Comments on: Montrail AT Plus Review

By: Bob Myers

Bob Myers — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 17:53:22 +0000

I bought a new pair of Montrail AT Plus Hiking Shoes at the end of May 2011. I really haven’t hiked all that much in them, but the sole of the right sole is already separating from the upper. What can I do? What kind of glue should I use? From the other comments, it seems that perhaps these shoes should come with a tube of seam sealer.

By: Jon Byington

Jon Byington — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 23:32:41 +0000

Wore these shoes to climb the Middle Teton in September 2010. They were great. The approach was through a lot of rough scramble. The toe box provided good protection and I had no traction/slippage issues. The stiffer sole also helped with foot fatigue at the end of the day running down the lower part of the end of the trail with loose rocks. I highly recommend these shoes and have had no problems.

By: WhyNot

WhyNot — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 19:26:57 +0000

Bought a pair of these in Damascus, VA (mile 469) while thru hiking the AT this spring. After 200 miles the sole separated at the toe. Had an exciting time on the rain slick rock surface of dragons tooth with duct tape holding my shoes together. Montrail replaced them in Daleville, VA. (mile 722) at no cost.
After 120 Miles (1 week) the soles on the new pair started separating. Waited an extra day In Waynesboro, VA (mile 856) to contact the factory. Customer support at Montrail suggested that I glue them with seam sealer until I could get to another outfitter that carried the shoes. The seam sealer worked until I left the trail at Harpers Ferry (mile 1005) so I never had them replaced.
I don’t know if this is a problem with all of these shoes or just the two pari that I tried, but if you buy this shoe, carry some seam sealer with you.

By: yappy

yappy — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 17:09:11 +0000

I have NO idea WHY they changed the Hardrock… it was a very VERY dumb thing to do. I used thm on thru hikes of the AT,CT, Wt and others. I wanted to use them on the AZT last yr but after I heard the horror stories from long distance hiking buddies of mine I refrained. I tried the Mnt masochist which were OK but not stellar. They only lasted about 400 miles. I am at a loss about trying another company but it sounds like I may have to.

By: Montrail

Montrail — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 16:15:34 +0000

Sorry to hear about your slippage. We haven’t heard much of this and confidently think it’s not a widespread issue. Perhaps the outsole on your shoe was made with a less than perfect batch of Gryptonite material. We apologize for that inconvenience. In the future if a shoe doesn’t perform the way you’d like, take it back to the retailer for a refund, as most good footwear dealers these days (and most Montrail dealers) guarantee the shoes they sell. We hope you continue to choose Montrail for your trail running and hiking needs.

By: broken elbow

broken elbow — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 02:13:53 +0000

To be generous I will start with the pros.
They fit almost great and seemed to have very good support.
cons. very hazerdous, more slippery than my best dress shoes. My trial run was miserable. It had rained for 30 seconds to a minute before I went out the door and then it got scary. I walked up the trail I hit hundreds of miles on every year and I was slipping on every hard surface I had set my feet on. I was miserable thinking about the money I spent for these shoes that I have been shopping around for and finally picked these. I stepped on a flat boulder (that had maybe a ten degree tilt to it) that I stood on many times before in many types of foot wear and just started to slide down it and could not stop without putting a hand down.
I am in east tennessee and it is a mild trail with rocks roots and packed dirt.
They compared nothing to the montrails I had before with the contragrip. Possibly the hard rock shoe….
When I went into the store my main request was a shoe with excellent grip, and I was hoping they still made the montrail I had before but it turns out that as I was told that columbia or somebody bought out montrail and the hard rock may have went down hill over the past years any how. Bummer however true that may be.
Well here is another 2 pros.
I had to go around a tree that had fell across my path by going 2 feet up the embankment in some packed mud and they seemed to have gripped most excellent and when I had gotten down to the creek and was walking on the dry river stones they seemed to grip quit well except for 2 or so stones that seem to want to throw my feet out like a skateboard.
Maybe they are like motorcycle tires and you have to break them in for 100 miles and scuff them up until the manufacturing oil wears out. Or maybe its like the highway and you shouldn’t ride your bike for the first ten minute of rain until the oil deposits are washed away and the micro lichen on the rocks and root have some sort of micro oil balls conspired to throw you and break your elbow.