Zero Drop Hunting Boot

Joined
Apr 17, 2017
Messages
80
Location
Texas via New Mexico
Just curious if anyone else out there is dying to find a zero drop hunting boot option. I really wish I could find a good hunting boot (vibram or similar outsole, rubber rand and leather upper) without a 2" heel to toe drop (I'm exaggerating). My joints and muscles feel so much better ever since I switched to zero drop shoes (lifestyle, running, packing). Has anyone found any zero or close to zero drop options, or am I the only one who wishes this existed? Trail running shoes work great in dry, mild terrain, but in the nasty stuff with heavy loads, I really need a boot.
 

Lawnboi

WKR
Joined
Mar 2, 2012
Messages
7,693
Location
North Central Wi
Russell makes them. They are spendy. I have not tried them, but wanted to. Russell boots are made in WI not too far from me.

I run in low drop minimal shoes but still prefer some arch support and a little drop in my boots. Feels like cheating when I strap on my mountain extremes when going from a pair of beat up inov8s
 

bat-cave

WKR
Joined
May 6, 2015
Messages
359
Location
Littleton, CO
I actually spoke with the guys at Lathrop and Sons about a zero drop boot when I ordered my Mtn Hiunter's. I also have gone to wearing mostly zero drop footwear for most activities ... but not my hunting boots. The point L&S made was that you could be asking for serious trouble to put that much added strain on your Achilles when that pack is loaded down ... as in packing out an animal. I haven't had any issues going back and forth between my boots and other footwear even after day after day of long/steep terrain with a heavy pack and as such I ditched the idea of seeking zero drop in a boot. - FWIW
 

5MilesBack

"DADDY"
Joined
Feb 27, 2012
Messages
15,528
Location
Colorado Springs
This is something I have literally never given a first or second thought to, except for cowboy boots. At 6'6" already I prefer low heel boots. But for my hunting boots, I've never even noticed what they are. Now I'm wondering.
 

Formidilosus

Super Moderator
Joined
Oct 22, 2014
Messages
8,015
The closet thing is the Inov-8 Roclite 325 GTX.


I’ve been looking for a zero drop minimalist leather boot with an aggressive sole for several years.
 

Formidilosus

Super Moderator
Joined
Oct 22, 2014
Messages
8,015
I cut the heel off a pair of Clark’s desert boots. I have been surprised how much I like them and have done a bit of short distance stalking in them. I am going to play with them this year.

I have seen a new company called vivobarefoot. My friend has a pair of their casual shoes and I am intrigued. No first hand experience yet:

Tracker FG Mens | Lifestyle Off Road Shoes | VIVOBAREFOOT



Experience with several Vivos. Good running shoes, but they don’t have great traction on the hikers.
 

Ryan Avery

Admin
Staff member
Joined
Jan 5, 2012
Messages
8,640
Been rocking the Altra Lone Peaks for the past 6 weeks and love them. So I bought the Altra Lone Peak 3.0 Neoshell hiking boot. to see how they do with a pack on.

I talked to a couple guys that did the EXO death hike with them and they both had nothing but good things to say.
 
Last edited:

Greg Beck

WKR
Joined
Sep 19, 2013
Messages
1,534
Location
Southwest Idaho
Been rocking the Altra Lone Peaks for the past 6 weeks and love them. So I bout the Altra Lone Peak 3.0 Neoshell hiking boot. to see how they do with a pack on.

I talked to a couple guys that did the EXO death hike with them and they both had nothing but good things to say.

I purchased a pair of Altra Lone Peak 3.5's about 4 months ago. Absolutely love them! I think I'd like to try the Neoshell for my next hiking shoe. I used to be a boot fan but I'm liking the lightweight, zero drop, toe room that Altra offers.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

sneek-ee

WKR
Joined
Mar 21, 2012
Messages
449
Been rocking the Altra Lone Peaks for the past 6 weeks and love them. So I bought the Altra Lone Peak 3.0 Neoshell hiking boot. to see how they do with a pack on.

