Looking for some good boots

[optimusprime]

Hey all, I’m going to begin the process of looking for some new boots here shortly. I currently have Kenetrek Hardscrabble Lites. I have worn them for the last 5 years and love them. They’ve been great to me. The only thing that bothers me about them is that they are loud. They have a very stiff sole and walking silently is almost laughable. What would you all recommend? I need something with good ankle support for heavy loads and lots of side hilling (like all western hunters lol), something waterproof and something fairly quiet...ie softer sole? What’s been working for you.

Ps- I also have fairly wide feet so something that can accommodate that is a must.

 

[FlyGuy]

I have the mountain extremes, but only wore them a couple days of my 14 day hunt in Idaho last september. I picked up some Scarpa zodiac GTX that were much lighter and quieter. They were still stiff soled and waterproof tho. Worked well, only issue was that I had to wear gaiters 100% of the time to keep debris out. They were shorter on top, and especially when wearing the new stitka apex pants with tighter cut legs which tended to ride up on the very top of the boot. I only did this one day and learned my lesson.

But, I also wore my Salomon Speedcross GTX running shoes and decided that i liked them the best. Same issues as above - gaiters required, but man are they light and quiet. Not hardsoled but i didnt miss it any; and honestly i think i prefer it. I feel a lot more agile without the stiff sole controlling my movement. These (GTX models) are also waterproof and stick like glue to rocks, etc. Ive personally never had any ankle issues so i could get by w/o the support even in very steep country. These were all day hunts btw, so no extremely heavy loads. We had warm weather the entire trip and in either of the (non-insulated) boots above my feet were just drenched all day and i got some blisters from not staying on top of it (combined with not keeping the debris out on the 1 day w/o gaiters). The salomons kept my feet from sweating too much. Only minor problem was that they are not very protective of your feet like the heavy boots. I accidentally kicked a rock with my big toe once and it hurt like Hell! Something i would have never felt in my ME.

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[optimusprime]

Ya I definitely need something with some protection. I hunt slot of areas where blackberries are in abundance.