Essentially, Boost is a foam-based midsole that offers large amounts of cushioning throughout to give a springy feeling – as though you’re being boosted… along. It makes for an impressive amount of comfort on the trails. You’ll definitely be thankful for the rebound of the Boost technology when you have miles ahead of you.

We did a bit of testing here at Outdoors Magic and actually found the foam was very, very durable. We even tried to slice through it with a knife and found it resisted ably. Rocks and roots? This sole will deal with those, no problem.

Protecting the Boost midsole from the ground beneath is a Continental (as in the car tyre company) rubber outsole. It’s a tough tread with fairly aggressive 5mm lugs. Nothing too dissimilar to what you’d expect to find on a trail running shoe.

Tester’s Verdict

Will Renwick, Outdoors Magic editor

“I was impressed by the original Free Hiker and I’m impressed with this new version as well. The difference between the performance of both of them is negligible, they’re basically the same shoe, just this new version is eco-friendlier.

“The cuff works brilliantly in keeping out any dirt or debris – it’s far more reliable than your standard walking boot in this department. It’s also very comfortable, extremely breathable (great for summer hiking) and it dries out reasonably quickly. The toe bumper, while minimal, is still impressively solid as well. One problem I had with the original Free Hikers, and this pair as well, is that the thin upper does crease easily along the toe mound and this means I can feel it pressing down a bit when I’m walking up steep slopes. With my original pair, this caused the material to eventually fray a bit, and I know my colleague had the same problem. It hasn’t happened yet with this Parley version but I expect it will eventually.

“As for the sole unit, that gets a big thumbs up from me. If you like a soft and highly cushioned sole, then you’ll certainly appreciate what the boost offers. Longevity? After over a year of using my last pair, the cushioning is still there. I expect, as is the case with Boost running shoes, it might start to dwindle a bit further down the line however.

“The outsole is good – no problems there. It really is just like a running shoe, and I don’t been in terms of traction but in the way it works with the midsole to give a gentle rock to it as well.

“What’s it suited to then? Long distance trail hiking, definitely. Also just general UK summer hillwalking when you know the ground is dry or at least dry-ish.