Christmas hiking boots-Advice needed

[Aaron Rushton]

hi,
right for christmas im looking for a good pair of hiking boots, preferably leather.
criteria is:-
fully waterproof (and i mean fully)
comfortable
strong and hardwaring (my last boots felt good but became holy very quickly)
warm
my budget i about £80
HIT ME!
atb
Aaron

[resnikov]

I have been looking at these to replace my boots http://www.brasher.co.uk/catalogue/products/supalite-ii-gtx-r-supaiimn, I know your budget is £80 but Gaynors of Ambleside have them for £95 http://www.gaynors.co.uk/productdetail.asp?productcatalogue=010101420028. They are in half sizes as well so you can get a good fit.
Have a read of other reviews and dont take my word for it.

Not affiliated with Brasher or Gaynors etc ..

[Neil1]

You mean "waterproof" - go for wellies!

Or

Spend £40 on a good pair of new german para boots, spend another £25 on a pair of cotton canvas gaiters. This will leave you £15.
Spend £1 on a couple of litres of vegetable cooking oil.
Now keep painting the boots with the oil, until they will absorb no more. You now have very waterproof boots and £14 - which you can spend on a couple of pairs of arctic socks at Endicotts.
Problem solved!
Neil

[Martin]

I would have to agree with Neil on this. I have a pair of german para boots and have never had a drop of water get in, and that's without the veg oil treatment.

I also have pair of Meindl Borneo's, non Goretex, which are superb for tramping across the moors. Paired with a pair of Berghaus Yeti gaiters, I have waded through streams and rivers many times and my feet have never felt so much as a drop of water.

I used to have a pair of Brasher Hillmaster GTX boots. To be honest, I wasn't all that impressed with them. The cut was quite low, the sole clogged easily and they were slippery on wet rock. On the up side, they were comfortable and very light, but they ended up in the garage covered in mud and the leather went rock hard so found their way into the rubbish. Quite an end for a £100 plus pair of boots. I should add that this was getting on for 12 years ago when £100 was a lot of money.

In conclusion, if I'm not walking a long way I will wear my wellies, for comfort and convenience. If I'm walking over rough terrain, or long distance then the Meindls are the boots of choice, but for everyday woodland use where I may be walking over varying terrain then the german para boots are great and cheap.

Martin

[JEEP]

I have a pair of Meindl Borneo MFS Pro's aswell. They may be non Goretex, but I have never had a drop of water in mine either. I just keep them well treated with leather grease.

Best pair of boots I have ever owned.

[JonnyP]

I would recommend anyone wanting new footwear they are going to walk miles in to go into a decent shop selling the product and get your feet measured, and try on different types and makes..
I was up in Fort William a few years ago. My boots were light weight hiking boots and not really suitable for scrambling up and down The Scottish Munro's, so I went into a good footwear supplier up there, and got fitted out. I wanted a well known and respected brand like Scarpa or Meindl, but they were all too wide for my feet. I ended up buying a pair of LaSportiva mountain boots, that fitted me well. The next day (in brand new boots) I walked The Ring of Steel, which includes a whole days walking and navigating and many mountains to climb. It was dark as we came down off the last mountain, but my feet (though sore) had no blisters..

Mention to the supplier what you want the boots for, so you can be matched better, and look out for things like *heel lift* when trying out the boots, you don't want blisters when out hiking.