It's Been about 5 years since I wore out my first pair of Meindel boots. Since them I have tried several other brand some of them for a lot more money. Today, my new pair of mindell comfort fit hikers showed up in the mail. I put them on as soon as I got home and it was just like old home week for my feet. I just put them on laced them up , and my feet looked up at me and said , oh yeah , this is what I've been waiting for!

The best things about the Comfort Fit is just that - it's incredibly comfortable and the extra toe room including toe box width an height is fantastic.

The Customer Service Team was great at answering my questions and after a few exchanges - I landed on the perfect size. For reference - I would normally purchase a 9.5 W in a hiking boot and the 9 EE fit perfectly. I was able to swap out the Meindl insert and use my custom full length insert with no issue. Even those not needing a custom insert will have happier feet with this comfort fit design.

My only hope is that they develop a boot with the same Comfort Fit shape and toe room in a true backpacking boot. Using these for steep day hikes in the Columbia River Gorge here in the Pacific NW where the trails are steep and very rocky - they are adequate but my after miles over rocks my feet were were definitely more sore than I'd hope even carrying very little weight. The sole simply needs to be stiffer and slightly thicker to allow more of a pivot of rocks rather than bending through the toes. The extra boot weight would be well worth it! As it is, I'll need to find another boot for backpacking and while worth it they are an investment. It would be great o have a single pair that could handle mixed use and terrain. Regardless, I'm hoping they wear well - I saw that one reviewer mentioned the toe shield came apart and I'm hoping as I put these through the paces that they will deliver on the quality promised.