Baby needs a new pair of shoes

AB3006

AB3006

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I have a... foundational question to the CGN hivemind.

My standard boots for hunting are ordinary rubber galoshes with a felt liner. Awesome for wading through bogs and soggy underbrush. However, they are not really great for longer overland hunts nor for scrabbling over frozen stuff.

I have a pair of decent hikers, but they're not really suitable for the area we're planning to be in this fall.

Any suggestions as to some reasonably decent boots that won't break the bank? I need something with a reasonable level of water resistance, ankle support and usable tread.
 
I have a set of ReadHead trapper boots that are incredible. they have laces and a side zipper and come up to below my knee covering my calf. Fully insulated with thinsulate and waterproof. Can't find them anymore though.
 
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Boots are a "buy once, cry once" sort of thing. Ever heard of The Sam Vimes theory of socioeconomic unfairness?

The reason that the rich were so rich, Vimes reasoned, was because they managed to spend less money. Take boots, for example. ... A really good pair of leather boots cost fifty dollars. But an affordable pair of boots, which were sort of OK for a season or two and then leaked like hell when the cardboard gave out, cost about ten dollars. ... But the thing was that good boots lasted for years and years. A man who could afford fifty dollars had a pair of boots that'd still be keeping his feet dry in ten years' time, while a poor man who could only afford cheap boots would have spent a hundred dollars on boots in the same time and would still have wet feet.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boots_theory

I've very much fallen victim to this myself. I'm currently running a few different pairs of boots depending on the condition, but next time (hopefully this year but we'll see) I'm going to a brand name store like Red Wings and spending a few hundred bucks. In my experience with cheaper boots from Crappy Tire, Walmart, and Cabelas, It's the only way to get boots that will STAY waterproof for any real amount of time.
 
Best pair I've found for fall/winter/spring hunting are from Bass Pro, specifically the RedHead Expedition Ultra 400 Bone-Dry insulated hunting boot.
Warm on those cold days and light enough to hike around. They are on sale at the moment for 119.98.
Hope this helps
 
Fuzzy164 said:
Best pair I've found for fall/winter/spring hunting are from Bass Pro, specifically the RedHead Expedition Ultra 400 Bone-Dry insulated hunting boot.
Warm on those cold days and light enough to hike around. They are on sale at the moment for 119.98.
Hope this helps
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How many seasons have you put into those boots?

I don't have Redhead boots, but I do have a BoneDry Redhead jacket, and let's just say I'm not in a hurry to buy more BoneDry stuff. And my Cabelas brand boots in that same sort of price range didn't stay waterproof for very long.

keith mokry said:
Is a muck boot an option as some of the makes are comfortable to walk in along being insulated
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Not much in the way of ankle support?
 
AB3006 said:
So often the case with good things :(
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I made an attempt to find them to get a back up pair. They are so comfortable warm and they stay dry. Not like a rubber boot that holds your sweaty foot Ju-Ju in... I'm a bit of a tank with flippers for feet.. High school they called me Sasquatch.. So footwear has been an issue for me all my life.. When you find something good it's like heaven compared to everything else. Wish I could find a picture of them to show you..
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Just above Harrison lake... Home of the Sasquatch.. this is the Sasquatch loop trail..
 
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AB3006 said:
I have a... foundational question to the CGN hivemind.

My standard boots for hunting are ordinary rubber galoshes with a felt liner. Awesome for wading through bogs and soggy underbrush. However, they are not really great for longer overland hunts nor for scrabbling over frozen stuff.

I have a pair of decent hikers, but they're not really suitable for the area we're planning to be in this fall.

Any suggestions as to some reasonably decent boots that won't break the bank? I need something with a reasonable level of water resistance, ankle support and usable tread.
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I have different boots for different hunting situations; one boot does not cover all terrian and temperatures, comfortably. Last autumn I hunted big game with a Baffin insulated hiking boot. The model is called, "Zone". Check-out Baffin Boots, they may have what you're hunting for, pun intended. In photo you can see the boots.1787142156125.jpeg
 
I will say that IMO I have never found a one boot to rule them all (to quote LOTR). Lacosse knee height for when I am not sure what I will find gives me all day walking but not all day temperature control. Full grain Full Leather 13" boot I can walk all day in and I have a set of Red Head that I have used for 20 years and a good coat of oil to water proof them very season is all that is needed. Sitting in a December deer stand however there is nothing like a pair Baffin extreme climate boots.. heavy and walking sucks but I am warm. Lastly if your a rabbit hunter do not discount a winter 12" with gaiters to snowshoe in better then knee boots more support and strap in easier to the cleats.... so Boots are like guns, sure I can use a 12g for absolutely everything I want to hunt...but do I want to
 
keith mokry said:
Is a muck boot an option as some of the makes are comfortable to walk in along being insulated
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Mucks are a decent affordable option but I find with neoprene that your foot is always sweaty or wet in them and your foot will be raw after half a day of wearing them like you've been in the lake too long. They are comfy for "rubbers". I got about two years of casual use from mine then the neoprene was ripped up and leaking from being rubbed.

Thorogood or Irish Setter have a good line of hunting boots but you are going to pay for them. Irish Setter is owned by Red Wing, which in my experience is hard to beat for work boots. Very high quality, traditional full grain leather construction, no synthetics.
 
I love NEOS overboots - wear either sneakers or light(er) boots inside - just make sure they are larger than whatever shoes/boots you intend to wear inside. Easy to pack extra heat packs inside if it's really cold. Have trekked quite a bit in them, very good grip in all kind of muck/snow/ice (there's a version with ice cleats I think, but I have the regular ones). Got them from Millbrook. These were $170. Worth every penny. just my $0.02...
 
My usual hunting boot in the early season is a Lowa Combat or Tibet. In really warm and dry conditions I have a set of Lowa Desert Elites. Once things get a little cooler or the terrain gets rougher or steeper I grab my heavy Zamberlains with Berghaus Yeti gaiters. Once the snow hits and the temp is below -10, I lean on a Scarpa mountaineering boot with a Berghaus insulated gaiter.
 
Duncan Idaho said:
My usual hunting boot in the early season is a Lowa Combat or Tibet
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I used to be big into AT skiing, still am but don't do it as much. My absolute favorite boots were Lowa Struktura, and the only reason I switched out of them was that they didn't have the sockets for pin bindings. Like my old Gronell hikers, they had Skywalk soles, imho far superior to Vibram.
 
Prophet River said:
I wore these Dryshods on a Bear Hunt on Kodiak Island a couple of Novembers ago., Water proof, come up just below your knee, snap keeps them tight to your calf. Good grip on wet grass and rocks , comfortable, warm . We crossed lots of streams . I recommend .
https://store.prophetriver.com/dryshod-footwear/

Chris
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Thank you Chris. These are so much nicer than my Wallyworld specials.
 
AB3006 said:
I have a... foundational question to the CGN hivemind.

My standard boots for hunting are ordinary rubber galoshes with a felt liner. Awesome for wading through bogs and soggy underbrush. However, they are not really great for longer overland hunts nor for scrabbling over frozen stuff.

I have a pair of decent hikers, but they're not really suitable for the area we're planning to be in this fall.

Any suggestions as to some reasonably decent boots that won't break the bank? I need something with a reasonable level of water resistance, ankle support and usable tread.
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If you are looking at a pair of hunting boots for the use you describe you would be hard-pressed to find better value than Hanwag.

European made, and built to last, at a reasonable price-point. I think these German-engineered boots are some of the best traditional leather hiking boots available in Canada.
 
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