I can think of one word to best describe the Hoka One One Stinson ATR 4 Trailrunners - Plush! They have a ton of cushion. These shoes were recommended by my podiatrist. You can tell from the picture below that they have a much higher stack height of cushion than your typical running shoe.
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| Hoka Stinson ATR 4 |
I had been suffering from plantar fasciitis for months. He explained that the typical mass market running and hiking shoes have a very high heel-to-toe drop (my Nike Pegasus that I had been wearing for many years are 12mm), and that I needed to start training my feet to get back to the more natural way of walking which would be NO heel-to-toe drop. Humans were designed to walk and run flat footed and wearing shoes with a high drop is like walking (or hiking) in high-heels. The Hoka Stinson ATR 4 has a 5 millimeter drop so, less than half the typical running shoe. There are some brands out there, particularly Altra, that offer a zero drop and that is the goal, but my podiatrist wanted me to make the transition using the Hokas first to give my feet a chance to adapt and prevent injury. The theory is that once my feet adapt to the more natural walking gait in zero drop shoes, my plantar fasciitis will stop recurring. No more searching for expensive shoe inserts or trips to the doctor for cortisone shots...!
I normally wear waterproof hiking shoes from Northface when we go on our trips to Europe. This past trip to Italy, I took both but the Northface shoes stayed in my back pack. Had I known I could get by just fine with only the trail runners, I would have left the hiking shoes behind and saved 3 pounds of weight in my pack! The Hoka's only weigh 1.5 pounds. I believe on the next trip I will replace the extra pair of shoes in my pack with a pair of Croc's which weigh less than a pound combined.
So, how did they perform on a 5 week trip through Italy? Nearly perfectly. They are supremely comfortable as walking shoes. The combined effect of massive cushion and a wider than normal sole made walking on cobblestones and all the other hard surfaces the Italians pave their streets and sidewalks with a non-issue. You may be able to tell from the photo below that these shoes have wider than normal soles in the heel area for stability and the fore foot is shaped more like the natural shape of the foot than most running shoes.
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| A wide heel and an ample toe box make for a great hiking shoe. |
They are quite breathable and I never had sweaty feet or blisters and we averaged 10 miles a day. The times I did get wet feet from walking in rain, they dried out quickly overnight. In fact, since I've been back I wore them on a job recently in a torrential downpour that caused flooding at my customer's facility. I had no choice but to walk through a puddle up to my ankles in the morning. Amazingly, by the time I got back to the hotel that evening, my shoes, socks, and feet were totally dry!
I've been wearing this pair since August and I have accumulated far more than the 500 miles running shoes typically should be replaced at. They are just now beginning to feel as though the cushion is spent and I'm probably due for a new pair but structurally, these shoes have held up fine. The uppers and soles still have plenty of miles left in them.
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| Dirty but still functional |
There has been a trend among thru-hikers lately to use trail runners instead of hiking boots. If I was doing the Camino de Santiago, or the John Muir Trail, I wouldn't hesitate to wear the Hoka Stinson ATR 4.
How would I rate these shoes for vacation travel?
Pros:
1. Supremely comfortable and cushioned.
2. Plenty breathable
3. Durable
4. Cobblestone compliant
5. Blister free hiking
6. Lightweight
Cons:
1. Not good for smooth wet surfaces
2. A little on the expensive side. They normally retail for $160 but we found them at REI on sale for $130. About what a top-of-the-line running shoe typically costs.
Final verdict: absolutely vacation worthy.
