Kora Shola 230 Crew

Merino sheep all over the world are baa’ing a sigh of relief. For once it’s not them getting sheared with sharp objects. Yak wool is the new natural fiber in town and the Kora Shola 230 Crew ($145) is a technical baselayer that is made entirely of yak wool. I put this to good use hiking the Superior Hiking Trail over a long weekend as well as camping on the edge of the Boundary Waters in early October. Fortunately for me, it was cold and blustery with gale-force winds. I wore this under only a softshell windbreaker jacket and was amazed at how warm it kept me and its breathability. You will especially love how soft it feels against your skin and the amount of wearings you can get in before you start to smell like a yak. Full review coming soon to a Grit and Gear near you! Kora | $145

Fjallraven Keb Trousers

The Fjallraven Keb trousers are made from weighty G1000 fabric that is reinforced where you’re most likely to come into contact with rocks: The rear, front of legs, knees and inside the bottom of the legs. Despite all this reinforcement and heavier fabric, mobility is superb. I especially like the hem hooks on the legs that secure the legs to my boot laces à la gaiter-style and the wide, flat thigh pockets that are set directly on the front of the thigh instead of on the thighs—as if anyone needs more bulk added to their thighs. Should it start to drizzle on your hike? No worries. The Kebs are fully coated with Greenland Wax, a blend of beeswax and paraffin to resist drizzle. Fjallraven | $225

GORE R3 GORE-TEX Active Hooded Jacket

It’s brutally hard—impossible really—to condense the GORE® R3 GORE-TEX Active Hooded Jacket’s sheer amazinglyness (<<yes, it’s a real word now) in a snippet for this list. A full review is coming though. Until then, the high-level highlights will have to suffice. My first time using this jacket was the weekend of the Superior Hiking Trail in early October. I couldn’t have asked for better weather. It was either drizzling or raining non-stop all day and frosty, miserable gales blew from all directions. The non-GORE R3 GORE-TEX Active Hooded jacket-wearers of my group waxed endless poetic about the less-than-perfect hiking conditions. Me? I didn’t feel a thing. I’m always astounded at how GORE can produce a piece of gear so light and miniscule that works as brilliantly as it does in blocking wind and keeping one dry. Gorewear | $200

SOG Terminus XR Knife

The SOG Terminus XR is a lightweight (3.2 ounces) “EDC” knife that virtually disappears into your pocket but still inspires plenty of confidence on the trail. With a three-inch blade length and 7.2-inch overall length, it is just right. It travels very discreetly due to the deep-carry style and reversible pocket clip. The material is D2 allow, which was created for making the dies that stamped out metal parts for World War II aircraft. This means it is tough and very resistant to abrading – even against other metals. SOG | $70

LOWA Aerano GTX

The nimble and lightweight  LOWA Aerano GTX day hikers can’t be any more ideal for fall hiking, thanks to their Gore-Tex waterproof laminate and side ventilation outlets that allow foot sweat and other moisture to escape from the bottom. Fit and stability is outstanding and traction is very good. Although the lugs aren’t as aggressive as full-on hiking boot, they work well at shedding mud and debris. And wow, the comfort. These are boots that you won’t race to kick off at the end of the day or plunge your feet into a cold lake. LOWA | $210

DRYGUY Travel Dry DX

The DRYGYT Travel Dry DX is a shoe and boot dryer and warmer that dries and warms your shoes and boots after, say, a day of hiking that turns to rain. The reason we love this piece of gear so much is its portability. It plugs into an outlet at home, it plugs into your car, and it fits neatly into a carryon or daypack for when you travel. Brilliantly easy to use, too. Just put the fan piece that blows heated air in to your shoe and plug it into your home or car. DRYGUY | $40

Katadyn BeFree

The Katadyn BeFree is an ultra-lightweight and compact/collapsible water bottle with an integrated microfilter that allows you to filter water for drinking. The reason I love this so much for hiking is that it’s water filtration at its most nascent and basic core: Just unscrew the cap, dip the bottle into a lake or river, re-screw the cap and drink. The filtration process takes place with each suck or blast and filters the invisible fluvial zoo that is lake and river water. The container decreases in size, allowing more room in my pack. I’ve been using this since 2016 and not just for day hikes. I take it on travels where I’m staying in hotel rooms so I can filter hotel room tap water into something that is drinkable. I have yet to be admitted to the ER with “intestinal discomfort” from Cryptosporidium, Giardia, E-Coli and Salmonella. Yay Katadyn BeFree! Katadyn |$40

MSR DynaLock Explore Backcountry Poles

While the MSR DynaLock Explore Backcountry Poles are sturdy and versatile for hiking on just about any terrain or conditions, we love them most for their functionality in all seasons as well as their collapsibility. Sometimes on the trail, you need sticks. Other times you don’t. For the times that you don’t, they squish down to a size that is easily stashable in your day pack. The handles are comfortable, and with each strike, we can feel the lateral stiffness and durability. MSR | $100

