Here is some past opinions for reference.
www.rokslide.com
Since 2020 I've been wearing the Crispi Colorados (11.5) and the Lowa Tibets (11.5 wide). I don't wear them much outside of hunting season so I can usually get a few seasons out of a pair of boots by cleaning them well after every hunt. This year in summer when I went to start rucking I found that my little toe was rubbing the outside of the boot which hadn't been a problem in the past. Re-measuring my foot I found that they were almost 1/4" wider than last year!
This kicked off another boot search which ultimately didn't end til last night. I got through the hunting season with a lot more leukotape than last year, and also by using chiroplax toe caps on my little toes, which Lathrop & Sons turned me onto.
First I tried a set of Zamberlan 2092s in 11.5 that I got on here as I'd heard they had a lot of room in the toebox. That turned out to be correct and they actually fit really well, but with how stiff they were I was getting solid blisters on the bottoms of my feet if I was walking on flat ground at any sort of decent pace.
Then I turned to gohunt and ordered 10 pairs to try when they had their last boot sale. I got some Scarpa Kailash, Hanwag Tatras, Makra Treks, Alverstone II, and some Lowa ticams. I ordered a few sizes of each pending availabilty and using gohunts sizing references.
The Kailash were a very light boot and not nearly as tall as the others. They'd be a good scouting boot but in my opinion they didn't provide the ankle support I wanted, nor did they have nearly enough volume (height) in the toebox or over the top of my foot for me. The best fit was a 12 wide but these were pretty easy to rule out for me.
The Tatras (size 12) had a decent lacing system but was also not as tall as the others. it still seemed to provide decent ankle support at least though and fit the back half of my foot well. This boot was slightly narrow for me and also lacked volume in the toes.
The Makra Treks (size 12) didn't have near enough volume in the front of the foot and seemed almost overly long. I wasn't a fan of the lacing system (loops rather than roller eyes) as it didn't seem nearly as robust as the other boots.
I really wanted to like the Hanwag Alverstone IIs! I ordered a 11.5W, 12, and 12W. The 12W were the closest fit for me. The 11.5W was too short, the 12s to narrow, and the 12W almost just right. They were on sale for a great price, have an awesome lacing system with multiple locking points, 3 hooks above the lock, good leather construction, flex level 3 (per gohunt), full rubber rand, etc. I tried these with the stock footbeds and also a clean pair of the L&S footbeds. Ultimately they were a hair long and I couldn't get my heel slip to a good spot without really cranking down the laces. They were also a little low across the toes and top of my foot. That might be something you could solve with a low volume footbed though. The only other note is that I'd have wanted to replace the laces on these, they were extremely stretchy and slippery.
The last boot I tried was the Lowa Ticam IIs in 11.5 and 11.5W. The 11.5W fit well and I'll probably keep these. I wish they had an additional hook above the lock as you go up the ankle of the boot as the ankle has a little more volume than I'd like (I have to tie them fairly tight to keep my leg from moving around much in em) but otherwise I don't have many complaints. They have good length/width/volume for my feet with both the stock and L&S footbeds, but are a little more flexible and slightly less clunky than the tibets. They also have solid leather construction. The one thing that's weird and that I didn't notice until later is that the rubber rand is not continuous on the outside of the boot. The lacing system is solid with the roller bearings on these.
Ticam 2, Colorado 2, Tibet
I like that there are 5 eyelets below the lock on these
Notice the rand is not continous on the ticams
Ticam & Alverstone
Ticam, Alverstone, Tibet
Ticam, Alverstone, & Kailash
Left to Right is Kailash, Ticam, Alverstone
2020 Boot Testing & My Opinions - L&S, Crispi, Lowa
I typed this up in reply to another thread but realized I'd intended to make a thread on this at some point last year. 2 years ago I tried the L&S custom boot system and since then, like many people, I've been on a quest to find great boots. In 2019 I wore the L&S mountain hunters and while...
www.rokslide.com
Since 2020 I've been wearing the Crispi Colorados (11.5) and the Lowa Tibets (11.5 wide). I don't wear them much outside of hunting season so I can usually get a few seasons out of a pair of boots by cleaning them well after every hunt. This year in summer when I went to start rucking I found that my little toe was rubbing the outside of the boot which hadn't been a problem in the past. Re-measuring my foot I found that they were almost 1/4" wider than last year!
This kicked off another boot search which ultimately didn't end til last night. I got through the hunting season with a lot more leukotape than last year, and also by using chiroplax toe caps on my little toes, which Lathrop & Sons turned me onto.
First I tried a set of Zamberlan 2092s in 11.5 that I got on here as I'd heard they had a lot of room in the toebox. That turned out to be correct and they actually fit really well, but with how stiff they were I was getting solid blisters on the bottoms of my feet if I was walking on flat ground at any sort of decent pace.
Then I turned to gohunt and ordered 10 pairs to try when they had their last boot sale. I got some Scarpa Kailash, Hanwag Tatras, Makra Treks, Alverstone II, and some Lowa ticams. I ordered a few sizes of each pending availabilty and using gohunts sizing references.
The Kailash were a very light boot and not nearly as tall as the others. They'd be a good scouting boot but in my opinion they didn't provide the ankle support I wanted, nor did they have nearly enough volume (height) in the toebox or over the top of my foot for me. The best fit was a 12 wide but these were pretty easy to rule out for me.
The Tatras (size 12) had a decent lacing system but was also not as tall as the others. it still seemed to provide decent ankle support at least though and fit the back half of my foot well. This boot was slightly narrow for me and also lacked volume in the toes.
The Makra Treks (size 12) didn't have near enough volume in the front of the foot and seemed almost overly long. I wasn't a fan of the lacing system (loops rather than roller eyes) as it didn't seem nearly as robust as the other boots.
I really wanted to like the Hanwag Alverstone IIs! I ordered a 11.5W, 12, and 12W. The 12W were the closest fit for me. The 11.5W was too short, the 12s to narrow, and the 12W almost just right. They were on sale for a great price, have an awesome lacing system with multiple locking points, 3 hooks above the lock, good leather construction, flex level 3 (per gohunt), full rubber rand, etc. I tried these with the stock footbeds and also a clean pair of the L&S footbeds. Ultimately they were a hair long and I couldn't get my heel slip to a good spot without really cranking down the laces. They were also a little low across the toes and top of my foot. That might be something you could solve with a low volume footbed though. The only other note is that I'd have wanted to replace the laces on these, they were extremely stretchy and slippery.
The last boot I tried was the Lowa Ticam IIs in 11.5 and 11.5W. The 11.5W fit well and I'll probably keep these. I wish they had an additional hook above the lock as you go up the ankle of the boot as the ankle has a little more volume than I'd like (I have to tie them fairly tight to keep my leg from moving around much in em) but otherwise I don't have many complaints. They have good length/width/volume for my feet with both the stock and L&S footbeds, but are a little more flexible and slightly less clunky than the tibets. They also have solid leather construction. The one thing that's weird and that I didn't notice until later is that the rubber rand is not continuous on the outside of the boot. The lacing system is solid with the roller bearings on these.
Ticam 2, Colorado 2, Tibet
I like that there are 5 eyelets below the lock on these
Notice the rand is not continous on the ticams
Ticam & Alverstone
Ticam, Alverstone, Tibet
Ticam, Alverstone, & Kailash
Left to Right is Kailash, Ticam, Alverstone
I wish… just makes sure you return them before the credit card statement closes and payment is due!!
