adidas Terrex Trailmaker 2 GTX Review | 3 Years On

Name: adidas Terrex Trailmaker 2 GORE-TEX
Brand: adidas

I bought the adidas Terrex Trailmaker 2 GORE-TEX to stand on a football touchline, not to hike. This is my own pair, worn for three years, and this review is built on that time rather than a week of testing or a spec sheet. My son plays football, I spend a lot of Saturdays standing in long wet grass while he does, and my feet were freezing. I bought these to fix that one problem. With a pair of warm socks they were so good at it that I started reaching for them everywhere, and eventually they changed my mind about waterproof shoes entirely.

That matters, because I was the last person who should have liked these. For years I was a committed lightweight, breathable-trainer hiker. I accepted wet feet in even light rain as the fair price of a fast, airy shoe, and I was sceptical that a waterproof shoe was worth the heat and the extra weight. The Trailmaker 2 converted me. If you want dry feet on wet UK ground and you are not sure a membrane shoe is worth it, this is the review I wish I had read before I stayed stubborn for as long as I did.

Who the Trailmaker 2 is for

This is a waterproof trail trainer, and after three years in mine I would point you at it if you are:

A UK hiker who wants dry feet across the wet half of the year, which here is most of it
After a do-most-things shoe for coast path, downland and mixed trail on any day you do not want the weight of a boot
Someone who values grip and dry feet over shaving off every last gram
Looking for a waterproof shoe that will not fall apart, at around £90 rather than well over £100

It is not the shoe for you if outright lightness is your priority. My Salomon Speedcross is noticeably lighter and if you run the flat sections or count grams, you will feel the difference over a long day. It is also a warmer shoe than a breathable trainer in high summer, as any GORE-TEX shoe is. For dry, hot days I still reach for something airier. For everything else, this is the one on my feet.

The waterproofing that converted me

Here is the turnaround these caused. I did not expect much. I thought a GORE-TEX shoe would trap heat, weigh me down and only pay off in a downpour. What I was shocked by was how completely they kept my feet dry, day after day, in exactly the conditions that soak a breathable trainer: long wet grass, heavy dew, light rain and shallow mud.

Standing on a sodden touchline for ninety minutes is a harder test of a shoe's waterproofing than it sounds, and mine passed it every week. Once I trusted them there, I started wearing them on the Jurassic Coast and other trails on any day I did not want a boot, and the same thing held. Dry feet, walk after walk, through the sort of damp UK ground I had spent years just accepting I would get wet in.

The GORE-TEX membrane is what does it, and it is the real thing rather than a budget brand membrane. The trade-off is the one every waterproof shoe carries: they run warmer than a mesh trainer, and if water ever does come in over the collar it stays in rather than draining. In three years of UK walking I have almost never got water in over the top, because our problem is wet ground, not wading. For that, the waterproofing earns its place the moment conditions turn, which in this country is often.

Grip on wet chalk and grass

The grip is the part I still talk about. These are amazingly grippy, and I did not expect that from a shoe at this price. The outsole is Continental rubber, the tyre company, and on wet chalk and wet grass it holds in a way that has never once let me down on a descent.

That is not a small thing where I walk. The Jurassic Coast and the Purbeck downland are chalk and limestone, and wet chalk is one of the most treacherous surfaces a UK hiker meets. It goes slick and greasy the moment it is damp, and plenty of shoes that grip fine on dry rock will skate on it. The Trailmaker has never given me that heart-in-mouth slip on a steep wet descent, and after three years of trusting it on that exact ground, I plant my feet on it without thinking. For a shoe at around £90, the grip genuinely outperforms what I paid.

Weight vs my Speedcross

I will be straight about the one place these lose out. They are a little heavier than my Salomon Speedcross 6, and over a long hike you do notice it. Weight on your feet is the tiredness you feel in the last few kilometres, not the first, and on a long day the Speedcross feels lighter and faster underfoot.

So if outright lightness is what you are chasing, the Speedcross wins, and it is the shoe I still reach for on dry days and soft, muddy ground. But that is the only category where it beats the Trailmaker for me, and the Speedcross is not waterproof in the standard version. When the conditions turn wet, which is the whole point of the Trailmaker, the small weight penalty is a trade I make happily. Dry, warm feet for the sake of a few grams is not a hard sum.

Three years on: the durability verdict

This is where the Trailmaker has earned its place at the top of my list, and it is the part you cannot get from a shop try-on. I have owned and worn these for three years of near-constant use: football touchlines week in and week out, trails, dog walks and everything in between. They have taken a hammering.

Only now, after all of that, has a small area at the front started letting a little moisture in. That is the first and only sign of the waterproofing giving way, and it has taken three years of punishment to get there. For what these shoes have been put through, that is remarkable. Most trainers I have owned were worn out or leaking long before this, and these still keep the great majority of my walks dry. I still wear them all the time, and that longevity is a large part of why they are my pick for the best waterproof shoe I own.

