Salewa Raven 3

Comfort 4.4: The Raven 3 makes easy work of long hauls. A TPU-injected midsole is forgiving on feet but can still handle multiday loads, and a foam-padded cuff adds cushion, allowing one tester to tackle a 7-mile approach to New Zealand’s 12,218-foot Aoraki via a dry riverbed. “I didn’t get any hot spots,” he reported after a summit day that covered 5,000 feet of elevation gain.

Durability 2.8: The Raven 3’s rubber rand and TPU toecap protect the front and back of the boot, but its suede-and-nylon upper began fraying after a month of hard use.

Stability/support 4.6: This boot’s nylon-and-fiberglass shank is the stiffest in the test (the Garmont Ascent’s outsole makes that boot stiffer overall), and it provides rigidity that can even handle vertical ice: “I soloed all five pitches and felt confident the entire time,” said one tester after climbing Utah’s Great White Icicle.

Overall: 3.9