Customer Reviews Topo Athletic Terraventure 3

I used my Terraventure 3's to backpack the 50-mile Benson Lake Loop in northern Yosemite National Park. These are by far the most comfortable hiking shoes I've ever worn. I hiked over various terrainfrom spongy soil to granite rubble, and these shoes always felt like a dream! No signs of blisters and no issues with my toes getting jammed to front of the shoe during steep descents. It's only been 50 miles, but, so far, I love them!

Not the winner I hoped for. I have the MTN racer 2 and love it besides the mesh tongue(creates pressure points). I was hoping the Terraventure 3 would be the perfect update for comfort on trail descents. The padded tongue is great however there is a bulky outer strap on the side of the shoe that painfully digs in. Once again it is so close to perfect but falls short. Not sure how this one made it past testing. I will keep trying new models to find the right one. The Ultraventure 2 was about right also but the Vibram xS Trek left me disappointed vs the megagrip. The Ultraventure pro was noticeably more stiff and firm.

Been training for a summer backpacking trip. Been doing 3 hikes in the crater with my backpack for 24-36 miles a week. My large toe on both shoes has worn a hole in the fabric, around 120 miles on them. Disappointed.

I discovered these shoes while on vacation and I have fallen in love. I've never had a pair of shoes that on the first use; did t hurt my feet. In fact, these shoes make my feet feel great! I quickly bought another pair when I returned home. You will love these shoes!!

I got these while on vacation. I took a brand new pair of lone peak 6's for the tripwith two weeks the back of the heel had been worn through. They just seem to not be constructed as well as they used to be. The Topo's were a great option and honestly better built than Altra these days. I'm switch over form here on out

Wear as everyday shoes. Exercise, working, etc. love the look too. Enter sweepstakes!

The low heel drop and ample toe box allows a comfortable ride for my rolling ankles that consistently crush other footwear on the outer edge below my ankle bone. One foot pronates and the other supinates and this shoe handles both.

The trails I run are mostly technical with a lot of rock and steep ascents and descents. My foot always felt secure and the fit really inspired confidence. Great grip on rock slabs as well as in the dirt. Always really comfortable. I have about 400 miles on them and the cushioning is pretty worn but that's expected. Great shoe!

My 4th Pair. I think they are great.

I've converted to Topos and converted my ultra-running husband to Topos. I'll never go back. My favorite thing about THIS Topo is the tighter weave ... I can be on the trails for hours and I don't come back with dirt caked between my toes. #sweepstakes

I've had THREE pair of these now. They have never fallen apart and put hundreds of miles on them in tough terrain. It's the perfect balance of stack height and drop for me. They dry quickly when traversing streams etc. Please don't stop making these!

These Topo's have a nice roomy toe box, great sole support, great traction and they drain well after creek crossings! I'll buy them again.

Great shoes that fit true to size. The drop seems to help with my plantar fasciitis, although if I could tick the drop up to 5 mm, I would. I've managed to snag some of the fabric on the upper part of the toe box, which bums me out, but this is making me realize that these are better suited for just trail running rather than off trail hiking. .