Specs

Waterproofing: GORE-TEX membrane
Outsole: Continental Rubber
Midsole: EVA
Fit: Standard, secure
UK price: ~£90

I have deliberately left the weight and drop off this list rather than quote figures I cannot stand behind. What I can tell you from three years on my feet is that they are a touch heavier than a lightweight trail trainer like the Speedcross, and that the standard fit has held my foot securely without hotspots across long days and hard use.

Pros and cons

GORE-TEX waterproofing that genuinely keeps feet dry on wet UK ground
Superb grip on wet chalk and grass from the Continental rubber outsole
Never let me down on a wet descent in three years
Remarkable durability: only a small leak at the front after three years of hard use
Secure, comfortable standard fit
Strong value at around £90 for the waterproofing and grip you get

Heavier than a lightweight trail trainer like the Speedcross, and you feel it on long days
Runs warmer than a breathable mesh shoe in high summer, as any GORE-TEX shoe does
After three years, a small area at the front has started letting a little moisture in

Best for

The best waterproof walking shoe for UK hikers who want dry feet across the wet half of the year, on coast path, downland and mixed trail, without paying over £100 or stepping up to a boot.

Verdict: my best waterproof pick

The adidas Terrex Trailmaker 2 GORE-TEX is the shoe that converted a committed breathable-trainer hiker into someone who reaches for a waterproof shoe by default. I bought them to stop my feet freezing on a football touchline and they did that so well I ended up trusting them on the Jurassic Coast and everywhere else. Three years later they are still on my feet most weeks.

They keep water out, they grip wet chalk and grass better than a £90 shoe has any right to, and they have survived three years of constant abuse with only the first small sign of a leak. The only real compromise is weight: they are heavier than my Speedcross and you notice it on a long hike. For me that is a fair price for dry, secure feet when the ground turns wet, which in the UK it usually is. They are my pick for the best waterproof walking shoe I own, and I recommend them without hesitation.

Rating: 4.6 / 5

Buy the adidas Terrex Trailmaker 2 GTX on Amazon

adidas Terrex shoes at Blacks

Prices pulled live from Blacks, updated daily. Links are affiliate links.

adidas Men's Supernova Solution 2.0 Running Shoes

£69.97

adidas Men's Supernova Solution 3 Running Shoes

£79.97

adidas Infants Tensaur Sport Hook and Loop Shoes

£16.07

adidas Kids' Tensaur 2.0 Sport Training Shoes

£20.97

FAQ

Is the adidas Terrex Trailmaker 2 waterproof?

Yes, and properly so. It uses a GORE-TEX membrane rather than a budget brand waterproofing, and in three years of my own use it has kept my feet dry through long wet grass, dew, light rain and shallow mud, which is the ground that soaks a breathable trainer. I was sceptical of waterproof shoes before I owned these, and the Trailmaker changed my mind. Only after three years of near-constant wear has a small area at the front started to let a little moisture in.

Are the adidas Terrex Trailmaker 2 good for hiking?

Yes. I did not originally buy mine for hiking, but once I trusted the waterproofing I started wearing them on the Jurassic Coast and other trails on any day I did not want a boot. The Continental rubber outsole grips wet chalk and grass confidently, the GORE-TEX keeps your feet dry, and the fit is secure over long days. It is a do-most-things waterproof trail trainer rather than a heavy-duty mountain shoe, and for general UK day hiking that suits most people well.

How grippy is the adidas Terrex Trailmaker 2?

Very. The outsole is Continental rubber, the tyre company, and it holds on wet chalk and wet grass in a way I did not expect at this price. Wet chalk is one of the most treacherous surfaces a UK hiker meets, and in three years of walking the Purbeck downland and the Jurassic Coast in mine the Trailmaker has never let me down on a descent. The grip genuinely outperforms the roughly £90 you pay.

adidas Terrex Trailmaker 2 or Salomon Speedcross: which should I buy?

It depends on the ground and the weather. The Speedcross is lighter and faster on the foot, with aggressive lugs for soft, muddy ground, and it is my pick for dry days and pace, but the standard version is not waterproof. The Trailmaker 2 is a little heavier, and you notice that on a long day, but it is waterproof and grips wet chalk superbly. If you want one shoe for wet UK conditions and dry feet, buy the Trailmaker. If lightness and dry-day speed matter most, the Speedcross wins.

How long do the adidas Terrex Trailmaker 2 last?

Mine have taken three years of near-constant use across football touchlines, trails and everything in between, and only now has a small area at the front started letting a little moisture in. For the punishment they have had, that is remarkable durability. Most trainers I have owned were worn out well before this point, and I still wear these all the time, which is a large part of why they are my pick for the best waterproof shoe I own.

The Trailmaker 2 is my best waterproof pick in the best walking shoes UK 2026 guide, where I compare it against the Merrell Moab 3, my Speedcross and the rest of the field. For more low-cut options, browse the full walking shoes section.

Share X / Twitter Facebook

Found this useful?

Coast & Fell is independent and reader-supported. If something here saved you time or a bad buy, you can buy me a coffee. Thank you, from Maple and me.