WINTER HIKING BOOTS IN NEW ENGLAND ================================== SOME CAVEATS ============ What follows here are my thoughts on hiking boots for use in New England. Some caveats are in order. First, I'm talking about hiking I'm not talking about snowshoeing, nordic skiing or dog sledding, all of which might be best served with different kinds of boots. Neither am I talking about technical alpine climbing nor ice climbing. Again, these activities will require different boots than I'm describing. By hiking, I'm talking about walking on (or off) hiking trails in the mountainous regions of New England. The second and more important caveat is the temperature limit of what I'm going to describe. I no longer really enjoy winter camping below -10f. Everything gets harder below that temperature and all parts of my equipment list are the edge of their limits by that point. My boot choice works for me down to this temperature but I should note that -10f is not all that cold by New England standards. I should emphasize that this temperature is *MY* personal limit. You should not use that as any guide for how cold you can go. Your own cautious experience should guide you on how cold all of your equipment can go, including your boots. If you are going to be out in temperatures well below zero, you should be looking for warmer boots and should heed the advice seen at Rick Wilcox's International Mountain Equipment in North Conway, NH affixed to a pair of $750 winter mountaineering boots, "Only $75 per toe. Is it worth it?" OVERVIEW ======== My preference for winter hiking is heavy single leather hiking boots combined with insulated gaiters and vapor barrier socks. I prefer this type of boot as soon as my pack weight goes above 30 lbs or if I'm going to spend a lot of time above treeline on the rocks. This is my standard choice for boot without insulated gaiters from fall till winter and in the early spring till summer. With the addition of warm gaiters and VB socks, this means I can use the same boot from fall through the spring. I also use strap-on hinged crampons with this type of boot. While they take a bit more work to put on and take off, they are very secure and never pop-off unexpectedly. I've seen step-ins pop-off on several occasions. SINGLE LEATHER BOOTS ==================== In my opinion, the secret is in the sole of the boot. The sole should be stiff enough to: a) Be able to kick steps and to edge in snow with confidence b) Be used with flexible or hinged crampons c) Provide protection for my feet for walking all day on the hard rocks above treeline At the same time, the boot sole should bend at the toe enough to allow for easy walking on snowless trails at lower elevations. It is at this point that I should mention the relationship between boot soles and crampons. In my opinion, boot soles that are stiff enough to be able to be used with step-in crampons are too stiff for comfortable walking. Single leather boots that have boot soles that stiff strike me as being better suited for technical alpine climbing where the more of your time is spent on very steep terrain. New England's hiking trails are steep, but not that steep. If you are going to use a boot with a rigid sole, you might as well get the extra warmth of a double plastic boot. MODELS ====== Back in the day when hiking boots were made with stitched-down Norwegian welts, the kind of boot I'm talking about would be called a 1/2 shank boot. This means that the metal shank that is used to stiffen the sole runs from the heel up to the arch of the foot - about 1/2 of the length of the boot. You don't see too many 1/2 shank hiking Norwegian welted boots these days. Some of the models that are no longer available are the Asolo Yukon and Vasque Vagabond. Some that are still available (I think) are the Limmer Standard, Merrell Wilderness and Scarpa Rio. I've the most miles on the Wilderness. It fit my foot well out of the box but the light foam rubber mid-sole delaminated after about a year. The boots became much better after I had them rebuilt with a thicker, stiffer leather mid-sole. I've have a pair of the Fabiano Rios (made by Scarpa) and they are definitely a slight step up in burliness from the Wilderness. Fabiano was a Boston based boot maker who outsourced their production to Scarpa in Italy and in return Fabiano was Scarpa's US distributer. They had a parting of the ways around the turn of the century and Fabiano didn't survive. I have mixed feelings about Scarpa still producing Fabiano's signature boot. I wish the Fabiano name had survived but I am glad this boot is still available. Norwegian welt boots are great in that they can be resoled. But they leak at the welts. More modern designs that use a glue on welt may do better in snowy or wet conditions. They may also be lighter for the same amount of support. The specific models change a lot so I can't call out any by name other than one. The La Sportiva Galcier is one I would look closely at if I was in the market. But I would be concerned that they would be too stiff. Again, I consider the ability to flex at the toe to be an important feature for this type of boot. GAITERS ======= Insulated gaiters are what provide the extra warmth needed for winter. I currently use OR X-Gaiters, which have very warm for me but are a royal pain to put on and take off compared to rubber randed super gaiters. Regardless, I think full coverage insulated gaiters are a must and rubber randed or fabric randed (like the X-Gaiters) I secure the gaiter to the boot with Shoe Goo or Barge cement. I generally run the cement from instep to outer arch by way of the toe, right along the boot's welt. This helps keep the gaiters on the boot when you are walking in the snow. Gaiters can dramatically change how crampons fit, so double check the fit at home. VAPOR BARRIER SOCKS =================== Vapor barrier socks add warmth. More importantly, they keep your insulating socks and boot dry from sweat, which keeps you warmer. Old bread bags are a way to start with VB socks. VB socks go between your liner socks and your insulating socks and should be worn when hiking in the cold. Take them off in camp to let your feet dry out. I've put more stuff than you want to read on Vapor Barriers here: http://home.comcast.net/~pinnah/DirtbagPinner/vb.txt Copyright 2005 by David Mann