With their forgiving last and rounded toe, the Method isn’t the most precise shoe, nor is it meant to be. But they were plenty comfortable, with good ventilation thanks to the split, woven tongue. And they did stealthy-good heel hooking thanks to the 3D molded heel cup, which was deep and supportive without being overbearing. The shoes are also well-crafted — especially for the price — and will hold up well to multiple resoles. In fact, the Black Diamond Method may only improve with age by..." go to full review

The SCARPA Vapor Lace-Up shares a niche with shoes like La Sportiva’s Katana Lace and TC Pro, and the Five Ten NIAD Lace.  But it offers a thin, 3.5mm sole and a slightly softer, more sensitive feel — for the genre. They are an amazingly light, breathable edging shoe with solid crossover into midsize jamming and slightly overhanging rock, both sport and trad. They were ideal for almost all granite venues, as well as sandstone face-and-crack areas like Eldorado Canyon, Colo...." go to full review

La Sportiva has been a staple in the climbing shoe industry for decades, and the Skwama Vegan is another example of them pushing industry standards. The La Sportiva Skwama Vegan possesses all of the performance, double the comfort, and potentially half of the guilt compared to the originals. It’s great to see a company make such an excellent shoe in a vegan-friendly way without any performance compromise. These will be my new go-to steep climbing and bouldering shoes.go to full review