Check out our Altra Lone Peak 8 review for the latest on the Lone Peak family of trail running shoes.
Our Favorite Trail Running Shoes
Check out our Best Trail Running Shoes article to learn about our current favorite trail running shoes!
Altra Lone Peak 6 Review
The Altra Lone Peak 6 ($140) is a zero-drop shoe with a 25-millimeter stack height midsole built on the Altra EGO foam. It is the original foot shape, which means it is a more generous fit than Altra’s slimmer, athletic fit.
It has the MaxTrac lugged outsole, which is a fairly aggressive, luggy outsole that’s suitable for a variety of terrain and uses. This version is pared down and lighter than the previous version, by almost an ounce and a half. The actual weight for a men’s size 9 is 9.4 ounces (267 grams). The sizing is a little strange, and it fits a little smaller than the Altra Lone Peak 5 — look back at our Altra Lone Peak 5 review for more information on the previous model and its sizing.
In this video review, we’ll look at the latest offering in the enduring Lone Peak line, the Altra Lone Peak 6.
Also, the iRunFar team loves this shoe enough that we named it one of the top shoes in our best trail running shoes guide!
Shop the Men's Altra Lone Peak 6Shop the Women's Altra Lone Peak 6
Altra Lone Peak 6 Review Transcript
Hey, and welcome to Trail Trials, the video review section of iRunFar. My name is Travis Liles and in this video, we’re looking at the Altra Lone Peak 6.
The Altra Lone Peak 6. All photos: iRunFar/Bryon Powell
Altra Lone Peak 6 Outsole
Let’s start by talking about the outsole of the Altra Lone Peak 6. If you’re familiar with the Altra Lone Peak model, this is going to look familiar to you. It has the exact same look and feel as the previous version, the Lone Peak 5. In fact, there haven’t been a lot of changes over the years in this outsole. It uses the MaxTrac compound, a good general-purpose material. It’s not overly sticky or overly firm, it sits in the middle. You should expect a medium life expectancy, in terms of wear and tear of the outsole.
It uses the TrailClaw system, which works by placing fairly deep lugs at the front of the shoe so that when your toes grip down, it creates a claw-like grip. The shoe has plenty of semi-aggressive lugs. They are forward-facing at the toes, in the middle of the shoe they start to transition, and then you have rear-facing lugs in the back. There is also the continued design language of the trail rudder, though not as aggressive as it’s been in years past.
This outsole, this tread pattern, all of it I think works well in most scenarios. It excelled in dirt and mud, and then also on dry rocks. Where I didn’t feel the most confident on it was when I was on slicker material, slick wood, going over a log or wet rocks in a creek where they’re slick and slimy. This was an area where I felt like my foot didn’t stay firm and to the ground all the time.
But, overall, I think this is a good general-purpose outsole for most activities and most terrain. If you know this shoe, you’re very familiar with it, and probably have used it in a ton of different scenarios and know its strengths and weaknesses.
The outsole of the Altra Lone Peak 6.
Altra Lone Peak 6 Midsole
The midsole of the Altra Lone Peak 6 uses the Altra EGO Foam midsole, which is a more advanced type of foam versus the standard EVA. This is a little bouncier, or a little more springy, and has a responsive feel to it. It is a single-density foam all the way through. It is 25 millimeters in its depth, or stack height, and that foam is exactly the same all the way around the shoe, with no extra firm portion up front or softer padding in the heel.
This version feels a little sportier and a little springier compared to the Lone Peak 5. This might be owing to the rigidity of the rock plate, or perhaps the firmness of the foam is a little bit different. The fact that it’s an ounce lighter is also likely a contributing factor, but this shoe just seems a little bit more responsive and faster feeling than the previous version did.
From a rocker standpoint, it’s a zero-drop shoe. There’s no carbon plate, but there is a little additional foam underneath the heel, similar to version 5.
A medial view of the Altra Lone Peak 6.
Altra Lone Peak 6 Upper
As we move up to the upper of the Altra Lone Peak 6, this is where the sweet spot is. Altra is known for their big toeboxes that let your toes wiggle and give your foot plenty of room to do what it’s meant to do. That’s very present here. This is known as the original fit.
This is the widest, most generous fitting of all of Altra’s shoes and there’s effectively three kinds of fit. There’s original, standard, and slim. The fit of this shoe is in the original category, the fit that most people associate with Altra.
The upper of the shoe is where the most amount of change is from the previous version. The Lone Peak 5 contained a lot of stitching and thicker material throughout, with reinforced areas all over the shoe. This added some structure to the shoe but also a considerable amount of weight.