I talked to a couple guys that did the EXO death hike with them and they both had nothing but good things to say.

I'll post a pic of my current pair.
I've used them the past two years. Gone thru a few pairs now. They don't hold up well and dont last long at all while hiking and hunting. They are ideal for comfort and lightweight, just no durability. They pair I still have are trashed, soles, holes in em. If they are strictly on trails they may last a bit longer but they just aren't durable enough. I wanted them to work, trust me. I still like the shoe.
I've got the addidas swift terrex r2 right now, but they are not zero drop. I don't hunt in boots if possible, trail runners are much nicer.
 

Ryan Avery

Admin
Staff member
Joined
Jan 5, 2012
Messages
8,640
I'll post a pic of my current pair.
I've used them the past two years. Gone thru a few pairs now. They don't hold up well and dont last long at all while hiking and hunting. They are ideal for comfort and lightweight, just no durability. They pair I still have are trashed, soles, holes in em. If they are strictly on trails they may last a bit longer but they just aren't durable enough. I wanted them to work, trust me. I still like the shoe.
I've got the addidas swift terrex r2 right now, but they are not zero drop. I don't hunt in boots if possible, trail runners are much nicer.

I do worry about that. I’m almost a one year one boot guy.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

sveltri

WKR
Joined
Jun 22, 2016
Messages
822
Location
SALIDA
I actually spoke with the guys at Lathrop and Sons about a zero drop boot when I ordered my Mtn Hiunter's. I also have gone to wearing mostly zero drop footwear for most activities ... but not my hunting boots. The point L&S made was that you could be asking for serious trouble to put that much added strain on your Achilles when that pack is loaded down ... as in packing out an animal. I haven't had any issues going back and forth between my boots and other footwear even after day after day of long/steep terrain with a heavy pack and as such I ditched the idea of seeking zero drop in a boot. - FWIW

Elevated heels were added many moons ago to support travel by horse, unfortunately it stuck to almost every piece of footwear manufactured since its inception. Excluding horseback riding, I am failing to see or understand any logical reason for an elevated heel, arch support I get, but not the elevated heel.
 

Titan_Bow

WKR
Joined
Dec 10, 2015
Messages
1,116
Location
Colorado
Ive been wearing minimalist and zero drop for a handful of years now, cant wear anything else. Its absolutely cured my Plantar fasciitis, but it does make finding hunting boots hard. At some point, I'll probably drop the coin on a pair of Russells. For now, I've worn my Merrell Trail Gloves with gaiters alot. I also have a couple pairs of military boots that work well. For early season archery elk, I wore Tactical Research TR105 Mini-Mil's last year. They are super lightweight, and have the vibram minimal (barefoot) sole, pretty much the same as the Merrell Trail Gloves. They are not waterproof, but in early season, I've never found that to be a problem as they walk dry really quickly. For cold weather hunting, I had to spend a little more money. I got the Rocky SV2 insulated boots about 5 years ago, and I love them. They are heavier, and have a heavier sole, but they are pretty close to zero drop and dont have a raised heel. They are goretex, 400g thinsulate, and made in the USA. They've been a great boot for late season and colder temps.
 
OP
NMdoghunter
Joined
Apr 17, 2017
Messages
80
Location
Texas via New Mexico
I’m leaning towards Altra lone peak mids. I have the lows and love them for running, just concerned about durability and lack of waterproofing. There seem to be some decent options in the military/tactical market.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Mjolnir

FNG
Joined
Sep 7, 2018
Messages
4
Location
Colorado
I took a pair of Vivobarefoot Trackers (their leather hiking boots) up the Lake Solitude trail in Grand Teton national park last month. The boots did fine, but my feet were sore for a few days after. They simply weren't used to that level of effort without shock absorption and arch support.

Also, a couple of caveats: there as no snow. I have no idea how warm they'd be in cold weather, and I haven't tested them in a wet environment yet. I also have no idea how much traction they'd have on snow, but my guess is not much. They tread isn't very aggressive at all.

