are still very comfortable. I strongly recommend for anyone who wants a great boot.

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Vasque Sundowner II's

I bought these boots in January '01, and wore them on day hikes, etc. to break them in -- had no problem, and tried lots of sock variations. Just finished 8 days on the West Coast Trail. They stayed dry (amazing) and were extremely comfortable. I love the tongue construction so you can avoid gaiters much of the time as it doesn't allow pebbles and sand and mud to go down into the boot. Great soles - very stiff so you don't feel all the bumps along the trail, and yet still great flexibility over much different types of terrain -- tidal shelf, mud holes, loose sand and bouldering.

I think that it is difficult to get the boots done up tightly, and maybe that is why the other reviewers experienced heel problems. I found you really need to tie them in tight so your heel doesn't move around. I have a special system for tying them at the ankle - looping the lace up around two of the hooks at my ankle, rather than crisscrossing from each hook. Then I thread the lace back through the sides. Sorry it is hard to explain, but it really gives good leverage to tie it really tightly at the ankle and lock the heel in. When I get to the top hook I loop the lace going down instead of up, and criss cross back over all the hooks and tie up the boot at my ankle rather than at my shin. This really secures the heel. I also use a tool from my Swiss Army knife to pull the laces tight at the bottom of my foot to save my hands. But you could use a piece of skins material or whatever to save your hands.

I also think they are better with a thicker sock -- when I just wear a liner, or a light sock the socks tend to slip around. Anyhow, that is probably just a personal thing -- I like thicker socks with running shoes too!

Similar Products Used:

I have a pair of Merrell's and a pair of Columbia OmniTech, but they are for day hiking. Also have an old pair of Vasque GoreTex boots

Do yourself a favor and don't even think of buying these boots. I wish I had received such a warning before committing so much money on such a *terrible* pair of boots. As a backpacker who likes to seek out rocky, often snowy routes in the West, I was impressed by the sturdy tough look of the Montrails. I expected to break these boots in gradually over time; that's to be expected with chunky boots like these. However, after having tried to do so for over a year now, the only thing I have managed to do is break in my feet. The heel lock designed to keep your heel in place is particularly dreadful. Every time I wear them, my heel is torn to shredded wheat. Needless to say, I feel like a heel for having first shelled out $220 and also for putting myself through a backpacking nightmare for the last year. Blisters continue to crop up on the sides and top of my feet as well. I, having "tough" feet, and having used many pairs of boots, heavy-weights included, have never had trouble with blisters before. In addition, the weight of these boots is not well balanced. I often feel a lot of strain in my calves as though I am hauling around cinderblocks. On a positive note, writing this has inspired me to take my beef to the store that sold me these monstrosities and hopefully return them. Also, I hopefully have helped someone else avoid a similar mistake.

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None

I just returned from a 10-day hiking trip in Yosemite, 6 days of it backpacking. I bought these boots three months ago in anticipation of same trip. My heels look like a medium-size varmint gnawed on them for a couple of days. The pain in small toe (yes, only one) precluded my wearing anything but open-toed shoes to work today. I had problems in the breaking-in period with my heels blistering and worked with Wilderness Sports, where I bought them, as well as our newly-opened REI. I solved an arch discomfort issue with inserts but was unable to prevent blisters. THe only way I was able to get through my very strenuous trip was by using the new blister products from Band-Aid and Dr. Scholl. REI feels it is a sizing proglem, but the staff at Wilderness Sports insist that they are just very difficult to break in. For $225, I should not have had my trip so negatively affected by my feet. The boots are going back to Wilderness Sports. If they do not give me my money back or replace the boots, then I will contact Montrail. I feel these really are terrific boots, but may have gotten a bum pair.

Similar Products Used:

Vasque