I was recently packing for a summer hike that required some river crossings, and I assessed my footwear options: road-running shoes, strapped outdoor sandals, and the hiking boots I use for backpacking. Envisioning the trip ahead of me, I knew that I was in need of a different shoe: the road runners wouldn鈥檛 offer enough grip,听the sandals听wouldn鈥檛 protect my toes from rocks and boulders (not to mention the straps chafe my feet after a few miles), and the boots are clunky and would probably suffocate my feet in the summer heat. Disappointed, I grabbed the sandals and accepted the forthcoming blisters.
So when I got the chance to test out ($120), I was excited. It promised comfort on wet and dry ground, with protection from debris that can be a pain for you and your feet. After months of testing, it鈥檚 safe to say the Choprock is the first shoes I put on before heading out on a summer hike鈥攅specially if the trip calls for dips in the water.
What impresses me most听about the Choprock is its ability to drain water incredibly fast. After a dozen submersions听in varied depths鈥攍ike waist-high streams听to puddles that barely touched my ankles鈥攎y feet shook off most of the water after about five minutes of walking on dry path. Credit the synthetic mesh upper that allows a ton of airflow听and stretches like a sock, which is why I often don鈥檛 wear socks with the Choprock. With socks听it鈥檚听proven听comfortable on dry trips, but during wetter excursions听I feel the blisters coming. If you鈥檙e exploring river trails in dry environments like the Sonoran Desert, where I first tested the shoe, it鈥檒l听dry even faster. The sponge-like holes in the outsole allow water to pass through and certainly help this process. And for trips without water on the menu, I found that the mesh material allowed my feet to breathe and not soak听in a pool of my own sweat. The aggressive five-millimeter lugs gripped slick rock听under running water听and felt like claws in loose riverbed. The toe guard actually wrapped up over my toes (unlike many听models that come up short), so I wasn鈥檛 afraid of stubbing my toes on mysterious submerged rocks.听
I also found the Choprock听surprisingly efficient for travel. At 1 pound 11 ounces, these kicks are on the lighter side of the day hiker range (for comparison, a pair of Chaco Z/1 Classics weight 1 pound 13.8 ounces). When it was time to pack them up and throw on the flip flops, the upper mesh material collapsed听with ease and they听slid听in the outer pouch of my overstuffed daypack.听
There are some features of the Choprock I鈥檇 like to see Merrell improve. The Choprock is great at draining water, but fine听grains of sand stuck in the insoles for longer than I wanted. So while it might not be the best option for the beach or a place with tons of small pebbles, it was quick and easy to pop 鈥檈m off,听shake out the debris, and continue on the path. And although these are meant to be worn mostly without socks, the toe box can feel a bit large. I would recommend trying a half size smaller. (I normally wear a 10, and the 9.5 fits comfortably.)听
When the weather starts to cool, I鈥檒l most likely be switching to a boot with more insulation. But I don鈥檛 see why pairing the Choprock听with some thick wool socks won鈥檛 do the trick. It would make that fall river crossing that much easier.