User Review: Chaco Men's Z/1 Unaweep

Summary

Good, supportive sandal that has been with me for a long time. I recommend this sandal to anyone who spends at least one weekend a year out of doors.

I bought this shoe 7 years ago when all of my buddies had already got them. Following the crowd is recommended at times, and these sandals are a great shoe. The single strap system is what I would call "neat."  Does it make these shoes? Not by itself. Everything about these shoes makes them what they are.  

The strap is great to evenly distribute support to your foot. The supportive sole is protection from the ground, and the soft, strong straps will never abrade your ankles with sand or water even with extended use. I have taken these shoes through caves, on mountain blitzes (not real mountaineering, but in UT they'll call anything a mountain), as my sole pair of shoes for my honeymoon backpacking trip where I packed way too much.

These shoes are the most stable sandals there are, and have in some respects done better than tennis shoes on bouldering and climbing ladders in the Oil city to LaPush hike, and slogging through knee-deep mud in the Dugualla Bay of Whidbey Island.  They won't fall off your feet even if the mud is sucking at your shoes. Great traction, and how can you beat them for stream crossing?  

The only time they don't work is when you know that all sides of your feet will be getting constant abuse. Read: I did not take them on the Zion Narrows through-hike, because I knew that slippery river rocks would eventually get the best of my ankles. I wore well-vented tennis shoes.  

The cons? Simple. Everybody knows that Chaco foot smell. And for what it's worth, after 7 years the soles have delaminated a bit. I'm ok with that.