User Review: Vasque Sundowner

Vasque Sundowner
Above: The current Sundowner, which may differ slightly from the version reviewed.

Reviewed October 8, 1997 by Kevin Jim

Rating:
Materials: Full Grain Leather/ Gore Tex
Use: day hikes to rough-trail, medium pack
Break-in Period: none
Weight: 2 lbs 12 oz
Price Paid: $180

Extremely comfortable with no break-in needed. But the soles do not get good grip in mud or slick vegetation, and they peeled off after only a few hundred miles. The soles also wore out quickly. Now on the second set of soles, and these are wearing out quickly too. I have seen other people's soles peel off under mud suction. The uppers are very waterproof (use Tectron Leather spray or Nikwax Aqeous to condition the leather) and have not leaked. They do not offer enough support for heavy backpacking, but I have used them for that anyway. They are good on dry trails, but when things get wet, traction becomes questionable. With Vibram soles these would be truly great. Too bad you can't buy them with Vibram soles.

I have used these virtually every weekend for almost two

years, with several backpacking trips and many climbing

approaches. Probably over 800 miles on them, and the uppers

are still fine.

Summary: very comfortable waterproof boots with bad soles.