Gear Review:

Salomon Quest 4 Gore-Tex Women’s Hiking Boots

Pros:

Comfortable out of the box

Great lacing system with locking feature

Good customer service when filing a warranty claim

Cons:

Gore-Tex did not hold up to moisture, but based on my successful warranty claim, I imagine I just got a faulty pair

Summary:

Worn May 2021 – October 2022 for over 1000km

I bought the Salomon Quest 4 Gore-Tex Women’s Hiking Boots because I needed a backpacking boot with a wider toe after getting too many blisters in my Under Armour Newell Ridge Mid Gore-Tex boots. (It’s worth noting that my mom used her matching pair of Under Armour boots to death from 2018 to 2022 and loved them, but they were just too narrow for me.) My research online suggested that the Quest 4s were wider, and they received a lot of high praise on some of my favourite review sites, so it seemed like a good fit for my needs.

They were comfortable straight out of the box, and I quickly fell in love with the lace lock system once I got the hang of it. They served me well on my muddy Western Uplands trip in 2021, but they didn’t get properly wet until the early days of my Bruce Trail end-to-end in 2022. I had read that the Gore-Tex on these boots was so good you could actually immerse them and stay dry, but mine got soaked from a stretch of completely saturated tall grass, and then promptly started coming apart at the seams.

I continued wearing these boots for the rest of the 900 km trail, but once I got home I filed a warranty claim. I provided a lot of very detailed information to customer service, (I have included their questions below) and was ultimately successful. They sent me a voucher which was restricted to being used for replacement boots. The voucher also wouldn’t let me use any remainder on other products if I bought boots that were less expensive than the Quest 4s. This was fine though, because I decided I wanted to try their Forces line instead, which is at a slightly higher price point.

So, my next pair are the Quest 4D Gore-Tex Forces 2 EN boots. I figured tactical boots have to be as good or better than hikers. The only thing that concerns me is that they are sized for men. They definitely need breaking in still, and were not comfortable out of the box like their hiking cousins. I’m looking forward to putting some kilometres on them and seeing how they compare.

Price: $289.95 CAD (Price listed before tax.)

Warranty Claim Process:

1. Photo of the pair of shoes

2. Photo of the damaged area (If the damage cannot be seen, please briefly explain the issue you are experiencing)

3. Photo of the soles (treads) of the shoes

4. A photo of the manufacturing details. (These can be found on the tag sewn onto the underside of the shoe tongue or in some cases sewn onto the inside upper of the shoe). 

5. A copy of your proof of purchase*(this can also be cc statement or order confirmation email as long as they include the date of purchase) *Please note that the warranty period is 2 years from the purchase date. If your product was purchased more than 2 years ago you will not be eligible to file a warranty claim.

6. Please explain what type of terrain and for what activities have you used the shoes/boots for?

• How did the issue appear?
• What type of terrain did you use the shoes on?
• What type of activities did you do?