Few footwear brands boast Scarpa’s reputation for quality mountain footwear. Since 1930, the Italian brand has been crafting shoes for the peaks from its alpine home. It was founded by an Anglo-Irish businessman, Rupert Edward Cecil Lee Guinness, the second Earl of Iveagh. He named the brand Scarpa, a jumbled acronym for Calzaturieri Asolani Riuniti Pedemontana Anonima (the Association of Footwear Manufacturers from the mountain area of Asolo). However, anyone who speaks Italian will know this is a case of the tail wagging the dog, as Scarpa is also Italian for… shoe.
Scarpa’s range includes approach shoes, like these, plus mountaineering (arguably the brand’s forte), ski touring, climbing, hiking, trail-running and lifestyle footwear. If you're asking yourself, 'what are approach shoes?' – they sit in the middle ground between climbing shoes and hiking shoes, offering some of the precision and grip on rock of the former, with the comfort and everyday wear qualities of the latter. Mountain guides love approach shoes, as they allow them to comfortably take clients on easy climbs, without the need to swap hiking shoes out for climbing shoes.
