what light boots do you like?

[pointysticks]

i'm at a loss. i texted my group of buds and said, "i think we should climb Mt Whitney!"

one guy texted back and surprised me..he said, "huh..i'm going this weekend". wow, zero notice. my wife gave me her blessings, and i packed a light pack for the looong one day trip up and back. then my boss called and killed the deal. he needs me to prep for a presentation on WED! he opted out to go trout fishing and the crap rolled downhill..to me. so my friend is going solo. 2am tomorrow morning. oh well. i dont want to get fired. hehe.

the thing that stopped me was boots. i only have full leather, above ankle boots. (8"?)..i wear schnee's insulated Beartooths. chasing after elk, nasty nasty terrain, downed trees, stream crossing, sidehilling..i love my boots!! i have sprained my ankles so often, they are weak. i can turn them so easy. my tall boots save me every single trip from near sprains. but they are heavy.

what do i wear on hiking trips where i want to save weight on my feet? i am 99% sure i will brace my ankles with drugstore "air-cast" as insurance. so i think my boots dont need to be 8" tall. in my younger days, i've played basketball with minor sprains wearing aircast given to me by a doctor (they were stolen) now drugstores carry less heavy duty versions.

any idea on lightweight boots for fast hikes? like chukar hunting ??

[RockChucker30]

I prefer trail runners these days over boots for most warm weather wear. That may or may not work for you with your history of sprains....I've never had a sprain, and since I've been wearing five fingers and minimalist shoes for running my feet and ankles have become so much stronger it's unreal.

My go to for that trip would be Inov8 Roclite 315's. They're durable, dry fast if they get wet, and have a sole grippy enough that it makes me feel like spiderman even on rocks as slick as owl snot.

A pair of asolo sasslongs may work pretty well for you, or another pair of asolos, whatever STP may have on sale.

I have several pair of lowa boots, all with goretex, but I think that for a light to medium hiker I'd like to try a non-goretex trekker model out.

[Migolito]

This time of year on Whitney I'd wear my Lowa Tempests mid. Fairly lite weight with plenty of ankle support. You do not want/need waterproof boots (goretex) on Whitney this time of year-way too hot. I've seen trail runners on that trail (as well as bare feet) but, with your history of sprains that would be a mistake. Stick to something supportive, then look at the weight.

I used Saloman Fastpackers for light weight backpacking in more moist conditions (goretex) and they are great.

[bowpackerrob]

Myabe not quite as rugged as you are looking for, but try the Underarmour speedfreaks. Very lightweight and great for early season hunting. They are almost like a trail running shoe with a high top. I do run hill workouts with mine before elk season as they are that comfortable.

[pointysticks]

i have a doc appt to hopefully get fitted for an ankle brace today!! could be a game changer for me in the boot-world.

love to get a lighter and faster boot for my late august deer opener. backpacking in for 7 days.

[cmeier117]

Salomon Quest boots are the best I have found.

[pd]

PointySticks,

I climb rocky places when I am not fishing or hunting. My advice on boots is always the same: Buy the very best boots that you can afford, and wear them for the rest of your life (or at least 10 years). My personal favorites are anything Scarpa (I have 4 pairs now), but anything will do if they fit you. Just don't buy junk. Also, I never wear "lightweight" boots. Some will disagree with me, and that is OK. I wear heavy clunkers in 4 seasons. My Scarpas are fine for snow/ice with crampons, or summertime hiking. They took me up Whitney last year over Mountaineers' Route. The only time that I don't wear these boots will be elk hunting season--too much rain would kill the leather. I will buy something insulated this month.

Buy boots that cover your ankles, and learn to lash them properly for the climb or the descent.

[hike2hunt]

Crispi idahos. They are 9" tall super light and feel like running shoes. I bought for the support.

[ElkNut1]

Eric, thanks for that bit of info on the Idaho's, I was wondering about the support part? I'm seriously considering a pair of them myself, they look great & I'm real happy with the Hunter GTX ones I have.

ElkNut1

[>>>---WW---->]

Cliff, your ankles can't be any worse than mine. Too many trips out the barn loft door with an umbrella will work those ankles over in a hurry. And the heck of it was, I never did find one that didn't turn wrong side out. Hmmmmmm! I wonder if one of Jeff's decoy unbrellas would have worked better. But they didn't have those when I was a daredevil 8 year old.

But even with all the ankle problems I have, what seems to work the best for me is a good wide heel. It works better than than any tite laced tall boot I can think of. I suppose it just makes for a more stable foot bed and helps prevent twisting. At least, that seems to be what works for me. Lots of times I wear light weight tenny type trail shoes with a good wide heal.

[ChukarNUT]

asolo sassalong only boot im will ever wear! STP is the place to get boots and shoes. i also use salomon trail runners most of the time, especially once i get to spike camp. save the boots for packing gear or meat. feel like a ninja in my salomons and easy to kick off if needed for a silent stalk, just remember where you kick em off too!!

