Are any "waterproof" boots/hikers truly waterproof?

[LostArra]

Gaiters would have helped. I did not anticipate walking through wet, knee high grass but am smarter to think ahead now.

This is reason #2 I wear the low ankle gaiters. #1 is I elk hunt in a lot of sage brush and the gaiters prevent the sage from grabbing the laces and untying them.

 

[Johnny Tyndall]

All my leather/synthetic hiking boots have eventually wetted out. I've had good success with neoprene (xtra tuffs) and pac boots, where the lower is all rubber and the upper is leather (tucked under rain pants). Removeable liner on the pac boots helps as well. Nothing like cold, wet feet to take the shine off a day.

 

[NeHunter13]

Were you wearing gaiters?

Yes I had gaiters on with both.

 

[NeHunter13]

Were you wearing gaiters?

Yep.

 

[GambelOak]

My boots stay waterproof for quite awhile but it is the moisture that leaks in from the top that saturates my pants, then the top of my socks, then down into the boot liner. When I wear gaiters I don't have this problem. I'm using Scarpa and LaSportiva.

 

[Okhotnik]

wear good gaiters with your boots. no issues with scarpa


Makes a big difference. goops already covered

 

[wapitibob]

Every boot/hiker I’ve had over the last 25 years has leaked the second it saw water, and they all leaked at the toe box flex point.

 

[SuperDUECE22]

Yep.

What brand? They are definitely not all created equal. I've tried many brands that were absolutely junk and didn't help at all and always ended up with wet feet.

 

[D S 319]

Kenetreks have kept me dry in every condition I’ve encountered

 

[mtnbiker208]

liner is a back up to the leather treatment of you Beartooths. Better oiled they are more waterproof the will be

2 coats before every hunt.

 

[Huntindog45]

gaiters help tremendously because often the water we are getting in our boots is actually water that has wicked down from pants and socks

 

[jmez]

Hanwag Alaskan GTX and Crispi Idaho's. Both of these have been waterproof for me. Even in long, rain soaked grass.

 

[Seeknelk]

Gaiters are certainly needed in wet grass...but if it's warm out they also trap a TON of sweat moisture as well. Gore Tex and other products are only breathable to a small extent and it's often overwhelmed.
I've had decent luck with gor Tex and off brands of it but it's usually only good for 6 months of hard hunting. The flex of boot literally forces water thru those membranes after a while. Quality leather treatment is definitely needed.

 

[NeHunter13]

What brand? They are definitely not all created equal. I've tried many brands that were absolutely junk and didn't help at all and always ended up with wet feet.

First lite Traverse 2.0

 

[NeHunter13]

Kenetreks have kept me dry in every condition I’ve encountered

My buddy was in Kenetreks and gaiters and he ended up wet as well.

 

[Marble]

I'm now on my 3rd Elk season with my lowas and they are still waterproof. Each time they get muddy or wet for a long time, they are cleaned and oiled. My Danners are still good too.

I probably wear them 100 days a year at least.

 

[mcseal2]

I've had better luck with Kennetrek than Meindl, Danner, and other brands I've used. I treat them a couple times before a wet hunt though. I treat them first in August during the heat. I use Kennetrek wax and set them out in the sun all day on the deck. I bring them in at night to avoid dew and put them out again the next day with more wax if they will take more. When it won't soak up anymore I quit. I then wear them on wet conditioning hikes until right before the hunt and treat them again. When I do conditioning hikes in dry grass I wear my Salomon 4D boots to save wear on the Kennetreks.

For caribou I used the Crispi Hiland Pro boots with the built-in gaiter. They kept me dry for a week of the wettest conditions I'll probably ever hunt in. If I'm headed on a hunt where I'd consider muck boots I'd use them again. Muck boots just don't work for me if I'm hiking a lot. I need some ankle support, and even with good insoles they are hard on my feet over time. I fought plantar fasciitis for a year after wearing muck boots for work to much on a reall wet fall. I never want to do that again.

 

[SuperDUECE22]

First lite Traverse 2.0

 

[SuperDUECE22]

My buddy was in Kenetreks and gaiters and he ended up wet as well.

kenetrek boots & what gaiter ?

 

[Q child]

I've lived in the Tongass Rainforest my whole life. There is no such thing as "waterproof."