Your climbing friend has very specific climbing shoes, depending on whether they like trad or sport or bouldering, indoor, outdoor, or what specific brands worked for their own effed up little feet. You know what? Let’s not even get into it. What’s slightly safer is to buy a pair of approach shoes, which are hiking shoes that borrow features from climbing shoes for the technical approach to a climb. They generally have less cushioning so you can feel the ground, and a sticky sole and rubber rand for scrambling up weird surfaces.
Trail runners or hiking boots also serve this purpose, but I love an approach shoe because it’s so versatile. I wear approach shoes because the relative lack of cushioning and the protective rubber rand work for all different sports (especially climbing as well, obviously). You never know when you might have to switch from technical hiking to skateboarding to mountain biking in one weekend! This particular pair also has a nice stomp-down heel, so it works as a crag and a camping shoe.
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