Best Hiking Boots Ever!

I just wanted to give a shout-out to Lowa for producing the best pair of hiking boots I have yet to torture. In the last two years, I've blown out two pairs of Merrels. Not wanting another short-lived third pair, I started looking to other brands. I found the Lowa Zepher GTX on sale at REI a couple months ago, tried them on, then left the store empty-handed. I really liked them, but had brand-change issues (I had been really happy with Merrel). A couple more rough hikes and my Merrels were toast. Back to REI for the Lowas, now not on sale (but I had a handy 15% off coupon). First broke these in on an easy 6-miler in the Columbia River Gorge. SO COMFORTABLE! The higher ankle support was great, as I have a tendency to roll my left ankle, and the waterproof finish and GoreTex lining let me tromp thru streams with not so much as a water mark on the boots. I next took them east to go roaming around the Strawberry Wilderness and John Day Fossil Beds - 23 miles over four days. Still incredibly comfy and supportive. My feet aren't even tired at the end of the day! The miles on these boots are adding up quickly, and I'm looking forward to lots more. I'm not compensated in any way for posting this, but just thought I'd share with anyone out there looking for an awesome pair of boots.

In other news, had a disappointing trip to the North Cascades last weekend; rained out for two of our four days. Did get in a few hikes, and photos will be posted soon. This weekend its off to Olympic to hike the High Divide and Sol Duc Lakes loop. These are all being tracked for Backpacker.com, so look for GPS tracks to be posted shortly after.