Keen Women's Targhee II Mid

Let me begin by saying that I research EVERYTHING before I purchase anything and spent hours on-line researching different hiking boots. I love my Keen sandals, so when looking to replace my hiking boots, it seemed like a no brainer to consider these.Everyone on the REI site seems to rave about these boots and other on-line reviews also gave them high marks. Imagine my surprise when the sales clerk at REI did his best to talk me out of this boot. He said the Keen boots are returned to the store more often than any other boot. Major complaint is they come apart at the seams. He also said his girlfriend had a pair and hated them. I trust the sales people at REI (after all, most are more active than me) He pushed me toward a few others so I spent almost 2 hours trying on 10 different pairs of boots at the store. When I slipped on the Keens, my feet were in HEAVEN. They felt like a pair of slippers and I wasn't in any rush to get them off. All of the other boots felt hot and I couldn't wait to get them off during the short time I had them on. Make sure you utilize the climbing rock in the store. If your toes push against the front of the boot going down hill at all, don't get them! Your toes will be miserable during a long hike!In the end, I ignored the salesman's advice and bought these boots. Here's what I'm getting at.... think of Cinderella. Get the pair of boots that fit YOUR FOOT. One person's poor fit might be your dream boot. Take another person's opinion/experience with a grain of salt. Each of us have different shaped feet and our hiking experiences will be different too. Until then, I have never owned such a comfy pair of shoes. I recently spent a week in Tahoe hiking and my feet didn't hurt a bit the whole time I was there. The laces stay tied (which drives me crazy if they dont!) and my feet were not overly hot. My feet didn't throb a bit after any of my hikes. They don't even require braking in - I assume in part because the area under the laces is clothe so it is not stiff, like leather. I would recommend these Keen boots over the less expensive keen hiking boots if you are debating between the two. This pair has a spine (I think that is the correct term) in the sole which provides more support and provides protection from sharp rocks and other things you may step on. Flex the soles of both shoes to compare and you will see what I mean.

I am not exaggerating when I say that these boots may have essentially saved my life due to the great traction & cushion they offer. That said, I wore these boots on my 1st Mt. Baldy hike (I'm an avid hiker, but have never done any trail difficult as Mt. Baldy/Devil's Backbone), and my feet were thankful by the end of the hike for many reasons. I can't say that they didn't give my feet blisters because my toes ended up having blisters, but I did order a half-size up based on the reviews and did use my toes a lot to "grip" the trail on Devil's Backbone to avoid slipping and falling to my death. I originally ordered these boots for my upcoming trips to Yosemite (including Half-Dome) and Denali, and based off my personal experience with them on Mt. Baldy (comparable to Yosemite/Half-Dome hike) , I am confident that these boots will live up to their expectations during those trips (comfort, stability, traction).

I'm normally a 7-7.5, and originally ordered an 8.5 (based off another reviewer who has the same size feet as I do), and those were half a size too large, so I ended up exchanging them for an 8. The 8s were a better fit than 8.5, but still a smudge too large with my silk liner socks and my light hiking socks. I have thick hiking socks, and tried them on with these boots, and while the combo gave me a lot of cushioning for my wide feet, it also made the 8s too snug for comfort. With light hiking socks, these boots are okay to wear for those with wide feet like myself. My advice - even if you have wide width feet, you can still order half a size up than your normal shoe size and still feel the comfort these boots offer.

I don't like that the toe area is seemingly larger than the rest of the shoe (truly giving these boots an "engineer's boot a la Team Fortress" feel to them) and to my annoyance, found myself nearly tripping over my own feet a few times on my Mt. Baldy hike. I would have rather the toe area be in proportion to the rest of the boots because the large rounded toe caps were more of a hindrance for me, but that's my personal preference.

These are definitely my go-to hiking boots, and I hope that Keen never discontinues them because I will purchase another pair once my current ones "die" on me.

I've had these boots for almost two years and today they decided to die by tearing apart at the seams. I'm so very sad I'm running out to get a new pair first thing in the morning as I just don't know what I will do without them. I do a lot of day hiking in mostly moderate PA terrain but these guys have hit trails of all types all over the country. I figure I've put in a good 1000 miles on them so I'll share what I know:

The Good

-Just so darn comfortable out of the box. My closet is filled with boots that I bought that I thought I could break in but it just never seemed to work out. I've never, ever, had a blister from these boots. On super long day hikes, once your feet start swelling, I've never felt that painful toe pinch that all my other boots have given me. They just fit so well. They do run small so buy 1/2 to a full size bigger than normal.

-The traction is amazing. You will fall over from losing your balance long before this boot let's go. These boots walk the fine line between good support and flexibility to do climbing or running when you need too. Just a great multipurpose boot.