That said, for early-season hunts, if your feet are already conditioned to do the daily mileage dictated by your style of hunting (bearing in mind that should include mileage under pack weight, if applicable), I'd say they're a go from a durability point of view.

I'll throw on some gaiters and wade through a creek next spring to see how waterproof they really are...
 

sveltri

WKR
Joined
Jun 22, 2016
Messages
822
Location
SALIDA
I picked up a pair of Altra Lone Peak 3.0 mids with their neoshell for water resistance. So far so good, I've been wearing zero drop footwear for the last nine months so I feel like my feet are fairly conditioned for them. My only complaint is that I bought them about half size too big, I think if they were the right size they'd be perfect.
 

Mjolnir

FNG
Joined
Sep 7, 2018
Messages
4
Location
Colorado
Elevated heels were added many moons ago to support travel by horse, unfortunately it stuck to almost every piece of footwear manufactured since its inception. Excluding horseback riding, I am failing to see or understand any logical reason for an elevated heel, arch support I get, but not the elevated heel.

There is also another consideration for elevated heels: cushion. When Nike introduced Nike Air, it literally altered the biomechanics of how people ran. Heel-striking would be very painful if there were no cushion in a heel, which must be raised to make room for that cushion.

As someone who is currently "re-learning" how to run and hike in zero-drop shoes, I can attest that I actually do miss heel cushions when clomping downhill on mountain trails. I assume this will eventually work itself out as my biomechanics re-wire themselves, but it's something to consider when thinking about how your feet will hold up in zero-drop shoes under a pack load if you don't have previous experience. Going downhill for extended periods of time will suck an awful lot if your biomechanics haven't completely adapted yet. From my observations (and to reiterate: sample size of 1), this is the last part of my biomechanics to adapt to zero-drop shoes.

It's also potentially the most dangerous scenario on an elk hunt since you're already tired and prone to both sloppy form and poor foot placement, and under the heaviest load of any part of the hunt. If you're going to get injured due to hiking in boots you're not ready for, this phase is both the most likely point at which the injury will occur and also represents the point at which injuries are likely to be the most severe (i.e. under pack load).
 

twall13

WKR
Joined
Jan 21, 2015
Messages
2,568
Location
Utah
I actually agree with you on this for the most part. I wear mostly vivobarefoot shoes as my daily shoes and for running. I also use altras (zero drop with a lot of cushion) on occasion for running and hiking. I haven't been able to talk myself into a trail runner for hunting even though my feet and form are well adapted to barefoot shoes. If I have a heavy load and I'm fatigued I want the extra support my Crispis provide. It's nice that my arches, ankles and calves are stronger from training in a minimalist shoe but I'll still fatigue less under load with a supportive boot. At least that's been my experience. I have bad knees so it's one less thing to worry about under load. That said, I would still be interested in a zero drop boot that is supportive.
There is also another consideration for elevated heels: cushion. When Nike introduced Nike Air, it literally altered the biomechanics of how people ran. Heel-striking would be very painful if there were no cushion in a heel, which must be raised to make room for that cushion.

As someone who is currently "re-learning" how to run and hike in zero-drop shoes, I can attest that I actually do miss heel cushions when clomping downhill on mountain trails. I assume this will eventually work itself out as my biomechanics re-wire themselves, but it's something to consider when thinking about how your feet will hold up in zero-drop shoes under a pack load if you don't have previous experience. Going downhill for extended periods of time will suck an awful lot if your biomechanics haven't completely adapted yet. From my observations (and to reiterate: sample size of 1), this is the last part of my biomechanics to adapt to zero-drop shoes.

It's also potentially the most dangerous scenario on an elk hunt since you're already tired and prone to both sloppy form and poor foot placement, and under the heaviest load of any part of the hunt. If you're going to get injured due to hiking in boots you're not ready for, this phase is both the most likely point at which the injury will occur and also represents the point at which injuries are likely to be the most severe (i.e. under pack load).

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk
 
Last edited:
Top