Recently I booked a backpacking trip to the newly opened Aysen National Park in Patagonia, an area truly untouched for only God knows how long as the Thompsons (of North Face fame) decided to donate their millions of acres of land that they had preserved as an environmental reserve to the Chilean government to become the newest national park of Chile's Patagona (there are 24 national parks in Patagonia"). I researched several footwear options that were recommended to me by renowned backpacker Andrew Skurka and his staff after taking his refresher backpacking fundamentals course (an excellent experience). As I have wide feet and typically opt for Triple E shoe width many of the options recommended did not work as most shoe manufacturers like Sportiva make only narrow foot sizes. So when I got down the list and began researching Topo shoes I was excited to learn they specifically make shoes with a wide "toe box" so as to give your foot a shoe environment that mirrors one's natural foot structure. I also noted Topo's founder, Tony Post, had worked for Vibram for decades so he really knows shoes. Side note, I have a pair of steel-toed work-books that I bought literally 30 years ago and the Vibram sole is just as good as brand new; knowing Topo shoes had the Vibram sole piqued my interest in the shoe even more. I watched several of the videos on the Topo website and they are well-done, informative and easily understandable. So the next challenge was finding a retailer that handled Topo's, not as easy as it sounds as I live in Iowa and robust outdoor retailers are not that prolific. After checking out all the retailers in the Des Moines and Ames areas (each about an hour to hour and a half from where I live in rural Iowa) I began calling retailers in the neighboring five states. All had some Topo's on hand but not the model or shoe size I needed. Several retailers indicated Topo was relatively new so they had limited supply to see how well the shoe sells. All retailers I called were super knowledgeable and more than willing to help me in my endeavor to find the right Topo shoe even though they weren't able to sell me a pair which was refreshing to know people who are dedicated to the outdoors willingly share their time and knowledge. As several retailers suggested, I ended up calling Topo directly and had the same wonderful experience as I did with the retailers with the lady at Topo being super friendly and helpful. I ended up buying two pairs to see which size would fit me best as I could return the pair that didn't fit the best. So how did the Topo's Terraventure 3's work out for me? Extremely well to say the least. I can't begin to communicate how much I was blown away by these shoes. I was skeptical at first as they are in the "trail runner" class and all the websites that featured trail runner shoes had pictures of individuals running on trails, leaping into the air with joyous smiles on their face seemingly in some transformational state as they "hiked and scrambled" over mountain trails without a backpack on and my standard hiking shoe consisted of an old but functional pair of Merrill ankle-high hard soled hiking boots that I still use today. When I put the shoes on they felt wonderful, almost sponge-like when I walked around the house. I did a few practice runs with a 25 pound backpack at a nearby quarry turned mountain bike obstacle course and wow, did the Topo's feel great. The "rock plate" worked well in hiking over sharp rocks while keeping my feet comfortable, still that comfy sponge feeling, as I hiked. The next test was my week with Andres Skurka's fundamental backpacking course at Dolly Sods, West Virginia. The terrain was a combination of wet bog, wet and dry trails, rocks, scrambling over large boulders as well as downed trees on the trail. The Topo's were wonderful, almost like wearing slippers with super traction soles (I mean like there is glue on the bottom of the shoe holding you in place) that were a pleasure to wear. They worked well enough that I decided to use them in my 18 days of hiking in Patagonia. The Topo's performed equally as well in Patagonia as they did in West Virginia. I did two different treks, one in the newly opened Aysen region (Parque Nacional Aysen) and the classic W Trek in the Torres del Paine Nacional Park. I hiked with a 24-28 pound backpack depending on how much food and water I was carrying and I was constantly amazed at how comfortable my feet were. The wide toe box is exceptional as it gave my feet plenty of room. My toes never felt constrained or scrunched together. I also think/believe and this is strictly my personal feeling and experience - there is something about the structure of the shoe that allows my foot to function at its best. That is to say the shoe allowed maximum foot flexibility as I hiked, whether it was climbing up a steep incline, dancing over rocks during stream crossing, or carefully locating the proper footing in a steep downhill trail. Foot- traction was remarkable as well. In total I trudged through roughly 92 miles of diverse terrain that included: mud, dust, wet, rock, sandy, snow (a full 3 hours hiking in snow with the Topo's soaking wet wool socks do keep your feet warm even when wet) and some ice, not to mention hiking is some stream beds. Summary: I think Topo's are amazing hiking shoes. They are well made, durable, comfortable, and can handle all kinds of terrain. I still marvel at how comfortable they were and their performance versatility in different terrains. I never had foot or leg cramps, even on the 10-12 mile days, nor did I get one blister or toe irritation. Great shoes. Thank you to Tony Post (Topo) and his team for producing an incredible shoe.

Fantastic shoe, the one I was looking for. I use it mainly for hiking. Very comfortable, light, best sole (Vibram). But, dear Topo, pls offer a waterproof version of this shoe (low one) too ! Really demanded....!

Ran my first 100 mile trail race with 18,000+ elevation and had no issues. They were comfortable the entire race and I finished with no cuts or blisters on either foot, amazing!!

I don't typically like a wide toe box because I feel my foot swimming or rolling about; but these hit the mark and I feel secure throughout my foot. The minimal drop is also super helpful for me and I feel more connected to the ground.

I used the terraventure 3 for the first half of my Hayduke thru hike this autumn and couldn't of been happier with the shoe. It was the right balance of durable, comfortable, and with good grip. I found myself slowly realising that this shoe was doing everything I had wished the Altra Lonepeak would do. As much as I enjoy the Lonepeak I find that for rugged ground or grip critical situations they just don't provide the support, durability, or grip I want from a shoe. The terraventure was able to deal with rough ground and stuck rock in a way that inspired confidence. Moving forward this shoe will be my first choice! So Topo, I hope you are listening, one of the worst things a shoe maker can do is keep changing up a good shoe for no reason, and god forbid making it worse. You've got a good shoe here, please don't alter anything unless you've got a really good reason to!!

In my search for the right shoe for a 2023 AT thru hike I've tried several differnt shoe brands and models. Spent many years/miles on Salomon. But I was drawn to the benifits of a wider toe box and zero drop shoes. So, went thru a couple of pairs of Altra's and Inov 8. Those were heading in the right direction, but the Altras were a bit soft on rocky surfaces resulting in foot fatigue and the Inov 8 were a bit narrow. Saw an ad for Topo and thought I'd give them a try. This is my 2nd pair now. Showe Nirvana. Ample room, great traction, and show very little wear considering the mileage I've logged on them. It's nice to just walk and not think about my feet. Great shoe.

This is hands down one of the best shoes on the market for trail running/hiking. Topos design on all their shoes is amazing but I'll keep buying this until they stop selling it.

I like the toughness of the material and the overall, well-thought our design of the shoe; high grip outsole; secure fit.

Really like this shoe and highly recommend it, unfortunately it doesn't work for me. The roomy toe box is exactly what I was looking for, however the heel area of the shoe is a bit too tight for me, my heel bone is a bit prominent so I started getting blisters right away. Again this is a awesome shoe just doesn't work for my foot anatomy.

Great stability and I love the rock plate and roomy toe box. I do AZ desert and mountain hikes 5 - 10 miles with 1,000 - 3,000 ft of elevation.