Patagonia Men's Drifter A/C Hiking Shoe

Unlike many of the urban "hiking boots" at outlets today, the Patagonia Drifter is a solid performing true hiking shoe, very rugged and well built. Double and triple stitching in the right spots, heel pull that is well anchored and will not come loose. The toe box is roomy for a D-width shoe but not overly so, just perfect in terms of being snug but still room to breathe...after all they are named the Drifter A/C for a reason. Tough leather (some may call it suede) on the outter with nylon in the right spots for venting/breathing, these are very nice summer shoes but plenty warm enough for mid-30's and warmer weather. Four metal eyelets at the top of the shoe but all other lace retainers are nylon (non-metal) having owned five pairs of these shoes I can verify that although I initially doubted the toughness of the nylon lace eyelet system I have yet to rip through one in more than three years of use on five different pairs. Some reviews have indicated that the knobs on the vibram soles tend to peel off but that has not been my experience, all of the soles on my Drifters have held together very well and they have been through some rather tough abuse on three continents in extremely tough terrain. Of note, I have owned other hiking shoes with vibram outsoles that have been slippery when wet but these are as good as they get, they simply do not slide on wet surfaces and have great traction. Suppose one ding would be the aggressive traction on the sole does collect mud and once dried the mud can be a little difficult to clean out, but hey they're hiking shoes...if you only hike concrete then buy an urbanite boot as you will not grasp the full extent of what the Drifter has to offer. The single best feature of these shoes is the built-in shank, something that has become highly overlooked in quality footwear recently. The shank allows you to be on your feet all day but will not make your feet sore from continuous flexing that often accompanies non-shanked boots. Even the shoe laces are rock solid, still on my 1st pair of laces on a pair of shoes that are three years old and they're not even close to being worn through. Five stars because they don't have six...

On a Brannock device my feet measure exactly 12M. I like the style and sole traction of these Patagonias but my big toe is pinched at the front. 13M's are way too big, they feel like clown shoes, 12.5M is not available. It's a great shoe but the size/shape doesn't work for me.

Great day hiking shoe, although I noticed that it seemed to be keep the heat in a little more, even more than my standard hiking boot. It has excellent traction though with the Vibram soles. I hiked up some steep slick rock in southern Utah in the pouring rain and these shoes didn't slip at all, gave me confidence to keep climbing. These were also very comfortable and easy to break in. The toe box is definitely a little more narrow than say my Keen shoes, but I did not get any blisters or hot spots. I would recommend the shoe.

I wanted a low-cut hiker, not a boot. Boots are not as comfortable and most boots offer no real protection for your ankle, anyway. But I weigh over180 and carrying a day pack and some camera gear puts me over 200. So the shoe needs some structure, some rigidity. It has to resist bending and twisting to rptect your feet on enevern surfaces while carrying a pack, and many comfortable shoes do not. But structured shoes tend not to be as comfortable. They can be hard and stiff. This shoe strikes a very good balance between structure and comfort. It is as structured or more than a Merrel Chameleon, but much more comfortable. It isn't as soft and comfy as a Moab, but that shoe has no structure to speak of. The Drifter has very good cushioning in the heel and the flex point up front hits my foot very comfortably. The heel is snug enough, with good room up front to let my foot move and my toes spread out under a load. Nothing rubs or feels too tight. Everything feels good while still getting way more than average structure in a low cut hiker with excellent traction. Everybody's foot is a little different, so no shoe fits everyone. But if you want or need some structure but still want above average comfort, this shoes should be on your list for consideration. Update: Wore these shoes for many hikes during a 3 week trip to the southwest. I usually carried 15-20 pounds of camera and other gear in a day pack. This included rocky, sandy, desert, mountain, and wet terrain. We did many miles on Utah slickrock, often in a rain or drizzle. Traction was outstanding, as was comfort. Never had a blister or hot spot, not so much as a rub. The shoes were so comfortable that when I wasn't hiking I was still wearing them. I can't say anything bad about them.

This is the first pair of Patagonia shoes I have ever bought and given the relatively high price of the shoes I had great expectations. ZI wore them for maybe 15 or so hikes and noticed that the pieces of the soles started coming off. I tried to glue the pieces back inlace but it just didn't work and besides the soles continued to deteriorate. Merrill makes a much better hiking shoe and I wonder why I spent the big bucks on these Patagonia when the Merrill Moab Ventilator is by far the superior hiking shoe -- and less money too. Buyer beware! I should have returned them but since I wore them for my hikes, I felt obligated to just take the loss and report on the shoe's quality issue.

