Posts Tagged Keen
Keen Whisper Water Sandals for Kids
Hey, how come Mom and Dad get all the cool shoes for playing in the water?
Well, they don’t outgrow them so fast, for one thing. These Keen Whisper sandals, like miniature adult versions, come in at a miniaturized price too though: they list for $45. If he or she can make it through a season or two of fun with them, that’s bearable.
My daughter has two pairs of shoes like this: a private label brand pair from a big box store and these Whisper ones. There was a $14 dollar difference in price, but these feel far superior. There’s a stiffer, non-marking sole, a footbed that feels like it won’t squish down to nothing in two weeks, and a nice lace adjustment system with a cinch that works well to ensure a good fit. The construction feels solid and the strap system works well, plus there’s a tab loop on the back for pulling them on.
Being sandals you can wear in the water, naturally they dry quickly and feel good dry or wet. The two-layer construction feels good against the skin. So she says anyway—there hasn’t been any whining.
My daughter has given these a good workout in normal circumstances just playing around as a kid, avoiding any banged toes with the rubber toe guard. But she also wore them on a kayaking outing we took lately. She skipped around the surf and scaled wet rocks with them with ease. They still look good and haven’t gotten stinky.
After they were dry again, which took a couple hours in the sun, she could romp around on land with them again. They’re sturdy enough for trail hiking or kicking a ball around. So if you were packing for a trip, you could definitely get double duty from these.
We’ve got plenty of shoe reviews from this company on Practical Travel Gear because Keen Footwear is a quality brand that outperforms with a lot of different styles. They’ve got a good attitude about the whole work/play balance thing and they support a cause that’s near and dear to our hearts: more recess! It’s hard to lay out a lot of money for kids’ shoes, but these will outperform the cheapies for not a whole lot more.
Get the Keen Whisper sandals at Backcountry.com or Altrec.com.
See more travel shoes reviews or more kids and family gear.
Posted by Tim L. in Adventure Gear, Kids and Family on August 24th, 2011
Keen Timmons Slip-on Travel Shoes
As many an experienced traveler will tell you, loafers make a lot of sense on airport days. Slip off, slip on as you go through all those airport security gauntlets. Of course the same can be true anytime you want shoes you can slip on and off quickly—like when you’re traveling in Korea or Japan.
These Timmons Slip-on shoes from Keen Footwear are comfortable and attractive, looking fine with no socks and a pair of shorts or a nice pair of summer slacks and a polo shirt. With nubuck leather uppers and a boat shoe type sole, these are good double-duty shoes for travel: important in these times of onerous baggage fees from most U.S. and European carriers. You can wear these out the door to the airport and then through most of your trip. (And for all those haters of the signature Keen toe protector, these don’t have one.)
In terms of features, the “natural gum rubber” sole is a nice eco nod and the memory foam footbed makes these—like most Keen Footwear models having it—extremely comfortable for long periods. The shoes conform to your feet instead of your feet having to conform to the shoes. Elastic tabs on each side of the tongue provide more flexibility. I’ve done several days of sightseeing in these and had no aching feet at the end.
These are not the lightest shoes around: leather, real rubber, and thick cushy footbeds make them more about comfort than packing weight, so better to wear these on travel days than to pack them. They come with a one-year warranty, though I’ve never managed to wear out a pair of Keens and these feel especially strong and well-made.
These Timmons slip-ons sell for $85 as I’m writing this and come in the tan color you see here and a grayish version. Check your local retailer carrying Keens, follow this Amazon link, or get them by doing a search at Altrec.com or Backcountry.
* See more travel shoes reviews or more from Keen Footwear.
Posted by Tim L. in General Gear, Travel Light on August 10th, 2011
Keen Voyageur Hikers
I’ve said it before, I really do test out all the gear I get for review. That’s why during the last window of sunshine, I was stomping around in a muddy creek not far from my house. That day I walked five miles in a pair of Keen Voyageur Hikers. My hope was that they’d leave my feet content enough to warrant packing them for an upcoming hiking trip in the Austrian alps. The verdict? Oh, so close.
I’ll admit to a bit of skepticism, the Keen sandals that everyone is so, uh, keen on (sorry) have never fit my feet properly. I wasn’t sure that these would either — I was pleasantly surprised. As always, ordering clothing or shoes on line is a bit tricky — fit seems to differ wildly between brands. These hikers were true to fit, the 8 was indeed an 8, the fit was perfect. (Note that the Keen site says they run about a half size small, I didn’t find that to be true.)
I was surprised to learn that the Voyageur hikers are not waterproof — this seems like an oversight to me, though in my stomping around through muddy creeks and on the edge of Puget Sound my feet stayed dry. This lighter weight boot is designed for wicking — meaning the moisture is meant to move out of your shoe — it’s more of a hot weather hiker than a creek crosser.
Keen’s Voyageur Hikers come in a low and a mid height. I opted for mid for the extra ankle support, something I appreciated in the scrambling – can’t find the trail head — oops are we lost? — part of my test hike. Fatigue after long walks means my ankles sometimes give out, too, so it’s worth a bigger boot with a little extra weight to save myself from a sprain. The lacing is easily adjustable for a secure fit, too; that’s probably part of why the fit is so solid.
