So I know that this topic is like posting to an automotive forum - “What’s the best oil to use?”
Acknowledging that, and the fact that shoe manufacturers keep changing up the recipes on shoes that we know and love, here are my criteria for a new padding shoe specific to sit inside kayak:
Low stack (especially heel), must present low impact to paddling ergonomics - deck to foot rest.
No (or very little neoprene), fast dry (think multi-day trips).
Great rock protection (soles that have stiffness or a layer to mitigate the feel of rocks, shells, etc., underfoot).
Traction - of course but, material over deep lugs - to minimize sand, dirt and mud coming into the boat.
Retention - open here but, elastic locking laces seem to offer the most flexibility and reduce the clogging of zippers and velcro.
Protection - it would be great if there was an option to protect the Achilles heel and ankle - but this would take a boot.
I’ve been thinking outside of “our box” and looking at Merrell Trail Gloves.
Paddling footwear is always a topic of interest for me and it seems like this was an active topic not long ago. Pros and cons to all paddling shoes but I use Astral Brewers pretty much year round in the PNW.
Understand.
Over the years I’ve looked for the perfect paddling shoe for my purposes and tried a ton of different paddling/watershoe options. I’ve worn out more paddling shoes than many folks ever own in their lifetime and had many that seemed good at first but had some flaw that I couldn’t get past. The Astrals ain’t perfect but they are good enough for my purposes.
What the do well:
Drain and dry faster than anything else I’ve owned.
Protect drysuit socks. Most of my paddling is coldwater in a drysuit.
They have a decent midsole so they protect the soles of my feet on rough, rocky beaches.
Most of my trips involve a long ferry ride and they look like a normal shoe in town or on board a ferry.
They have a reasonably low profile in a boat.
They have very grippy soles on wet logs and rocks.
What I’m not wild about:
They have shoe laces that could possibley snag underdeck if not tucked in.
The uppers are lightly-built so wear pretty fast. I glue patches from worn out Glacier Gloves on the heels to take the wear. They aren’t the longest lasting paddling shoe but I’ve come to view all of my gear in how well it serves me and not how long it lasts.
They aren’t insulated so coldwater paddling requires warm socks.
I’ve worn my neo-booties just once in the past year and find them inferior in most every way for my uses. For trips I take a pair of Chacos and my Brewers only. Neoprene is my very last choice for paddling footwear.
that’s what I use, the rubber sole has drain holes and the foot bed is a open mesh the sides are a mesh structure and the sole wraps around heel and toe to give a bit of protection and comfort.
cheap crap but works well enough for me, your Mileage might vary but for the price I rolled the dice and was pleasantly surprised.
I had several cheap slip on watershoes, then bought a pair of Columbian brand shoes for $45 that lasted a while. After that pair delaminated I found a cheap pair at Bass Pro for $25. They lasted for three seasons.
Different bodies, different gear. Brewers didn’t work for me. My heel shape at the Brewers design meant that I’d pull my heels out when in a kayak. Currently I’m happy with their HiYaks. Those also have a velcro flap that sort of covers the bow when the laces are tied.
Some contrarian parameters in your post but I think overall the Astral LoYak fits what you’re looking for. I’ve come to prefer the lace up vs. strap shoes and they check most other items on your list. Rather than deeper lugs which would impact the low profile and tactile feedback the outsole is siped and super grippy when wet. Also look presentable enough to wear out to grab lunch rather than squishing your way to the lunch spot looking like Cousteau out of water.
I am absolutely contrarian to current offerings. But I do not mean to denigrate said current offerings.
And of course the very important parameters that I left off were: season and geography - a couple of biggies…
So some background…
I recently researched and replaced; gym shoes, trail running shoes and hiking shoes.
TLDR;
There is a lot of brain trust and materials appropriation going on in the rest of the footwear world! Granted, our paddling “world” is niche. And small. But, I was just asking the virtual paddle posse at large what recent finds they might have.
For me the Teva water shoes are great. They are fast drying and provide good foot protection. My wife likes her Ryka Hydro Sport training water shoes. These shoes are comfortable without needing socks.
Hmm, I bought four pairs of water shoes. The only pair that I still wear are the neoprene.
One was stretchy with no laces and came off the first time I stepped in muck.
One had bulbous toe and heel bumpers that made the shoe so big I had to point my feet like a ballerina to fit under the deck.
I still wear the oversized NRS neoprene paddle boots in winter, but they are too warm for summer.
The first pair had “drainage holes”, i.e. gravel garage doors. You can’t get the gravel out without taking off the shoe.
If I set the wet Chucky Tees out in the sun they dry in a few hours, a bit quicker than the NRS.
I have Astral semi-hi-tops. Like them a lot - but they seem to take longer to dry than do my neoprene semi-hi-top diving boots. In the Summer they are my go-to shoe. They let my feet get pretty wet (wearing medium weight wool hiking socks) and in my case the neoprene dive boots keep my feet warmer and dryer.
The disadvantage of the dive boots is the sole thickness is thick enough that my feet don’t fit into the hull, on the foot-pegs, without having to offset my heels, from each other. The sole thickness is an advantage in that I feel safe from sharp rocks, shells old cans, etc puncturing the sole.
The Astrals +-‘s are the opposite of the dive boots. The thinner, but still substantial, sole thickness lets me be a little more wary of punctures - but they allow my feet to fit better in the hull, when on the pegs (no heel offset required). The Astrals are fine temperature-wise in middle to warm temperature water.
I am 5’10” tall, weigh around 150-155lbs & wear size US 10-1/2 to 11-1/2 shoes. I paddle P&H Scorpio MV kayak. Started off with the same LV model - but my feet just didn’t fit without excessive heel-offset. My wife paddles the LV Scorpio now and it fits her well (feet included).
Depends on the conditions. Mostly I wear paddling shoes. Hiking shoes that drain water and have some neoprene trim. I have used them for backpacking and hiking up creeks.
We used to used Chuck Taylor high tops for rafting, with thick fuzzy socks. Great for dancing around on raft tubes.
Paragis Catalogue out of Ely, MN has some great neoprene boots for portaging in swampy and muddy conditions. LL Bean pack boots work well in cold weather. Dorothy Moltar the root beer lady famously wore buckle galoshes over tennis shoes in the snow.
The last thing you want to wear are sandals especially those with velcro. The velcro gets filled up with sand and algae and then the current rips them off your feet. Sandals do not protect the feet from rocks either.