[elkmtngear]

Hmmmmmm! I wonder if one of Jeff's decoy unbrellas would have worked better. But they didn't have those when I was a daredevil 8 year old.

Bill, I guarantee you would have gotten a lot more jumps out of it...it's pretty bomb-proof.

[aron]

I just picked up a pair of the Asolo Sasslongs from STP about a month ago. I got some pretty bad heal slip in them unfortunately, besides that they felt great and wished they worked.

asolo sassalong only boot im will ever wear! STP is the place to get boots and shoes. i also use salomon trail runners most of the time, especially once i get to spike camp. save the boots for packing gear or meat. feel like a ninja in my salomons and easy to kick off if needed for a silent stalk, just remember where you kick em off too!!

[one_elk]

These have workegreat for me....

http://obozfootwear.com/products/mens-s ... tooth-mid/

[Csrbowhunter]

Crispi idahos. They are 9" tall super light and feel like running shoes. I bought for the support.

Are they really worth the money? Right now I use the perfekt hikers from Mendel and I like them but are a bit heavy.

[Pac8541]

PointySticks,

I climb rocky places when I am not fishing or hunting. My advice on boots is always the same: Buy the very best boots that you can afford, and wear them for the rest of your life (or at least 10 years). My personal favorites are anything Scarpa (I have 4 pairs now), but anything will do if they fit you. Just don't buy junk. Also, I never wear "lightweight" boots. Some will disagree with me, and that is OK. I wear heavy clunkers in 4 seasons. My Scarpas are fine for snow/ice with crampons, or summertime hiking. They took me up Whitney last year over Mountaineers' Route. The only time that I don't wear these boots will be elk hunting season--too much rain would kill the leather. I will buy something insulated this month.

Buy boots that cover your ankles, and learn to lash them properly for the climb or the descent.

I'm looking really hard at the Scarpa SL Activ and Zanskar boots. Like you, I've had really great success with the Scarpa line in everything from technical rock climbing shoes to everyday shoes. I'm concerned however, about the stiff soles that these 2 boots are reported to have. I'm sure they'll be great on the hump in and when packing out an animal but how are they during the actual hunt? My concerns are they're going to be clunky, noisy, and maybe overly hot (early season hunt). Can you tell me what your experience has been with these issues?

[danarnold]

Crispi idahos. They are 9" tall super light and feel like running shoes. I bought for the support.

Are they really worth the money? Right now I use the perfekt hikers from Mendel and I like them but are a bit heavy.

Crispi idahos are the best boots I've ever had, Wy elk hunting last season we had a lot of rain and after my Crispis got wet i wore my Danner pronghorns and realized how much I loved the Crispis. I've got Mendel boots but they don't compare

[Swede]

As WW suggested, a wide heel will do wonders. Also make sure the heel is set back as far as possible. I have seen heels that are moved forward and are undercut. I don't like them as well. I too have worn out ankles. I hiked too many miles in logging slash, and over steep ground. Properly fitting boots are a necessity. I could recommend a brand, but if their last doesn't match your feet, what good would that be?

[Csrbowhunter]

Crispi idahos. They are 9" tall super light and feel like running shoes. I bought for the support.

Are they really worth the money? Right now I use the perfekt hikers from Mendel and I like them but are a bit heavy.

Crispi idahos are the best boots I've ever had, Wy elk hunting last season we had a lot of rain and after my Crispis got wet i wore my Danner pronghorns and realized how much I loved the Crispis. I've got Mendel boots but they don't compare

Thanks I didn't want to spend that kind of cash and find out they weren't any better then my perfekt hikers

[wiarcher]

Salomon Quest boots are the best I have found.

I would agree.

[pointysticks]

the Idahos look GREAT!!

i did however buy Lowa Renegades from REI using a gift card. they ROCK!! i think my hiking doubled in speed. they dont feel that durable tho.

[AmericanBwana]

I replaced my Danner Pronghorns with Keen Voyagers.

I sweat a lot, and got tired of damp feet at the end of the day. The voyagers are not water proof, but breath really well. I trained in them last year, wearing a 60lb pack and never had a problem. They are a touch wider in the toe area. While my feet / socks were damp, they were never as damp as wearing the danners. I also used them on a couple of early season pronghorn hunts.

[BrentLaBere]

Salomon Quest boots are the best I have found.

I would agree.

x3 Love my pair of solomons

[elkmtngear]

the Idahos look GREAT!!

i did however buy Lowa Renegades from REI using a gift card. they ROCK!! i think my hiking doubled in speed. they dont feel that durable tho.

Just got a pair of these for Christmas and I'm really loving them. Most comfortable boots out of the box I've ever owned.