Xero Shoes - Mesa Trail Series

I do everything in my minimalist sole shoes (Suavs) even running. The guy at the running shoe store laughed at me, I bought a pair of Altras, and returned them the next week. They might be zero drop and a wide toe box, but they�re still very cushiony. I like to feel what I�m walking/running on. The Suavs I�ve been wearing for 4 years have zero drop, minimalist sole, and knitted upper. They don�t have the wide toe box but they�re still very knitted upper let my feet flex and splay enough. I bought 1.5 sizes up from my regular size I should say. I�m on my 4th pair. Wear them every single day. I bought a pair of Xeros, and they�re fine, but honestly super stiff compared to the sole and uppers of the Suavs. And my Suavs don�t need tied every time.

Xero Mesa II are my favs! Never loved a shoe this much.

I dunno about y�all but I�ve had my prio�s and my mesa trails for years and like, theyre still as good as the day I bought them albeit more muddy

Yes. I have a pair of zero mesa trails. Definitely on the minimal side �feel the trail� type shoes. But I like the feedback I get on varying terrain. That said I�ve never done longer than a 3 day trip in them. Boots till have a place for me in the high alpine and occasional sno shoing but even then I also have a pair of on gore Tex runners for winter. Also have rock plate trail runners for running purposes , since the zeros do hurt with heavy impact. But still nice and nimble.

My wife and kids got me something very similar for Fathers Day 2014. Same color scheme and all. I�ve tried them all. If you like those, you�ll like the Xeros. I think I have four different styles and any of them would be decent for trails, but two pair have a little extra in the knobby department and they are fantastic for trails and everything else.

I had some bad nerve pain in my left foot to the point where I couldn't play 18. I switched to the Xero Mesa Trail and in 48 hours no more pain and since then consistently walk 18 without issue. The back is another story!

Or Mesa IIs, 3 oz lighter than the Scrambler Lows. I put a .5oz 3mm pad in each shoe for longer hikes to give the feet a bit easier time.

How has durability been for you with the Mesa 2�s? �Really happy with them for short hikes, but was wondering how they hold up for longer backpacking trips.�

Xero Mesa Trail - under 8oz & pack down to next to nothing. Since they can be used perfectly well on the road/treadmill too, are the only shoes I pack if I'm heading to mixed terrain running locales. Looks like their Scrambler Low is on sale right now too, might be a good option?

I have the Xero Mesa Trails and the Altra Lone Peaks, both with extensive use in wet conditions. The Xero's are my absolute go-to shoe. Added benefit being the lightweight and packable size.

Als jemand, der genau so eine lange Wanderung schon gemacht hat, kann ich alles voll und ganz unterschreiben. Nur bei den konkreten Modellen stehe ich pers�nlich mehr auf Barfu�-Trailrunner, wie Xero Mesatrail oder Terraflex.

The Mesa II's are super light, something like 8oz lighter than the Vivo Hydra ESC. I got spoiled by super light shoes and it's hard to wear anything else. now. So I'm a big Mesa fan. Also VFF V-Alphas, they are even lighter. For grip VFF are much better than shoes since you have toe movement to help you grip. Then sandals then shoes. The Mesas are slippery in some conditions which you learn to adapt to after awhile. I don't have the Hydras but I have their other ESC soles and those are grippier than the Mesas.

I�d recommend Xero trail runners if you are looking for that barefoot feeling but also getting some traction. They are very flexible and you can feel the ground and wrap your feet. But they also have enough grip that you won�t slide down a smooth rock. You can even remove the insole for an even more barefoot feeling.

If barefoot trailrunners are an option for you, I have the Xero Terraflex and Mesatrail. The first Terraflex held up about 1500km of hiking and 3000km cycling. Now they look very rugged and the outsole is pretty flat, but they are still in one piece and I still wear them occasionally in the garden or on construction yards.