When we look at the Lone Peak 6, what we note is that threaded material, it’s here but it’s only in this one spot here for laces and I’ll talk about that in a second. Overall, you have this bonded, rubberized material that’s creating the cage of the shoe. Lots of shoe manufacturers are getting away from extra fabric overlays and moving toward this kind of bonded material.
It’s really created the entire wrap for the midfoot, except for the laces, which are adjustable. There is an anchor, if you will, sewn onto the upper and it gives a little bit of flexibility to create a different fit. Let’s say the shoe maybe feels too baggy on the outside, you can use the outermost eyelet and it’s going to sink down a little bit farther and create a better wrap on your foot than the standard lacing. It’s an interesting way of addressing the fit of a shoe so that you’re getting a lighter weight shoe while still getting some of that flexibility to lock down the upper, without having to have a bunch of overlays.
When we flip around back to the heel area, it has a very malleable, pliable heel cup. There’s a loop to pull the shoe on and Velcro for attaching a gaiter. The only place where there’s any type of structure really is the area around the heel, but everything up to that point is very much collapsible and flexible. That’s really the whole crux of this shoe design: flexible and collapsible.
Up on the toe we’ve got good protection. There is some of that sewn overlay here, which adds some structure to the toe as well as protection. But the changes are, there’s some holes all the way through, which lets water escape. I did find these did a much better job of getting water out of the shoe than the previous version, which had a much heavier overlay. Here there’s just more ways for water to escape, while still maintaining some level of stiffness.
The last thing I’ll call out is the tongue. The tongue is the same as the previous version. It is padded slightly, probably what I call medium padding. It’s not super thin, it’s not super thick. It’s kind of right there in the middle. It does a nice job of keeping the pressure off the top of your feet. It is gusseted, and keeps the grit and grime from getting inside the shoe.
A lateral view of the Altra Lone Peak 6.
Altra Lone Peak 6 Overall Impressions
With that said, let’s look at final impressions of the Altra Lone Peak 6. In closing, if you’re a fan of the Altra Lone Peak model in general, I think what you’re going to find the main change going from version 5 to version 6 is just a slimmed-down upper. It cuts a little bit of weight. I feel like it drains better because there are just more areas for water and sweat to get out.
If you were hoping for an update on MaxTrac, it’s the same. It’s the same outsole as last time and it’s enough for most cases, but I always say this because I live in the Pacific Northwest, in the US. Slick, smooth stuff is not this shoe’s friend. In fact, I always found myself thinking I’ve got the confidence and then I hit something, and my foot kind of slides out. It’s not terrible. It’s not like ice skates like some other brands of tread, but it’s just not there in that instance.
I felt confident running on dry terrain, running in some sticky mud or even some dry gravel and things were going great, and then I hit something slick or wet and my foot would slip out from under me a little bit. But overall, if you’re not getting into that type of terrain too often, these will do just fine.
There is plenty of protection in here, I never really felt like my foot was getting beat up. I liked the feel of this Altra EGO Foam. It’s a more sporty, bouncy foam. I think it makes this shoe a little bit more approachable.
But with that in mind, if you’re someone just getting into the zero-drop game, this shoe will take you longer to get used to because it is a much lower stack. Altra has several other trail running shoes, the Olympus and the Timp, that have larger stacks in the midsole that make that zero-drop feel less than this does. This is definitely one for me that I can feel in my calves and my Achilles after wearing it for extended periods of time.
For me, someone who is not a zero-drop person all the time, this is a shoe that’s in my quiver. I add it to the mix when I want to run fast and try to be agile and work on foot speed and get a little more of a natural feel, where my foot can do its thing — or even for a slower, recovery run. This kind of fits in that mix.
I also enjoy wearing them for walking around post-run. I always like a good pair of Altras for that. If you’re familiar with this shoe, I think you’re going to like what’s going on from the Lone Peak 5 to the Lone Peak 6.
The only caveat I’ll make is that this size 8.5 fits like an 8.5. In the previous Lone Peak 5, the men’s size 8.5 fit like a 9. Comparing last year’s version to this year’s version, this Lone Peak 6 is about a half size shorter in the ones that I have.
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Call for Comments
- What are your feelings on the Altra Lone Peak 6?
- Are you liking the update? Are you not liking the update?
- Are there other Altra shoes that you’re more interested in and why?
[Editor’s Note: If you’re affiliated (i.e., an employee, ambassador, etc.) with a shoe brand, please share your relation in each of your comments on this article. Thanks!]
Our Favorite Trail Running Shoes
Check out our Best Trail Running Shoes article to learn about our current favorite trail running shoes!
A top view of the Altra Lone Peak 6.
