Brooks Cascadia 5

I have the Cascadia 4's. The 5's appear to be the same, just color and minor aesthetic changes, but I haven't tried them on. Assuming the fit is the same, you could pick up some 4's for cheap. They are currently my favorite shoes, with only a couple minor complaints:

1. The soles are great or so-so depending where you are–the hard rubber is super durable and it's great in mud or on any soft surface, but they are not so great on slippery, hard surfaces like wet rocks. Mud does not gunk up in the treads–they are almost self-cleaning. Careful on rocks though.

2. The laces are a little tough to tighten. The upside to that is that they don't loosen by themselves easily so you can go all day with no adjustments. It can be slow and tough on the fingers taking them off and on especially when they are wet, though. Minor inconvenience.

I hate trying on shoes, but I go once every year or so and try on lots of them to find ones that I like. But I don't buy them then. When mine wear out, I can usually find some old models online for cheap. Since I've tried the old models out, I know which ones work for me. Saves you some money if you aren't picky about having the latest styles. I've bought $100+ shoes for as little as $20 online.

Love mine…but same warning about the hard vs soft surfaces. Mine are great for the mostly soft ground in the PNW.

So would the grip of the Brooks Cascadia's be okay fro the JMT around this time of year?

I wore a pair of Brooks Cascadia 4 a week ago on the High Sierra Trail and JMT. No complaints on slipping. The water is quite high in the
creek crossings this year and I had to wear my shoes through the water many times. One of the advantages of the Cascadia is that they dry out quickly due to the mesh. Great shoe.