I�ve worn Xero shoes for the past five years, and I love them. I wear the scrambler lows right now and they�re great. Mesa Trail II are excellent as well (and they make great yard work shoes after you wear em down disc Golfing). I got two-three seasons out of them each

I third the mesa trail II. Absolutely love em, but I have had a hard time finding them recently. Anyone know if they will keep making them?

I wear Danner Mountain Light II boots when it's cold or the weather sucks. When it's hot I wear zero drop trail shoes, Xero or Lems. Pros and cons to all of them. Sometimes I wear Jim Green boots as well if I don't need waterproof or lots of traction (Ranger boots). IMO, there is no 'one size fits all' shoe for hiking.

xero shoes are great IMO. mesa trail II comfortable, grippy, well vented. definitely not waterproof.

Recently got in to barefoot shoes and they seem perfect for onebag situations, went for a pair of xero mesa trail 2, superlightweight and perfect for hot and humid climates, will dry put easily too, good grip for trails and hiking and theyre grand for going anywhere in a city or town, I'm not going fancy restaurants so they'll do the job.

I am also a fan. I run regularly in my Prio Neos, and I just hiked the Salkantay trek in Peru in my Mesa 2s. Xeros fit so perfectly right away for me and never cause any rubbing or pain. Finding hiking shoes has been a struggle. No traditional boot brands fit me comfortably, so I gave up. The Xeros aren't great in deep mud unfortunately, I had to put shoe covers on for part of the trail one day. So far the shoes are holding up well. I'm an avid runner and hiker, so we will see... I haven't found any other barefoot shoe brand that fits me so perfectly, but there are a lot I haven't tried (Whitins, Vivos, and Altras don't work for sure). I can get the Xeros on sale online occasionally, so I don't normally pay more than $65-85 a pair.

The best thing for you is going to be very low- or zero-stack-height. In other words, barefoot shoes. Even with hypermobility, it's extremely difficult to roll an ankle in them. They will take a little bit of adjustment, but it's not difficult. You can get used to them just by wearing them around your normal walking day for a couple of weeks. They will also help your feet and ankles build strength, where shoes and boots that are designed to provide "support" and "stability" actually make them weaker. For thru hikes, I've found that adding a 4-6mm layer of well-designed foam inserts makes them comfortable enough for 20 mile days. North Sole Legacy would be my recommendation, but there are a lot of options out there. I use Vivobarefoot Tracker Forest ESCs in the winter when I need warmth and boot-height protection from snow. They're the best hiking boot I've ever worn, bar none. In the summer, I use Xero Mesa Trails, but there are a ton of great, lightweight barefoot trail-runner options with excellent grip and good ventilation out there. Just make sure you get something that lets your toes splay. Your ankles work better when your feet are allowed to work naturally.

I also walk about 60 miles a week so here's what I've seen. You should really try out the mesa trail II's, I tracked and put on 2,000+ miles over the course of 8 months (mostly concrete and paved but a good portion in the woods) before they just barely wore some forefoot lugs down. That's about 60 miles a week, and not gently miles. I also got a quick and free replacement from Xero and I'm enjoying my second pair. They are really grippy and durable for their price point. I've been bouncing around shoes for years and these are what I'm sticking with until further notice Also you might want to check out the barefoot African rangers. They look promising and are re-soleable

I love the Mesa trail but on longer more technical runs I go with the Altra king mt pretty low stack but has a rock plate. It�s a pretty great shoe

I only have about 200 miles on mine, but they look almost like new, very little sole wear and nothing coming loose. The only concern for longer hikes is if they are too hard on the feet with the minimal amount of cushioning and the amount of flex in the sole. The soles do have some stiffness to them, more than e.g. the Xero Speed Force, and I am using an extra liner to give a bit more cushion. I'll know more at the end of the summer..