-The laces stay taunt even when untied. I find this to be a big deal because sometimes yes, you know you laces are untied but you just can't deal with it at the moment for some reason. With these boots you could essentially do a whole hike with your laces untied.

The Mediocre

-Waterproofing. This is a pro and con. The waterproofing was great the first 6 to 8 months then it just gradually declined until it was gone. I had to start treating the boots every few months to keep them remotely waterproof. I've never had a pair of lightweight boots that kept their waterproofing so this is to be expected.

-They died. I've never worn a pair of boots so long they died. From what I've read 1000 miles is about right but still I was surprised.

That being said, for the price, and the many happy miles I will be buying them again.

Just got back from the Alps where I hiked the Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB) 107 mile Mt. trail wearing my Keen Voyageur Mids every step of the way. These boots were so comfortable and all around able in every aspect that one summarizing word kept coming to mind when thinking about the shoes performance - FANTASTIC!

Immediately comfortable, I wore these boots for a total of about ten miles of hiking prior to putting foot to the trail on the TMB with full confidence that the product would take care of me without biting back. That is - no blisters. Confidence rewarded, neither me nor my hiking companion who was also wearing Voyageurs had one blister during the entire seriously descending and ascending trail.

The waterproof capabilities of the shoe were better than any other boot I've ever worn. That is, no soak through when passing through dewey grass and no water penetration when crossing shallow stream beds. Water ran over the top of my forefoot resulting in no water inside the shoe. Very nice!

I wore Smartwool PhD lt. hiking socks for the majority of the trip and the shoe/sock paring was great. As has become my practice on long-distance hiking outings, when I stop for a rest, snack or simply to take in a stunning view I take off my shoes and socks to let my feet and footwear breathe and dry out a bit before continuing. When doing so I did found that my shoes and socks were wet with perspiration, but my feet never felt any negative effects from this. With hundreds of mountain backpacking miles on my feet, I highly recommend this method of removing your hiking boots as described previously.

Like others have described, I did move up one half size to fit this boot well. The shoes grip well on all terrain and the larger toe bumper offers nice protection on the trail. The shoelaces were just the right length and I appreciated that the type of shoelace Keen used stayed tightly tied for each day's hike. The shoes show less-than-average wear for the miles and type of terrain crossed. Highly recommend this boot.

I bought these boots right before a hike which is something that I would never recommend normally.
The boots I wore on my last hike were fairly new and the soles came right off my boots. They were NOT Keens but were advertised as a quality boot so I was very surprised.Fortunately The guide on my hike carry's Duct tape for emergency's so after a few wraps of the duct tape I was able to complete the hike.
My Keens however performed incredibly well considering the only break in time they had was the night before the hike with me tromping around in the house in my pj's. My feet were not sore or blistered at all at the end of my hike. On the hike there was another women who just by coincidence was wearing a brand new pair of the same boots with no break in time. The entire hike we would compare notes on how our feet were feeling and how well the boots performed. Both descent and ascent the boots were great for traction as well as our foot not sliding forward or back. She and I both finished the eight mile hike without any problems. This hike was in tough terrain with a 1200 foot ascent and descent.The waterproofing of the boot performed well when we had to walk through streams and creeks as well. I highly recommend these boots for anyone who wants a great boot that is everything it is advertised to be.
I do have a pair of Keen sandals that are a full size larger than my normal shoe size so I took the on line recommendation and bought the boots in a 9 1/2 like my sandals. I would defiantly recommend one size larger than your normal shoe size when selecting your boots.

Thanks Keens for keeping us all moving!

I am an urban professional who also likes to take various hiking/trekking trips when I can.

Not only would I describe myself as someone who likes to engage in urban exploration (I go on random walks in the city, exploring), but I also ride my bicycle to work. So I was looking for an outstanding walking/hiking shoe that I could wear everyday for when I'm walking/biking to work, just exploring the city, or traveling outside of the city.

I've had these shoes for a year now and have worn them... a lot. All over the city (in rain, snow, and ice conditions), hiking in denver, seattle, a week on the appalachian trail, and a month in south africa... and I might be forgetting something in there.

I love them because they are so so so comfortable, durable, and waterproof (it's pretty moist here in new york). And I feel comfortable wearing them to work with a pair of slacks (this might not be true for everyone, but I think they look good enough to do so). Also, I find that in warm weather my feet do not overheat or get overly moist from sweat. I've worn these all seasons (not extreme though. nothing below 19 or above 90) and been pleased by their performance/my comfort.

In doing research I noticed that a common concern with Keen's is their sizing, so I eventually found a store where I could try these boots on. I purchased a half size up from my regular shoe size (instead of 10, I got the 10.5) and that has been perfect. I love these shoes. My first pair of Keen, and I'm in love.

