TREKKING
Product 2021
Lady
The Millet brand offers us a new ankle-high shoe model, the G Trek GR5 Gore-tex, with a Vibram semi-rigid sole designed for mountain trekking.
We put it to the test high-altitude trekking on chaotic and technical terrain. We tested the ladies’ model, which is narrow and adapted to women’s morphology and they are also equipped with two removable insoles for an even more precise adjustment to the foot width.
It has a nice, tapered lines, and sober colors: gray highlighted with orange or blue. An ergonomically compact and narrow shoe that is snug fitting to improve precision, and also partly to compensate for the semi-rigidity that hinders the foot’s stride.
When you’re hiking, they follow the movement well. Lacing is easy thanks to the hooks which let the laces slide easily and you can block them at mid-height. The non-slip laces grip well enabling accurate adjustment. The high, wide and thick tongue protects the ankles and forefoot perfectly. It gives good comfort, and support, you feel like the ankle is well held.
The inside padded, semi-rigid upper provides comfort and stability, a real plus to avoid lateral torsion problems, especially since the sole at the heel on these mountain models is not very wide. The G Trek GR5 GTX has limited cushioning, which is normal for this type of stiff-built shoe intended for aggressive, rocky terrain.
A rubber stone guard goes high enough around the shoe for good protection. However, on the front it lacks a bit above the toes. The sole has all Vibram’s qualities of grip and strength, a hard rubber with deep molded lugs, to grip well on unstable terrain, dirt, and scree.
The inner edges of the sole are smooth for better precision on rock, which gives this model qualities useful for summer mountaineering, in addition, as the G Trek GR5 GTX is semi-rigid, it is compatible with crampons. On the other hand, because of this rigidity, it is more tiring than flexible shoes on trails with little drop. But in technical, hilly terrain, it feels more reassuring.
They resist well against water, only water that collects on the upper at the front will end up soaking the padded tongue, which saturates, and so you get slight humidity. The breathability from the Gore-tex membrane works well, we did only experience rather cool temperatures on our excursions, which did not enable us to fully test this area. The good thermal protection classifies the G Trek GR5 GTX as three season, mid-mountain products; and in winter, it is perfect for snowshoeing.
Relatively light with a weight of around 600g per shoe, it is in the lower weight range for this type of model. The price is average, and a fair price considering the quality of the finishes which, if they are confirmed over time, means it is a shoe made to last.
A technical, precise, semi-rigid trekking shoe, you can attach crampons for snow, ice, or for summer mountaineering. Well designed, light and precise in your foot strike, especially on rocky passages. The G Trek GR5 GTX are good, comfortable, solid mountain shoes, perfect for tough treks on the GR5, GR20, TMB or/and mountaineering.
We used this equipment over a long period of time
These are our thoughts after intensive use:
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