I use trail running shoes like this sometimes (in addition to using them for actual trail running), especially when traveling and packing light. They will wear out faster (since they�re not intended for using on asphalt/concrete surfaces), but they are comfortable and work just fine for me. I can�t recommend specifics - I have been using Xero Mesa Trail and am planning to switch to Freet Calver because the Xero aren�t quite wide enough for me, but these are barefoot/minimalist shoes and not for everyone! Your best bet is probably to go to a running shoe store that sells trail shoes and try a few on. (Hopefully someone local to you might be able to suggest a specific store.)

My xero trail runner shoes have amazing grip and I've used them on a bunch of loose scree/scramble approaches with no issue, and prefer it over stiffer shoes basically always

My experience is that Xero Mesa Trail II is about as wide as Altra Lone Peak 9 regular width (Altra original fit wide is a good bit wider than anything Xero does). I think Altra Experience is narrower than Lone Peak - it�s Altra�s �standard� fit (instead of �original�). (I haven�t tried the Experience personally though, just read reviews - I have tried tried lone peak 9 in regular and wide width, and also xero mesa trail.) I�ve never had toenail issues (except when I bash my toes on things haha), but I use exclusively xero mesa trail II for trail. The limited cushioning as compared to Altra will take some getting used to (rocks can really hurt), but they work the best for me (I feel nimble and really stable in a way I don�t with taller shoes like Altra). When I�m doing mostly road or road and dry dirt, I swap between freet pace and xero hfs original (hfs 2 is too narrow for me), and sometimes Altra Escalante 4 when I�m running only on flat terrain (for some reason I�m prone to knee pain on long flat runs, and the extra cushion prevents it). Sorry - that�s lots of info and no solid advice, but maybe my experience can help? Altra has a good return policy, so I would probably order a pair of lone peaks and see how you like them (probably regular fit, not wide). If they�re too narrow, try the wide width. If they fit well but you want a closer to the ground feel, try mesa trail or vivobarefoot.

Agreed! My mesa Is brought me through a lot of running on trail, road, and track!

My Mesa 2 Xeros have great traction. I hiked the Salkantay trek in them and it rained a lot, so we were hiking on wet rocks. I never slipped even once. They have the same traction as my old expensive hiking boots but are 10x more comfortable.

Altra has the Superior and King Mtn, both of which have less cushioning and arch support than the Lone Peaks. The Superior 6 is my go-to right now. I train almost exclusively in Xero Prios. I also run in Mesa Trail IIs with a rock plate.

I started my minimalist journey in a pair of Xero Z-Treks. Loved them! Biggest problem was getting a little pebble in there once in a while! I ended up wearing socks most of the time since I have fairly sweaty feet (probably needed to adjust the straps). It was fun running in the snow though - just embracing the wet feet that were somehow surprisingly warm! I've been running in their Mesa Trail shoe for years now though and it's been nice. I tried the sandals again recently, but couldn't get the straps right to stop them from slipping, though I'll probably give them another go from time to time.

Xero Mesa Trail are what you want, and they�re excellent.

For daily and travel, I�m a barefoot shoe guy: the [Xero Mesa Trail II](https://xeroshoes.com/shop/shoes/mesa-trail-men/) in all black has been my jam for a while now. Low profile, light, narrow trail runners. For me, a go anywhere do anything shoe short of a suit.

Yes. I have a pair of zero mesa trails. Definitely on the minimal side �feel the trail� type shoes. But I like the feedback I get on varying terrain. That said I�ve never done longer than a 3 day trip in them. Boots till have a place for me in the high alpine and occasional sno shoing but even then I also have a pair of on gore Tex runners for winter. Also have rock plate trail runners for running purposes , since the zeros do hurt with heavy impact. But still nice and nimble.

I like my xero shoes, but they are zero rise. Zero rise shoes like xeros and altras will add strain to your achilles if you aren't used to them, so switch to them gradually and with caution. On the plus side I think minimal shoes like xeros are less prone to ankle twisting, and they feel more agile when the trail gets techy. For non-zero-rise shoes, I've liked every pair of scarpas I've owned. They fit my feet well and have good grip.

Xero Scrambler Lo and now Mesa Trail