Lems - Trail Blazer

Very disappointing to find out you're correct. Was trying Lems as a transitional option since they're a bit thicker, but they're narrower than my Keens and Oboz. Also they've never heard of speed hooks I guess.

Not the Primals. These Trail Blazers are built on a narrower last.

Lems are hilariously narrow for being a barefoot shoe. There ever so slightly wider than xero and vivo, which are already pretty narrow. I'd recommend Softstar, Realfoot, and Bohempia for shoes that are actually wide

yeah the trailblazers were narrow for me and my foot is pretty low volume

They said these were wide. I got a women’s 9 and normally wear an 8.5, I don’t know if I should just return them.

Yes, return them. They're too narrow to you. Okay, maybe they wouldn't be if you would size up like two sizes or something, but you shouldn't get shoes longer than those either. I though Lems to be unisex. Some brands have women's shoes as more narrow, so if there is men's sizes for you that could be better. You could ask them.

I've tried on the new Trail Blazer, and they are indeed narrow in the toe box for a "minimal" shoe. I compared them to several other Lems shoes with the "Wide" last, and the Trail Blazers were the most narrow of the bunch. This is pretty disappointing, but my observation was that sizing in length so that you have about a thumb's width of room in front of your big toe, the toe box is wide enough for my "D" width foot. Generally speaking, I think Lems makes fantastic shoes, but if you are looking for durability you gotta choose a model with a leather upper. All of the models with synthetic or canvas uppers just won't last very long. Same goes for Xero shoes, which I find to be inferior to Lems in quality, but they offer way more models that are actually low stack height and "minimal".

I’m quite the fan of Altra for travel. Not sure about the newer models but the sole detached in a few places quite abruptly after about a year of use. I’ve been looking at the [Lem’s Trail Blazer](https://www.lemsshoes.com/products/mens-trail-blazer) for quite a while. They have some more subtle colorway options but I think it could be a potential one shoe travel shoe even in water. Tried on a pair while visiting Boulder, CO and they felt solid. Like really well built.

I wear Danner Mountain Light II boots when it's cold or the weather sucks. When it's hot I wear zero drop trail shoes, Xero or Lems. Pros and cons to all of them. Sometimes I wear Jim Green boots as well if I don't need waterproof or lots of traction (Ranger boots). IMO, there is no 'one size fits all' shoe for hiking.

I have 2 pairs of Lems and I don’t think they would survive a single overnight trip. I love them for daily wear though.

I bought some Lems and they are not at all for wide feet. Really surprised me. My toes were going numb.

Trail runners will do all of the above. Been very happy with Lems

Lems are great. Not zero drop, and the sole is a little thicker than xero, but they're super comfy and hold up well to a lot of hiking

Lems rock. So do Vivobarefoots that have the Michelin soles. The ones without Michelin soles wear out too quickly.

I tried Lems and found they have too much fabric in the vamp and my foot rolls in them. I’m a woman with long narrow feet (quite elegant in dress shoes) and unisex sizing in shoes doesn’t fit. Saloman has unisex sizing. Altra women’s shoes are a good fit. I like Giesswein too. Minimal soles are good. Friends like Hoka; I don’t. Everyone loves On Cloud and they are too wide for me. ASICS run narrow and are my running shoes; otherwise I prefer a level footbed. I’m heading to Greece in two days with Altra Escalante (travel shoes and great for long treks in airports) and Giesswein minimal wool sneakers and Xero women’s D Trail sandals in my bag.

I played for a couple years with Primal 2s, Lems have treated me good so far.