I have owned a this pair of shoes for over a year now and wear them to work everyday, which is to say I walk through the thickest off-trail woods northwest Florida can muster and the smilax hasn't been able to shred them yet. So after 40 hours a week in the woods that have no trails (I'm a CRM archaeologist, its what we do) for a straight year, these things are still holding strong. In my line of work a pair of snake boots only lasts about 6 months, so needless to say I'm impressed. Yes, they are ugly, but are by far the most functional shoe I have ever taken into the woods!