Merrell Moab 2 Mid Gore-Tex

Great boots, crappy shoelaces. THEY NO LONGER STAND BEHIND THEIR PRODUCTS.

UPDATE, AFTER HAVING MY LATEST PURCHASE OF GORE-TEX MERRELS LEAK AND THE COMPANY NOT STANDING BEHIND THEM I CAN NO LONGER RECOMMEND THEIR PRODUCTS.  I was looking for some boots to use for our 10-day hiking trip to Philmont scout camp. I had never owned a pair of Merrells because of the high price. They were recommended by the high end outdoor store in my area. I bit the bullet and bought them.

They were GREAT, 10 days on the trail, not one blister. I paired them with some Smartwool socks and liners, and was the only one in our crew who didn't have foot issues.

They stayed waterproof for about a year, and then they started leaking. Merrell customer service was GREAT, replaced the leaking ones with a new pair. I now own six pair of Merrell shoes/boots, never leave for a scout trip w/o them. They are expensive, but well worth it for comfort.

My ONLY dig is they have the absolute worst shoelaces, constantly coming untied. Don't know what it is about the construction of the laces, but new or old, they continually come loose. Even with that issue, they are still my footwear of choice.  

Background

20 years as a scout leader and hiker

NO LONGER a Merrell fan.

Back in 2009 I spent way more than I ever thought I would for a pair of Merrell boots for our trip to Philmont NM Scout Ranch. The performed exceptionally, turned out to be well worth the expense.

Over the years I bought 6 more pairs, a couple of them being Gore-Tex. One of the pairs failed a few years back and Merrell replaced them. My newest pair of Gore-Tex Merrells began to leak so I sent them a note. Since Gore-Tex is a membrane and not a coating I assumed they would stand behind them like the other defective pair. They no longer stand behind their products like they used to—1-year warranty.

Disappointing, but when the time comes my next purchase will not be Merrells. 

Background

Boy Scout leader and hiker for 20 plus years

was looking for a nice waterproof day hiker / weekend trip boot. Great looks, good comfort, reputable brand. However, terrible quality, and even worse customer service.

Bought these from Gander Mountain for use on local hikes and some short 3-4 nighters. Love the look and feel of these—fairly lightweight for a hiker this size, and the waterproof claim is well-earned.

But the praise stops there. Sadly, these boots have been to the shoe repair shop three times. The very first time I pulled them on and pulled the laces tight, one of the sewn lace loops broke. Couldn't properly tighten the laces, so a repair had to be made.

Got the repaired boot back, put them on, then another lace loop broke. Another repair, this time had all the loops reinforced. Finally was able to get them laced properly, and I'll be damned if a rivet on the top lace guide didn't come out. There's still one rivet there, and I'll fix it with some Gorilla Glue. But... for a $125 pair of hikers, I expect better quality.  

And Merrell absolutely REFUSED to stand behind their POS product... said they would reimburse me up to $25 for my repair bills. My issue—I wanted a replacement pair. If these loops had broken in the field, I would have been pressed into some redneck engineering, probably not very comfortable.  

Shame on you, Merrell. This was an easy, easy problem to fix, and you chose to stick it to me.   

Great pair of boots for those who backpack or hike constantly. Also acts as a good pair of work boots.

The Merrell Moab (mother of all boots) is a great series/model of boot that will forever be my go-to.

They are easy to put on and take off at the end of a long day. They're light enough to hike with and durable enough to do the job and enjoy the day.

Background

I have hiked hundreds of miles with the Merrell Moab series in all kinds of terrains and climates.

Materials used are rubbish. The store replaced the first pair which leaked water through the Gore Tex membrane after 6 months of summer walking. The second pair started to disintegrate after 8 months at the front panels

I first bought a pair of these in 2020 at Portwest, Killarney, Kerry. Within six months one shoe started leaking through the Gore Tex membrane and the store kindly replaced them. 

However, within nine months, the side panels at the front of both shoes started to crack and come apart. One of the lace loops then tore away from the boot whilst I was tying my laces. I was only using them to walk around roads etc. I NEVER used them for scrambling or hillwalking.

I contacted Merrell Europe with photos at the email address on their website and they bounced an email back saying my email was too long.

Avoid this company and their boots at all costs!

Background

Avoid at all costs

Very comfortable and light for mid length boots and comes in wide widths.

Fits well out of the box. Little or no break-in required.

Used it to hike up to Nevada Falls in Yosemite and kept dry even on the Mist Trail.