Crocs are amazing shoes in a lot of situations. They’re great for casual lounging on lazy afternoons, working in the backyard garden, or relaxing at camp after a long hike. Heck, we know a few folks in the office who like to slip into them while at their desk, with their feet away from sight. The Crocs Tembo II RO looks to make the molded foam clog even more suited for the backcountry.
On its own, Crocs are already incredible outdoor shoes. They don’t absorb moisture, they float in the water, they’re easy to clean, they’re very breathable, and they slip on-and-off without a fuss. With this one, they turned the humble slip-on into a potentially viable four-season outdoor footwear.
The Crocs Tembo II RO takes on the familiar clog silhouette as the popular Classic Croc, albeit without the open back or the heel strap traditionally found on the silhouette. That means, it’s a bit more closed than the basic clogs, which is important because they decided to give the shoe a Polartec bootie liner to keep your feet toasty during cold weather. That means, you don’t need to slip on a pair of socks for warmth during colder days out, since Polartec’s liners are vaunted for their immaculate insulation. Seriously, a pair of toasty Crocs feel like the best camp shoe for colder days outdoors.
To make it usable during hot days, the liner is removable (it attaches to the shoe using a front strap that secures to one of the vents), so you can simply take it off any time you don’t need the additional warmth. That same removable design should make it easy to clean, as well, which is plenty convenient. Can you put on Jibbitz with the sock liner? From what we can tell, it looks like that can work without affecting the overall fit all that much.
The Crocs Tembo II RO doesn’t use the same molded Croslite foam covering the entire upper all throughout the shoe, as it comes with a Vibram outsole that provides it with better traction and durability. That makes it perfectly wearable not just on the campsite, but gives it the grip, strength, and hardwearing qualities that make it perfectly viable for using on the trail. The treads looks really reinforced, too, making us think you can wear this during wet and icy days in the backcountry. Sure, you probably don’t want to do a long hike wearing these Crocs, but it definitely seems like it can tide you over in a pinch.
Apart from being a better outdoor shoe, it should make for a great wet and cold weather shoe in the city, too, making it plenty usable wherever you spend your time all year round. They claim it’s just as comfortable as any pair of Classic Crocs, by the way, which, judging from the photos, seems like that would be the case. It only comes in two colorways for now, gray and orange, both of which look pretty great, especially with the contrasting colors of the bootie liner and the outsole.
The Crocs Tembo II RO comes out August 27th, priced at $100.