Well, it’s just a product review. And these just happen to be the best damn lightweight backpacking shoes on the planet. How can I make such a claim?

No, I have not worn the same pair of Salomon shoes for ten years. But I have worn out several pairs of the Salomon XA Pro 3D shoes in the past 10 years. I just noticed that my last pair of general use 3-season Salomon’s are about ready for retirement from backpacking. They are not, however, ready for the trash bin. They have lots of life remaining for yard work and street wear when it is too cold for flip-flops.

If you read many backpacking blogs, you will see it is common for a blogger to review several pairs of shoes each year. That doesn’t happen here because I rarely buy shoes and no one is sending me shoes to review (I would decline if asked, but no one is asking). So, one should ask themselves, if they are reading blogs that review lots of shoes each year, “What is going on?” Is the blogger hiking or backpacking thousands of miles each year, or is something else going on? I’ll leave the answer to that, to you, the readers. But you might find this helpful: BS gear reviews.

Trail Running Shoes for Backpacking

Let’s get back to the shoes. Ten years ago I figured out that trail runner shoes would work as well as my heavy leather backpacking boots. Decades ago, the US Army did a study and concluded that a pound on the foot was equivalent to 5 pounds on the back, and as I was approaching the fine age of 60, any lightening of my backpacking gear was going to be a bonus. So I read a few reviews, visited more stores than I read articles, and tried on an even larger numbers of shoes. I settled on a pair of Salomon XA Pro 3D trailing running shoes, size 12, about 15.75 ounces each.

How important are shoes?

They protect the bottom of your feet from sharp objects and hot ground. Other than that, they really don’t do a lot of good. But they have to fit properly. Proper fit ensures the shoes themselves do not cause problems such as blisters or poor circulation. The shoe company marketing departments want you to believe that shoes will also solve a plethora of non-existent problems and make you walk more efficiently. Poppy-cock. If you have foot problems, most can be solved by getting your feet into shape; getting feet into shape is simple; you have to walk a lot. Of course if you are overweight, then that isn’t good for your feet either — go on a diet and walk more — walk every day.

So… the XA Pro 3D’s were perfect, and being perfect, that meant the odds were pretty good that these shoes would be discontinued, so I bought several pair to avoid that eventuality.  And way beyond surprise, Salomon is still manufacturing and selling the XA Pro 3D shoes 10 years later. I suppose they may have made some changes over the years, you know, new and improved. I’m not going to research if they have. My time is too valuable. And if they have, odds are pretty good that the improvements are mostly marketing spin. If they have made improvements, hopefully those haven’t degraded the shoes. But I can see why they might want to market improved shoes, because the XA Pro 3D’s have a reputation for lasting longer than any other model of trail running shoe. So, they would need a way to entice current users to buy and replace a perfectly good pair of shoes 😉

Minimalist Shoes

I need to talk about these too. About the time I bought my first Salomon’s I also started using cross country racing flats for backpacking. After wearing out a couple different brands, I bought a pair of Mizuno Universe Wave 4 racing flats and have been using these (many pairs worn out over the years) for most of my backpacking and hiking. However, in rougher terrain and cactus infested areas the Salomon’s are first choice.

Salomon XA Pro 3D Review

Let’s get down to the nitty gritty. These shoes are durable. The mesh body is more durable than anything I have seen on the market, and the soles last a long time. I get at least 500 miles out of a pair of shoes and it is probably more than 700, but I don’t track these kinds of things. And when they wear out, as have my last pair in inventory, I can still use them around the house or as urban wear.

I also have a pair of these shoes in size 13. They are one size too big, so they can accommodate heavier socks, an insulated insole, and a pair of Rocky Gore-Tex over socks… do you see where I am going with this? They are part of my winter (snow) footwear kit. I bring this up because I am going to share some pictures and the newer looking Salomon XA Pro 3D’s are my winter shoes.

Okay, here is the review:

The Salomon XA Pro 3D trail running shoes fit perfect, don’t cause hot spots, blisters, chaffing, or any uncomfortable side effects.

They last hundreds and hundred of miles.

They eventually wear out, but they don’t fall apart at the end of their useful backpacking life.

That’s it.

Next Steps

I am going to buy another couple pairs (you never know when they might be discontinued).

These fine retailers carry them:

Amazon | Backcountry | Campsaver | REI

Disclosure: the above links sell these shoes at the everyday price and at the same time I will get a small commission to pay the bills to keep this site running if you buy something. This is legalese that apparently I am required to tell you.