I found these on sale and purchased them without even trying them on. The reason I didn't try them on was because the store was closing, but the reason I purchased them was because they're similar to what I'd been looking to buy for months and because I'd had a previous, positive experience with
Columbia shoes. After trying them on at home, I was really glad that I jumped on them when I did. Like my other pair of
Columbia shoes, these are very comfortable, fit great and, hopefully, are constructed very well. I've read a couple of reviews saying they were too small, but I buy a lot of
shoes and I think these run very true to size (very much like NB 564
shoes). The toe box even seems wider then normal, which is something I always appreciate, so I don't understand the review that said it's small. These are not a hiking shoe, which typically does have a wider toe box for heavy socks, but it's wider then most trail running
shoes. They're really comfortable, and because they have so much cushioning, I can understand why some might worry about them wearing out soon. I, however, expect them to last a long time, because the construction quality of my last
Columbia shoe was very high and I expect these to be, as well. As for the expensive alternatives, I have a couple of pairs of Tevas and some Merrell
shoes and I think I'll like these much better.
