Hi everyone, I am lucky enough to be visiting Southern Utah's canyon country for two weeks this summer. I would like to purchase a good pair of shoes for the trip and am not sure what it is that I need. I'll be doing alot of dat hikes and some will include walking in and around rivers. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Exactly what are you doing re walking in rivers? Are you doing the Narrows at Zion? Or are you talking about rock hopping in water somewhere else? That will make a difference.

I have been very happy with my North Face hiking shoes. They are waterproof, lightweight and much like a runner's shoeI prefer the running type shoe to the boot type because they tend to chafe. As important as the shoe is good socks. I prefer to get my shoes a little large, use a pair of orthotics for support and a medium synthetic hi-tech sock. I've hiked all over Europe this way.

I love my Keens, but they may be too open for real hiking. They are extremely comfy. They would be very good for the river portions, and a second pair of shoes could be good. That way the sore parts from pair A get time to toughen up while you're in pair B. I'm not a hiker though, so my thinking may be completely backwards.

We are hikers and love canyon country. We have found lightweight hiking boots to be just fine for day hikes. You don't need as much support as you would need for backpacking. For hiking (walking) the Narrows in Zion, we just use athletic shoes (although one year we did use our hiking boots). It is hot there in the summer and our boots and shoes dried overnight.

Mephisto;great hiking shoes.Paul