Under the guise of a "simple" rando boot, it turns out - like its big brother the Salomon S-Lab X Alp Carbon GTX - to be a marvel of versatility. Its technology combines not only comfort and design, but also - and above all! - technicality and safety. These Salomon X ALP MNT GTX will quickly become indispensable for your outdoor outings.

Julien: The Sentiers du Phoenix team is expanding. Aurélie, my partner, will bring the feminine touch to this blog by proposing tests and articles which, I'm sure, will speak to more than one reader of this blog ;).

Technical data: Salomon X ALP MNT GTX

• Footwear: less race-oriented than its S-Lab siblings, it offers much greater support with its high upper, even though it retains an extremely precise fit and much greater flexibility than the competition.

• Non-Marking Mountaineering Contragrip sole: this sole has been designed specifically for the X-alp series. It makes these shoes ideal partners for rough or snowy mountain terrain.

• Overall foot protection: the boot is fully reinforced to allow safe passage over scree and to accommodate crampons.

• Carbon Edging Chassis is a carbon frame that prevents your foot from bending sideways, while guaranteeing foot flexibility in the direction of travel. It's this increased stability, together with the reinforced front and rear parts of the foot, that provide solid support when climbing or cramping.

• Gore-Tex and Cordura: keep your feet dry whatever the situation.

In the field

Salomon is now used to surprising people with the lightness of its products, without compromising on the quality or strength of the materials used. It's an established fact among many trail runners and mountain enthusiasts: Salomon offers lightweight shoes.

But... it had to be done for a technical boot designed for the mountains! A high-top boot that's solid, secure and breathable, that you can barely feel - and believe me, I've tested more than one! This is quite a feat.

In terms of design and conception, the quality of the finishes is also impressive.

We'll have to see what happens in practice over the long term...

On the trails of the Ardennes...

As a Belgian hiker, my first steps with the X Alps were on kilometers of Ardennes trails. Mud, soft snow, gravel, mud, a bit of slippery macadam, a bit of ice, a stone and... a lot of mud.

A curious observation for the clumsy me: no spills to be deplored. This bodes well for the future. In fact, it's time to give them some height...

Towards snowy summits...

With the call of the mountains, I was soon able to put them to the test on their favourite terrain.
terrain. Hiking in the mountains (to set the scene, let's say an average of 5 to 6 hours walking a day, without fast-hiking but without dawdling) mostly got the better of my little feet.

Sometimes ankle boots "tire" my ankles, sometimes classic hiking shoes turn the sole of my foot into a garland of blisters, or even minimalist trail shoes (yes, when you're picky you like to try out a multitude of things... but flip-flops, I'll pass, thanks) which are obviously cruelly lacking in comfort in the scree slopes. I'm not even going to mention the age-old problem of lacing, which has to be optimal before you set off.

But with the X Alps MTN GTX, NADA, NOTHING. Thanks to the flexibility of the fit,
no blisters, no distressed toes after hours and days of walking and climbing.

You and me, hiker friend, we know it's worth all the gold in the world.

In addition to this trivial and primordial aspect of foot blisters, and without dwelling on the olfactory question
olfactory issue - although a comparative study could provide material for a future test - for which every hiker cultivates no hope of improvement (when he or she doesn't derive unavowable satisfaction from it), I insist above all on the reliability of these shoes.

If you're lucky enough to know the right size (there's already a world of difference between your street shoes and your runnings, so finding the ideal size for your hiking boots, knowing that it still differs from brand to brand...), they can simply do it all. They stand up to steep mountain paths, they don't flinch in technical passages, they're fearsomely precise on rocks, they've got good grip, and they guide you through the snow. All this, for hours on end, their lightness being a real asset against fatigue, and an ally in the face of uneven terrain.

All the way to the top?

Right up to the top, yes. A simple rando boot that doesn't have that characteristic overhang at the heel. To get to the very top of the mountain, you'll need strap crampons (like the Grivel Air-Tech Light used by Julien or the new 2016 model) with flexible bars.

Personally, I didn't go that far. I left - somewhat reluctantly - "the 4000", the ropes and crampons to my more experienced companions, who were more at ease in a challenging environment than I was. But it was with disconcerting ease that they made their way from the valley to the summit without encountering the slightest problem with their footwear.

How long until the Salomon X ALP MNT GTX?

I've been introducing them to a number of trails for a year now (the Ardennes paths are steeper than you'd think, the Alps are steeper than you'd think, or the invisible "traces of passage" in the Norwegian wilderness) and they've hardly moved a muscle - I'd go so far as to say they're asking for more!

Admittedly, the sole is no longer new, but it still has hundreds of miles on it. No damage to be reported to the reinforced parts on the outside of the shoe, nor to the inside; the Gore-Tex membrane is still doing its job. At best, the pronounced colors of the women's model (the men's model, where black dominates, is less affected) fade over the course of adventures, but this in no way detracts from the shoe's properties.

I'll be using them again and again without hesitation... until version 2.0 comes out sooner or later!