I got these hiking boots to replace an all-leather pair that did nothing for my feet but add weight, give me blisters and slowed me down considerably.

After reading up on the specs for the Keen Targhee II Mid Hiking Boots, I decided to go with them firstly because they were the right color. Yes, I am obsessive about green. The next reason is the fact that my feet are pretty choosy and the design of these boots looked like they would be friendly for the needs of my feet...wider at the front, high enough to support my hosed-up ankles but not too high to be an irritant to my Achilles tendons (have been prone to injury since the second serious sprain). I can deal with just about any pain in my feet, except for the pain of high-backed shoes rubbing at my Achilles tendons!

That said, breaking in these boots didn't take long, and I am very happy to say they did exactly what the specs said they would do...provide my feet with solid yet light-weight protection and support for hiking around the Colville National Forest and try out a portion of the Salmo-Priest Wilderness Loop (yep, trying not to do too much after being so sedentary for too long). As my fiancé encouraged, we were there to enjoy not race, and these boots were just the ticket. These boots stayed on my feet, provided good traction even on slippery shale (still stay cautious), withstood tromping through low-water creeks, firm ankle support on the way down on uneven and rocky trail, and maximized the effectiveness of the moisture-wicking function of my socks. And best of all, NO BLISTERS!!

I have a wider toe-box and over-pronate, and in the past have purchased Men's boots, or Merrils (which did not seem to ever break-in) to find a more comfortable fit. Keen provides a wider toe-box, and good arch support, making them fit like gold for me! I bought my first pair Dec. 2010, and I hope they keep making these for years to come!

For hiking, the support is great, the tread and grip hold on just about every type of rock surface, and the rubberized toe-cap bounces off of "trippable" items such as tree roots instead of catching on them. No doubt the toe-cap has kept me upright on several occasions. I hike through deserts and on a lot of sandstone, the tread and sole hold up to this incredibly abrasive stuff!

Just bought my second pair because I ruined the first. How did I ruin them? On several occasions I wore them in/through a river for several hours at a time. They are considered waterproof, but not if water comes over the top. In their deformed state, the leather is warped and formed to my foot. Although the support is not as great as the new pair, it is still commendable, and the sole is holding up. I plan on keeping them for future river trekking adventures because they helped to keep my feet warm while thoroughly soaked. The only down side is, they do not drain water very well, but I doubt they were intended for prolonged use in water.

In the future this is the only boot I will consider buying.

I've been hiking in these boots for a couple months now, enough to give them what I consider a fair review.

I got all the warnings from friends about new boots when I started hiking: you have to break them in, you'll get blisters at first, it'll take some time to make them comfortable. None of these things were true about these boots. They were comfortable from the first minute I put them on. I have only gotten ONE blister in these: descending 3500 feet at the end of 17 miles of backpacking with 30 lbs on my back. I defy you to find any pair of shoes where this would never have occurred.

Other things I like:
- Toe cap. Especially if you're clumsy like me, my toes hit rocks a lot. These help.
- Lacing system is awesome.

As to waterproofness: I don't think I've found any laced shoe yet who can survive water over the top of the laces. I have never noticed water getting in these shoes from puddles or mud. That being said, I've had two hikes now (ah, rainy western WA) where we've had to ford through streams where I've (through accident or unavoidably) placed a foot almost ankle deep in water. Yes, my feet got wet then. Wool socks meant my feet stayed happy and warm through the miles after that. There is no substitute for quality socks.

Anyways, I adore these boots! My feet have never been unhappy in miles and miles of hiking in them! I will not stop recommending Keen boots to my friends.

My feet are a size 6EE and it seems there is no hiking boot in the world made in that size, but I tried on a pair of these in 7B to my amazement they fit wonderfully. The day after I bought them I wore them for several hours of traipsing over marshy trails and they were completely comfortable--no blisters or sore spots on my feet and with perfectly placed arch support my feet didn't ache. Plus my feet stayed dry! I'd hiked the same route in other shoes earlier in the week and afterwards my socks were so wet I could wring them out.

The salesman at REI told me the Keen brand is known for having a wide toebox, and at least in this style it's true. When I first tried them on in the store my toes had plenty of space--squeezed toes are usually what make tight shoes uncomfortable for me--but the boots were slightly snug over my high instep and my heel slipped a little when I walked. I was able to solve both issues with lacing strategies--lacing them all the way to the top prevents the heel slippage (because of my high instep I often lace boots and even shoes only part way) and lacing them very loosely over my instep keeps the boots from feeling too tight. I notice that some Keen styles actually come in a D width which might mean that people with EE feet could wear them without having to go up a size or two in length.