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Walking Boots

Woodface said:
The more I look into this, the more baffled I am. One thing of note, why do all hiking/walking Boots look so bloody ugly.
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Because they're meant to support your feet/give grip when climbing on rocky terrain, rather than look nice? I must admit, I've never clocked anyone else's walking boots (too busy looking at either the scenery, or where I'm walking) so they could be wearing stilettos for all I know.
 
Joe Hutch said:
Because they're meant to support your feet/give grip when climbing on rocky terrain, rather than look nice? I must admit, I've never clocked anyone else's walking boots (too busy looking at either the scenery, or where I'm walking) so they could be wearing stilettos for all I know.
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I've always had reasonably sturdy walking boots even though I rarely walk/hike anywhere outside the Mournes here. What I have noticed over the past few years are more and more people in the hills here in little more than runners. In fact I popped up to meet a group of past pupils who were camping to find that the girls had hiked up the mountain in bloody flipflops!
 
Big Tabs said:
I find this the exact opposite of my experience.

Synthetic materials make me sweat and the wicking claims do not come to fruition in my experience.
I favour cotton/wool mix socks for walking boots, or just cotton.
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Actually you are quite correct. I just had a look at the socks and they are a wool mix. I don't know why I thought they were synthetic!
 
Joe Hutch said:
Because they're meant to support your feet/give grip when climbing on rocky terrain, rather than look nice? I must admit, I've never clocked anyone else's walking boots (too busy looking at either the scenery, or where I'm walking) so they could be wearing stilettos for all I know.
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I don’t see why the two are mutually exclusive, lots of functional footwear doesn’t look hideous. Hiking boots seem peculiarly hit with the ugly stick.
 
You just need to find something which works for you, a bit like HiFi. I get on well with Aigle.
 
As others have mentioned, it's really all about the fit. I've tried God knows how many boots from good brands over the years (Brasher, Salomon, Reichle, Berghaus, Scarpa, Merrell and others) but most give me blisters on hillwalks. Recently I've had great results with Keen boots and it's a great relief to be able to hillwalk blister free.
 
Ended up pressing the button on some Solomon GTX 4D, a little over budget at £130 but they had 30% off. Gone for half a size up so will see how I get on.
 
andrewd said:
Way over the budget, but I have had a previous version of these for 10 years and they are superb. Before that I had earlier versions of the same boot. They do suit a narrower foot so not for everyone.
https://www.scarpa.co.uk/walk/sl-active/

I find that a goretex lining makes my feet sweat like hell. The Scarpa SL boots are the only boots in the range that do not have goretex and they don’t need it. They are plenty waterproof.

When I bought mine the SL’s were the only hiking boot in the range still being made in italy. I am not sure if this is still the case.

my sock of choice is Wigwam merino silk hiker. Even though they are thick they are still comfortable in hot weather.
https://gb.socksaddict.com/products/wigwam-merino-silk-hiker-crew-socks?variant=12695015456840
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I love my SL Active (current Bordeaux model) but then I have a number of Scarpa boots/trainers and they fit just right for my narrow feat. My other boots are the original Marmolada Trek which are great in summer, I really like the Outdry membrane over Gortex and they are super light but the SL Active are bombproof and feel like they will last forever! Quite a bit better for long multi day treks as well, much better cushioning.

Back on topic, all I can say nothing beats making a trip to a decent shop and just trying different brands to see what last fits the best.

For socks, I really rate the Smartwool Hiker Classics, you can get them in a variety of thicknesses, add a decent liner (Smartwool or Bridgedale) and you are good to go.
 
Completely useless advice but the best boots I have ever used are from a long since defunct company. It was a company called Line7 (French I think) and I bought a pair (plus another for my fairly new at the time wife) back in the mid 90's. Proper fabric boots with goretex and vibram soles a bit chunky but sooooooo comfortable and seriously long lived, still brilliant, waterproof and solid. Now I am no sherpa Tensing but we have done a fair milage in them and I do worry how I will ever replace them. They are that comfortable.
 
sq225917 said:
Ligne7?
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You'd think so but now English is the name of the game. These are not mine but very similar.

Line-7-Vintage-Gore-Tex-Hiking-Walking-Boots.jpg
 
I piqued my own interest so did googling, apparently Line7 were taken over by Aigle (another French company) in 2000 or so.
 
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