By: Blonde Two
I have decided to christen my new women’s Keen Terradora Ethos walking trainers, ‘The shoes I didn’t want to like’. I am not sure why, but the photos hadn’t really impressed me. As soon as I got them out of the box, however, I started to change my mind; okay, these were not the prettiest shoes ever but they looked comfortable and (as it was a very hot day) airy enough to make my feet happy. They were clearly related to the Keen Uneek sandal with its unusual stretchy cord design but had more substance to them and looked like something I could happily walk in.
When the heat is on and you want to get outside, it can be tricky to keep your feet cool. Sandals are great for air movement but, no matter how ingenious their design, can easily rub and are often slippery and awkward when wet. If you are wondering now why you would be walking around in wet sandals, you only have to think of campsite grass, rainy hill walks or rockpool adventures. I decided to test my new walking shoes out and took them to the beach for a paddle (a full immersion paddle) and then I went to the shops in them, they were soaking wet but as comfortable as they had been the first moment I had put them on.
I have since worn the Keen Terradora Ethos walking shoes to DofE camp. As anyone who knows anything about DofE will tell you, camp life of this kind can be hard on the feet over very long days but again their elastic, hug-your-foot design worked really well, didn’t cause even the slightest hint of a blister and were much cooler than a pair of trainers would have been. (You might be interested to note that for three days of hot weather walking on Exmoor I chose my Keen Terradora leather boots – light enough for summer walking but not suitable for mid-winter Dartmoor).
To sum up, the Women’s Keen Terradora Ethos is a comfortable and practical but not necessarily pretty walking shoe that is particularly suitable for camping, beach walking and shorter summer hikes. Its elastic design fits snugly to your foot (you may find you need a size bigger than usual) and remains comfortable against your skin even when it is wet. If you are looking for something between a walking trainer and a walking sandal, this may well be the shoe for you.
From time to time we Blondes are sent free outdoor products to field test and promote on social media. We will always be honest about our findings and any products we don’t keep for ourselves find their way into our expedition stores. Great for us, great for you and great for our youngsters!
