Adventure seeking is what fuels my soul. What’s just as important as traveling and seeking out these adventures is the footwear I choose. I’ve seen many people turning around from hiking mountains and on trails because of improper footwear. I tend to choose bulky hiking boots to wear when I seek to summit mountains, but I had nothing on my shoe rack that fit the description of a shoe I could wear off the hiking trails. I wanted a shoe I could wear to pick my daughter up at school and walk simple trails with her afterwards. I needed something I could walk my dog around the neighborhood trails. I also wanted something I could paddleboard wearing or cross streams and waterfalls in without worrying they would be waterlogged for days.
I finally found the perfect shoe in Aleader. I had the opportunity to test out their XDRAIN CLASSIC KNIT WATER SHOE when we took a trip to Michigan to visit my in-laws this September. The shoes were light and fit easily into my carry-on bag so I didn’t have to worry about weighing down my luggage. We spend a lot of time on the lake when we visit Michigan so it was the perfect opportunity to see how these shoes held up. They dry quick so I was able to wear them on the jet ski or taking a sunset boat ride and still wear them home for dinner without having to change shoes. I was worried about slipping on the dock with how light the shoes were, but the treads hold up nicely and I never felt as if I was going to fall.
Unfortunately, we don’t live in Michigan so I’m not on the water all the time as I’d like to be. I was curious how these shoes would hold up when we traveled back to Colorado and hit the hiking trails around town. We adventured to a popular canyon which was a mix of hiking on rock and sand. My daughter loves to climb rocks in this area so I chased after her to truly test out the grippy soles on my Aleader shoes. Sand isn’t the easiest thing to hike on, but even with the little air holes in the shoes I found that they didn’t fill with dirt or debris. There are many times I love to hike in sandals for how light weight they are, but I don’t love getting rocks in in-between my feet and the shoe or stubbing my toe on obstacles. I found the Xdrain technology allowed for maximum water drainage on the lake but kept my feet nice and dry on the trails. This shoe is the perfect transition for my busy lifestyle from sand to sea!
My husband and I recently moved from the busy city life of Denver to a more relaxed pace on the Western Slope in Grand Junction, Colorado. When we were moving I donated so many pairs of shoes that I had hidden on a shelf that I never wore anymore. I realized I never wore those shoes because they weren’t versatile with my lifestyle. When we travel I don’t like having to take several different types of shoes and when I backpack I really only want the ones on my feet and ones to wear around the campsite. I really wish I had these last fall when we were backpacking Havasupai as these would have been the perfect shoes for all the stream crossings.
My Aleader kicks got one final adventure this weekend when we ventured to the high country for some fall foliage scouting. I wore these shoes while we walked around the aspen groves and even though the ground was wet from the overnight storm, my feel stayed dry. I found they worked well with socks for when I needed a little more protection when the air was cooler in the morning.
Life is full of travel and adventure and there’s endless potential for exploring. I am so happy I was able to simplify my life and find a brand of shoe that allows me to transition from one activity to the next. They also carry men’s and kid’s sizes as well so I’m excited to order some for my daughter and husband so their feet can be just as happy on our adventures as mine are. Use my code YOGIMAGEE15 for 15% off your pair of XDRAIN CLASSIC KNIT WATER SHOES and see how well they pair with your next trip to the great outdoors. Pro-tip, I’ll often take the soles out and use a hair dryer to dry them out if I’ve been playing in the water and want them to dry more quickly.
Happy Adventure Seeking!
Natalie Magee aka @yogimagee
No comments:
Post a Comment