Because the Voyageur is made for warm weather hiking, the uppers are a mix of fabric and leather. This means you get a little color in your earth toned hiker, and hey, that’s kind of cute. That fabric, however, could be tougher, the tongue on my pair started to fray after a few days of city wear and that one long hike. That’s too soon. Keen does have a 30 day “no questions asked” return policy.
As for how the hikers felt on the trail, they were great, just great. I walked on a rocky beach, in sand, on a moss covered tree, in a muddy creek, along a slippery boardwalk… You name it, that big hike covered the range of terrain and the soles were grippy and solid on every surface. My feet were comfortable the whole time, and they weren’t sweaty or damp when I took the boots off at the end of the walk. (Mind you, I was also wearing really good socks.)
Here’s what I want: I want this boot in a waterproof model. And I want it to not show the early wear and tear on the materials. The Voyageur is so trail friendly and such a good fit for my feet that I was genuinely disappointed to find it anything less than perfect. Once more — Oh, SO close.
Keen makes the Voyageur for men or women, in a low or mid height version and in a few different colors. The mid costs $110 directly from Keen, or check prices on Altrec.com and on Backcountry.com.
Interested in other trail shoes? Tim reviewed the Viper, here and the Boulder from Wenger, here. (And if you need to waterproof your hiking boots that didn’t come that way to start, check out our review of products from Nikwax.)
Posted by Pam in Adventure Gear, General Gear on June 10th, 2011
Keen Denver Shoes for Any City Streets
Here at Practical Travel Gear, we’ve made no secret of our love for Keen Footwear shoes. They’re consistently rugged, well-made, and comfortable—across sandals, shoes, and boots. So a great brand to reach for when you’re picking up a new pair of traveling shoes.
This pair of Denver shoes I’ve been checking out would be just fine for strolling the streets of Denver. Or Boulder, or Hoboken. They don’t look like hiking shoes or sneakers, but they’re hearty enough to wear around all day on the move. They’ve got the signature stubbed-toe-proof front, natural rubber with some give on the bottom, and quality full-grain leather on top that’s waterproof. It’s all stitched together well—not just glued. Laces go through quality metal eyelets and there’s a separate leather lining.
As with many Keen shoes I’ve tried, the real payoff is in the footbed, which is not just an afterthought. It’s made from a combination of recycled PU, cork, and memory foam. It conforms to your feet so that these shoes get more comfortable over time, not less. Despite the quality materials, these come in at 12 ounces, which will not hit your luggage weight limit too hard.
I have two minor caveats to mention. First, there’s not a whole lot of stiffness or thickness to these compared to say, the Briggs II model. So while that gives them a lower profile for looking good and makes them slipper-like comfortable, they’d be better for a week-long vacation or daily wear than to pack for a months-long trip with a backpack strapped on, especially if you’ll be on gravel or cobblestones sometimes. Also, these suffer from a problem plaguing many shoes today: slick nylon laces. I’m tired of retying my shoes, so I’m switching the laces out next time I’m in a shoe store. Sure, I know it keeps them from soaking up water, but the point of laces is to stay laced, right?
The Keen Denver shoes also come in a slip-on model, so no laces issues there, and this model is in black, brown, and “chipmunk.” All have a list price of $90. If you like something over the ankle, there’s a Denver Mid version for 10 bucks more.
Check prices for the one reviewed here at RockCreek or at Endless.com.
KEEN Denver Slip On Shoe at Backcountry.com
Posted by Tim L. in General Gear, Travel Light on February 2nd, 2011
Donate Money, Feel Good, Get Gear
My sister Cheapest Destinations blog is a participant in the annual Passports with Purpose charity project collectively run by a bunch of travel bloggers and sponsors. In short, you give money for a third-world development project and you enter to win some great donated prizes at the same time. Last year we built a school in Cambodia. This year we’re building a whole frickin’ village in India. Thanks to some great sponsors like BootsnAll the coalition is already 3/5 of the way to the goal.
My prize participant is Kuru Footwear, a company that makes comfy shoes that are especially good for travel. Below is a photo of one of their models, but you get to choose which one you want. Thanks Kuru!
But that’s just the start. Go check the full list of prizes, but here’s a sampling of some of the other gear you can try to score.
Kodak waterproof video camera
Shoes or sandals from Keen Footwear
Apple iPad
Tom Bihn Western Flyer given away by Kara’s TheVacationGals
Briggs & Riley Carry-on bag
Timbuk2 travel gear bundle
Sierra Designs tent
Osprey rolling pack
Go do the right thing and make a huge difference in someone’s life on the other side of an ocean. After all, $20 is a lot in India and ALL the money will be passed straight through to a local organization that knows what it’s doing. And hey, you’ve got a good chance of scoring some travel gear (or a trip, or gift certificate) while you’re at it. Go to Passports with Purpose and hit the “Donate” button.
Posted by Tim L. in Adventure Gear, General Gear, Travel Light on November 18th, 2010
