La Sportiva’s Bushido Trail Shoes are the best adventure travel shoes I’ve ever had. These shoes will last us for 1 to 2 seasons of hard hiking. We wear our La Sportiva’s Bushidos on multi-day backpacking trip, strenuous day hikes, for trail running, and as climbing approach shoes. These shoes will take your adventuring to the next level.
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Price Comparison:
Shop La Sportiva Bushidos at REI.com
Shop La Sportiva Bushidos on Backcountry.com
Shop La Sportiva Bushidos at Appalacian Outdoors
Shop La Sportiva on LaSportiva.com
Let me start off by saying I am extremely picky about everything. My food, my hikes, my house, my clothes, rock climbs, surf conditions, and my coffee. (I swear if you make me coffee and the water isn’t purified from fresh waterfall water and wasn’t heated to 203F in a steel pot that hasn’t been used to cook food and served in a clean glass french press and steeped for more than 3 minutes AND the coffee was measured to a perfect 1/2 cup that was ground in a coffee grinder until it was finer than coarse but not super fine, then I WON’T DRINK IT.)
So when I tell you that these are the only shoes that I’ve worn on all my adventures for the past four years (since 2016) that tells you that these shoes have got to be good. They’re more than good actually, they’re amazing! I’m hooked on them. So are my two girls and so is my husband.
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I am a minimalist. I am not a fan of big and unnecessarily chunky hiking boots that are constricting and stiff. Before I discovered the Bushidos at a REI semi-annual sale I always went with thin trail runners but as time went on and our adventures became more intense, my cheap trail runners just we not doing it.
If you just want to know straight up if you should get these shoes just see if the following sounds like what you’re looking for.
If you’re like me and want a hiking shoe that is versatile, comfortable, and has a lot of traction that you can use for backpacking, day hiking, and running, then La Sportiva’s Bushido Trail Runners are the shoe you want.
Okay so you get what my point right? I really love these shoes. As much as a climber loves his trad rack. That was a weird parallel but I think you know what I’m trying to say. I am hooked on these shoes.
4 Reasons We Love La Sportiva’s Trail Runners…
Flexible
While some people may find it surprising or even impossible to hike without hiking boots we like hiking in trail running shoes because the flexibility it allows in your ankle for easy or strenuous scrambling and rock hopping.
La Sportiva Bushido trail running shoes aren’t like regular tennis shoes. Trail running shoes are a perfect in between of hiking boots and tennis shoes. These shoes bend and move with your foot while still being supportive on all sides on your foot.
Related: How To Hike Black Elk Peak + Little Devils Tower, South Dakota
Supportive + Responsive
These shoes allow you to stay light on your feet while having the protection from rocks because of the impact plate that runs in the sole. Using Bushidos allows you to have ankle mobility with some impact absorption of hiking boots.
Bushidos have a moderate heel and absorb impact so they will still support your feet well on rocky terrain but at the same time, they give you more of a grounded feeling when compared to hiking boots.
A much as I love these shoes I will say, Bushidos might not be a good choice for those who need more ankle support and have existing foot/ankle issues.
We’ve done 20 mile day hikes like The Enchantments and Waptus Lake in Bushidos. The breathability of these shoes is awesome and allows your feet to stay dry on long hikes. We even wore them the entire 108 mile trek of Tour Du Mont Blanc!
La Sportiva has used a unique material that breathes well but also is supportive for the feet. Your feet won’t roll off the outside of the shoe like other cheap running shoes. La Sportiva has integrated a spider web of support for the shoe. They have used light weight material for the shoe but then added support by adding light webbing around the shoe to prevent falling off the sole.
If you don’t mind a little less support than regular hiking boots, you will love La Sportiva Bushidos.
Related: How To Hike The Subway
Versatile for all Active Adventure
Our absolute favorite thing about our Bushidos is their versatility. While our primary use of these shoes is for hiking and backpacking, these shoes also have the freedom to be used in almost any other adventure. We mountain bike in these shoes, use them for climbing approaches, and of course, trail run in them too.
We did The Subway without ever having to take off our Bushido’s because they’re so versatile.
They’re great for strenuous hiking, they have good traction to grip to rock walls on rappels, and they’re so lightweight that they dry fast after being completely submerged in water.
Bushidos have the best combination of grip, durability, and shock absorption. La Sportiva’s FriXion XT Rubber technology is made of dual rubber soles so that these shoes grip rocks and never slide. This makes them great shoes to wear on even the most difficult rocky scrambles.
Lightweight & Breathable
One final amazing thing about La Sportiva’s Bushidos is its breathability. When hitting trails in the summertime, we appreciate the mesh cloth of the shoe that keeps your feet cool.
In addition, if your feet are cooler, they’ll get much less swollen on long hikes making you overall more comfortable.
The Bushidos are lightweight so they will also dry fast in rain, full water submersion, creek crossings, and even when hiking in the snow.
We recently wore these shoes on our hike to Devils Bathtub which requires many, many river crossings which resulted in shoes that were soaked to the core. One full day out in the sun and they were perfectly dry and ready to go!
Related: How To Hike The Tour Du Mont Blanc
Their lightweight structure is also the only negative for us. We probably average close to 500 miles of hiking per year which means we usually have to replace them annually. This is a minor downside to such fantastic shoes which is why we continue to wear La Sportiva Bushidos.
Pros:
- Support But Not Too Much Support
- Versatile For All Adventure Sports
- Good Traction
- Lightweight
- Breathable
Cons:
- Have To Be Replaced Often (at least if you rack miles as fast as we do)
- Not As Much Support As Hiking Boots
- Expensive
Conclusion
We are huge fans of La Sportiva’s Bushidos Trail Runners due to their versatility and comfort. Bushidos are not as expensive as hiking boots, however, you will need to replace them more often. If you don’t hike that often, they could last 3-5 years. We replace ours every 300 miles so it really depends on the person.
Bushidos are not a cheap shoe but all their benefits are worth it for us. They’re our absolute #1 adventure shoe and we recommend these shoes to all hikers, backpackers, and adventurers.
Buy La Sportiva Bushidos at REI.com
Buy La Sportiva Bushidos on Backcountry.com
Buy La Sportiva Bushidos at Appalacian Outdoors
Buy La Sportiva on LaSportiva.com
Related:
- The Best Day Hiking Backpack: REI Flash 22
- Our Hiking Essential: EnduroPacks Liquid Electrolytes Made For Outdoor Adventure
Have any question, concerns, jokes, stories, brewery/coffee recommendations? Let us know in the comments below!
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