I imagine the average person doesn’t think much about their hiking shoe purchases. I’d wager that a good percentage of people don’t even have hiking shoes. Being the active person and family that we are, I take my outdoor gear a little more seriously.

Added to that, I have slightly wide feet. Choosing shoes can be difficult, and to purchase these shoes I tried something different this time around. I ordered several sets of shoes from Zappos, and spent a few days walking around the house in each pair. The winning pair was this pair of Merrells, which came in a wide size.

Looking back over the years, these shoes have carried me on a wide variety of trails around Utah Valley as I explored valleys and ridges. After my little brother talked us into hiking the John Muir Trail in California the summer of 2013, these shoes carried me on all of my training hikes as well as the 240 miles on the John Muir Trail. Our pace was fast enough that I was sure to experience some foot discomfort no matter which pair of shoes I was wearing! They held up great, and I was grateful to have them. Among other places, these shoes have stood atop Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the lower 48 states.

These shoes left with us on an adventure that led to our current life of full-time Airstream travel. They have hiked trails in Virginia, Florida, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Washington, Oregon, Vancouver, Minnesota, Illinois, Nevada, and all over Utah.

I finally wore these shoes out, as they began to come apart in multiple non-repairable places. I replaced them 6 weeks ago, but kept them for this final shot. Here in the Alabama Hills in the shadow of Mount Whitney, I took a final picture to commemorate all the wonderful places these shoes carried me.

I wonder what adventures my next set will see?