Mystery Ranch Coulee 25 Backpack

Other than the fact that the Mystery Ranch Coulee 25 is a “kick-ass pack with easy access to your gear and perfect for a good, long day-hike with superb durability”—as stated by writer Erica–it doesn’t hurt that it’s a sharp-looking pack. For those fall-color day hikes, it holds all your necessary items like snacks, GORE R3 GORE-TEX Active Hooded Jacket, Katahdyn BeFree, MSR DynaLock Explore hiking sticks and your SOG Terminus XR knife. MysteryRanch | $169

The post The 9 Best Pieces of Gear for Fall Hiking appeared first on gritandgearonline.com.

What I Liked

Outstanding fit (as usual). For me this has always been an area that keeps me coming back to LOWA every time. My feet width runs between narrow and normal and I’ve had problems in the past with day hikers feeling too loosey-goosey. The LOWA Aerano GTX’s not only run true to size in the length department, they have a snug and comfortable width fit. The other nice part about LOWA boots is that they offer sizes for people with wide feet, too. Since it’s a hiking shoe, be sure to always go a half-size up from your normal size. I wear a 7.5 shoe but a size 8 in boots.

Incredible breathability: Summer in Minnesota this year has been an abyss of fiery hell and dripping moisture. With the Aerano GTX’s Nubuck leather uppers, I expected hot spots, blisters and feet bloated from suffocating sweat. As the Aerano GTX’s name implies, the secret ingredient is Gor-Tex SURROUND® Technology. This piece of Gore-Tex brilliance allows heat and sweat to escape from the bottom of the foot through the Gore-Tex waterproof laminate and through the side ventilation outlets, making them breathable and waterproof. So far this summer I have put on an estimated seventy-five miles in state parks, national parks and the ultimate test, an entire day walking around Oshkosh Air Show where the temperature well into the high eighties and the humidity was nothing short of oppressive. Socks, of course, help in this department. For best results wear a good quality merino wool sock that is breathable.

Waterproof-ness: “GTX” is code for “Gortex”. Allow me to clarify what waterproof means in a hiking boot. Can you walk into a knee-deep lake or river and emerge on the other side with dry feet? No. But if you’re hiking in humid conditions, pouring rain or schlorping through puddles your feet will stay dry. Should your feet do become wet, either from sweat or water seepage, the boot suddenly becomes a breeding ground for hotspots and blisters as your wet feet rub against the sides of the boots. This was never the case for me with the Aerano GTX’s.

Good traction: Simply put, the Aerano GTX has a tread pattern that delivers a nice grip on just about every surface and works well for shedding mud and debris. The lugs are not as aggressive as their beefier, trail-and-summit-crushing big sisters like the LOWA Mauria GTX or the Renegade GTX, but I found that the Aerano’s offered a highly-stable experience on a variety of trails with a outsole that feels, strangely enough, as stiff and sturdy as a full-on hiking boot.

Comfortable: At the end of the day I wasn’t dying to kick them off and plunge my feet into a cold lake. The toe box is neither wide nor small, it’s just right. Deeper inside, a soft and comfortable ATC Climate Control Footbed gently cradled my feet. Arch support is perfectly fine with the “factory-installed” footbed. If I am going on long hikes though I replace the footbed with some custom-molded ones because I have high arches.

Quality: Outstanding. They’re made in Europe (not China). Even the materials are sourced locally, the cows shot on site (I made the part about the cows up). Europeans have pretty high standards for hiking boots and LOWA represents that national pride in the art of bootmaking.

What I didn’t Like

I always wrack my brain when I get to this part of the review with LOWAs. I never like to leave this section empty because a thorough and objective product review means finding at least one thing to bitch about.

Since I’m at a loss for something constructive to say here I’ll just hit below the belt on the price tag. That whole “Handcrafted in Europe” and “materials sourced locally” bit? Comes at a price of $210. It’s high for a day hiker.

Final Thoughts

LOWA never scrimps on construction. Outsoles, tread and hardware are solid and durable and after all the miles I put on them, they show no signs of wear. Even my LOWA Mauria’s still look and feel the business after six years and hundreds of miles of abuse. It’s the reason I took them on my trip to Greenland despite having a pair of boots that are newer.

I’m finding with the LOWA Aerano GTX that they are following well in the footsteps of LOWA quality and design. In addition to feeling as stable as a full-on hiking boot, they offer plenty of stability, comfort, breathability and durability. These are hikers I’ll have for many years to come.

Nicely done, LOWA.

The post Lowa Aerano GTX Hiking Shoes Review appeared first on gritandgearonline.com.