I tend to find one pair of shoes that I really like and then wear them for almost everything. I'm on my feet all day and I bought these to replace a pair of Merrell Moab GoreTex lows that I wore until the vibram soles were almost worn smooth. These appear to be every bit the quality I had hoped for when I ordered them and they look like they will be worthy successors. Other reviews commented on these being on the wide side and I found that to be accurate. For me that's a good thing. I wear wool socks year round and a 12.5 would have fit me perfectly, but that wasn't available so I went with the 13. It's roomy even with the heavier socks. I also have a relatively high arch and these handle that comfortably as well. At first there was an odd high spot along the outside edge of the insole, just opposite the arch, but that has gradually molded to fit my foot after 3 weeks of wear. The heel cup is on the wide side, even with the heavier socks and I have a fairly average heel (not particularly narrow or wide). The soles are every bit as grippy and secure as other reviews have noted. They even grip well on wet concrete. So far I've given them 3 weeks of all day wear on concrete, grass, gravel, mud and tile. The serious treads even work well for me on the bearclaw pedals on my mountain bike during my daily commute. At this point, I am very happy with these AC Drifters feel like I'll be wearing these as long as the Merrells I had previously. Now I'm starting to look at possibly getting another pair in the waterproof version.

These shoes were/are comfortable right out of the box. I had my father try them on, he bought a pair that day. Now he's telling everyone how much he loves them. They aren't waterproof at all. This for me is a buzz killer, but I will wear them for dry days to be sure. The foot bed is nice, really nice. They have a soft feel like tennis shoes, but are sturdy like a boot. I did add an arch support but I need that personally. These fit as expected and are very comfortable.

Over the past several years I've worn the Drifter 1.0 (all leather). I've had two pairs. They fit perfectly. Decided to give these a try and discovered they are near a whole size smaller.

Ich kannte Patagonia bisher noch nicht, aber dieser Schuh hat mich ueberzeugt. Sehr gute Passform, optimaler Sitz im Schuhbett und unvergleichbarer Komfort. Ein kleines Minus, aber eigentlich nicht der Rede wert: Ich habe die Schuhe in Gr.45.5 bestellt aber in Gr. 45 erhalten. Er passt trotzdem sehr gut, faellt also dementsprechend eher groesser aus. Ich muss die Schuhe allerdings noch auf einer laengeren Tour testen.

Es ist schon mein zweiter Patagoniaschuh den ich mir gekauft habe, er ist ein idealer Schuh für warme Aussentemperaturen, also Wanderungen bei Wärme. Wasserdicht ist er natürlich nicht. Einziges Problem bei diesen Modellen mit den groben Stollen ist die begrenzte Haltbarkeit der Sohlen. Die groben Stollen sind nach zwei Jahren abgelaufen, ich muß den Schuh leider entsorgen, obwohl er ansonsten noch in Ordnung wäre. Mit dem anderen Modell mit den gleichem Sohlenaufbau ist es mir genau so gegangen, nach 3 Jahren ist die Sohle am Ende. Ich habe die Schuhe für je ca. 70 Euro gekauft, ist also in Ordnung, zur Zeit werden die Schuhe für über 140 Euro angeboten, also viel zu viel für eine recht kurze Haltbarkeit wie ich meine, also Vorsicht. Ansonsten ist es ein Top Schuh in Sachen Qualität, Stabilität und Bequemlichkeit.

Ich habe mir den Patagonia Drifter ac vor etwa 4 Wochen gekauft. Er sollte mich auf meinen Wanderungen in den Dolomiten begleiten. Ich habe ihn gewählt, weil er mir optisch gefällt und einen luftigen Eindruck machte ohne dabei instabil zu wirken. Da ich immer etwas zu warme Füße habe und bei den warmen Sommertemperaturen immer sehr schwitze, kam mir dieses Modell ganz gelegen. Der Preis erschien mir auch in Ordnung zu sein. Nach dem Auspacken habe ich den Schuh gleich ausprobiert. Er trägt sich angenehm und hat mir auch auf langen Wanderungen (10 Stunden) keine Probleme bereitet. Die Passform ist für meinen Fuß (Spreiz- und Senkfuß, wie so viele) angenehm. Die Zehen haben genug Platz, nichts drückt. Die Durchlüftung ist in Ordnung. Ich habe nicht übermäßig geschwitzt. Die Sohle hat auf Wanderwegen ordentlichen Grip. Die Verarbeitung des Schuhs ist hoffentlich für eine lange Lebensdauer ausgelegt. Bisher bereitet mir nur die Sohle etwas Sorgen. Die Belastungen für den Schuh durch die Dolomiten mit ihren scharfkantigen Steinen und Klettersteigen sind offenbar nichts für die Sohle. Ein paar Stollen sind bereits herausgebrochen. Mal sehen, wie lange das noch gutgeht. Ich werde den Schuh in Zukunft nur für einfache Wanderungen ohne Felskontakt nutzen. Dafür ist er aus meiner Sicht perfekt.