I remember the day I found them in that Decathlon store in Bangalore. Nothing fancy – just a pair of blue boots that caught my eye in 2015. Little did I know this unassuming footwear would become my most reliable travel companion for years to come.
Their first international experience was touching down on New York City's snow-covered streets that March. While I was secretly meeting my girlfriend (now my wife), these blue boots were getting their first taste of real winter – quite the shock after my normal life in India. The city of million dreams. The streets were messy and busybodies walking around. These boots carried me through piled snow and between row houses, silent witnesses to the beginning of a life-changing journey. When I boarded the return flight to Bangalore, I had no idea that I will return to the States the same year.
When I relocated to Woodland Hills, California in 2015, the boots came with me. No longer just casual footwear, they found their true calling on the hiking trails of Southern California. With each trek, their blue exterior collected dust from so many trails and memories in equal measure, becoming more comfortable with every mile.
Between 2016 and 2017, we explored numerous National Parks together. Those blue boots pressed into the diverse terrains of America's natural wonders, from the beautiful sequoias to breathtaking canyons. I rarely dust them off, leaving each tiny particles to linger since the beginning.
They faced their greatest challenge in 2018 – the Santa Cruz Trail near Huaraz, Peru. For five consecutive days, those blue boots carried me through some of the most breathtaking landscapes I've ever seen. My wife and her friend planned the trip, but it was this faithful footwear that actually got me through it, gripping precarious mountain paths and supporting me through endless ascents and descents.
The pandemic years gave the boots some unexpected rest, sitting patiently in my closet while the world paused.
Our final adventure together was in 2025 in Denver, Colorado. I fitted them with spikes for those snowy Rockies trails – one last hurrah for a decade old blue companions. After years of service across few countries, countable states, handful national parks and countless paths, they finally surrendered to wear and tear. I had to let go of those blue boots in a Denver trash bin, feeling like I was saying goodbye to an old friend.
Sometimes I think about all the ground we covered together – from India to New York, across California, through Peru, and finally ending in Colorado. Not bad for a pair of blue Decathlon boots I once casually picked up in Bangalore.
Time to get another pair :) More mountains are calling