Are any "waterproof" boots/hikers truly waterproof?

[hiker270]

Every all leather boot I've ever owned has never leaked when I keep the leather properly treated. I remember as a kid thinking how cool it was to stand in a stream in my hiking boots. Back then we used SnoSeal. These days I use Obenauf's.

I still use SnoSeal on leather boots and it always seems to do the job.

 

[rideold]

I still use SnoSeal on leather boots and it always seems to do the job.

I really liked SnoSneal but had a pair of boots loose their sole.....and then again after getting a warranty return. I talked to a shoe maker/repair place and they said they had seen SnoSeal cause that. Maybe it was just that brand of boots. Who knows but I switched and haven't used it in a few decades. It can't be that big of a deal if they're still in business!

 

[strousek]

Biggest problem I have seen is that when the moisture wicking boots get wet they no longer let perspiration out. So when you are hiking around all day in the sopping wet grass your feet are sweating like hell. All that sweat is trapped in when the outer boot layer is soaked, so most of that wet foot feeling is coming from the inside not out.

Can't beat a great waterproof gaiter either. Keeping your pants dry will really keep your feet dry as well.

 

[feanor]

Solomon Quest are 100 percent water proof… and they look awesome too…

 

[wapitibob]

Solomon Quest are 100 percent water proof…

if you leave them in the box

 

[rcb2000]

First lite Traverse 2.0

Yeah those are more for light debris,, def not a true gaiter

 

[LongWayAround]

I seem to have lower expectations or better luck with Gore-tex boots and never really have had the soaking wet feet many others seems to.

Lately, I have been preferring my leather lined boots anyway. Going forward, I will be wearing my sealskinz socks on days where I am dealing with wet vegetation or prolonged wet ground.

I have only used them once so far but they were great until I took water over the calf height.

 

[mb6355]

Just came back from several days off the haul road trekking through the wet tundra. 3 of us in group and packed out 3 caribou from past the 5 mile corridor. Really put the "waterproofing" to the test. Wore 3 pairs of boots over majority of the hunt and 2 of us swapped boots out on the last day when we hiked in and packed the camp, last caribou, and all three heads out. Here are the results. Gaiters were worn the entire time.

Crispi Nevada GTX - never leaked but perspiration is a problem since the boot really does not breath once the exterior leather is wetted out.

Zamberlan Guide 980 GTX - pretty much the same as the Nevada's

Schnee's Timberlines - One boot started leaking on the first day and the other on the second, both soaked completely by end of 2nd day.

Crispi Altitude GTX and Salawa Mtn Trainer 2 GTX - Just worn on last day. Both of these boots are synthetic/suede uppers with goretex and both were saturated before we made it the +5 miles to camp to pack everything out on the last day. Also both pair were essentially new and only had a few training miles prior.

 

[Average Dave]

Doesn’t matter if it’s wet out or not my feet get soaked from the water leaking out of my feet.

 

[Kilboars]

I’ve got a 7+ year old set of Chrispi’s that I think I’ve killed now. Just hunted CO this month where it rained for three days and the other days we walked through streams so my boots never dried out but my feet were never wet.

I was thinking of trying another boot but for how great these boot have been over the years I’m buying the exact same leather pair.

Chrispi’s all the way.

Ps. I noticed everyone else had the same door on.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[5MilesBack]

I've never really worried or thought about it much in CO, but it does get wet at times like last week. I still don't notice it at all inside my boots, even though the outsides are getting soaked. I always wear gaiters for dry or wet conditions. Both pair of boots that I use (Zamberlan and Crispi) are 10+ years old, so lots of miles and lots of wet and dry use. I also believe that I just don't think about my feet all that much. I always wear a thin poly liner sock with lightweight merino boot socks over those, then put my boots and gaiters on and hike all day, and take them off every night to air out regardless of the conditions. I never notice any problems.

So I don't know if they're waterproof or not, but it's not like I ever have standing water in my boots or soaked socks.

 

[D S 319]

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

that’s a bummer. Just tromped through rain and mud up to my ankles in the Kenes no gaiters and stayed dried! This is my 4th year wearing them. But I do treat the leather beginning and end of the season at a minimum . Can’t say that about my Salomon’s anymore.

 

[Huntin_GI]

Waterproof seems to mean different things to different people.

I have a pair of Crispi Nevada's and have put them through the gauntlet the past few year.

What I am coming to expect is if the weather outside is nice, I can march through willow swamps all day and stay dry if I spend anytime above the waterline. If rain is in the forecast, I get anxious. After 2-3 days of constant rain, I can pinch the leather and watch water push up through the pores of the leather.

Wet does not mean saturated but saturated sure as shit means wet.

 

[Krieg Hetzen]

It was year 4 or 5 on my Kenetrek Mountain Guides paired with First Lite Bramblers (they finally need to be replaced) and I've gotten wet feet once while hunting and that was mid thigh deep in a beaver pond so I can't blame the boot. But every year I stand in the creek next to camp about ankle deep before accounting for current and clean the blood out of the bed of my Ranger. Fantastic boot. The kentrek gaiters seemed to have served my friend well, he got a pair of 400gr mountain guides and everyday said he was surprised his feet were dry.

 

[Wacko]

The answer is NO...no boot is waterproof. Membranes suck....go for a leather or other non waterproof boot, treat it well with a "waterproofer", use it. Use something to mitigate the "wet" when / if they soak through....like a plastic vegetable bag from the grocery store. It's going to do the same thing as a membrane liner...keep the outside water out / off your feet - and keep the sweat in. Then just rotate pairs of socks. The benefit here is these boots will actually dry out at some point....not like a membrane boot that will need days and days or some kind of a dryer.

Yes on a good waterproof gaiter...they will keep your legs warm and sweaty too. But warm is better than cold and wet. They also keep the wicking from outside your boots down to a minimum.

Just my 2 cents....

 

[wapitibob]

Finally a waterproof pair of boots. 4 days of rain, trudging thru grass, snowberry, huckleberry, etc and still dry feet. A tad heavy but actually quieter underfoot than my Salomon x ultras.
On sale for $90.

 

[AndrewD]

I have been working a theory about waterproof boots for the last few years, but I have never heard it mentioned anywhere, so maybe I'm wrong, although I think it is sound.

For years I worked and recreated in modern style liner boots and they always seemed to fail at some point fairly early in their life. After I moved to a winter climate, I was using Keen Polar winter boots for outdoor stuff in the snow. They were brand new and every time I went out to do something in the snow, it felt like my feet were getting soaked. Sometimes my feet would be wet when I took them off, and other times my feet were dry, despite feeling wet when I was outside. I started noticing that when they were dry was on colder days. I started thinking about the dampness being all sweat and not actually leaked-in snowmelt; colder days, no sweating=dryer feet. So I started wondering why it always felt like my feet were wet. These Keens were mostly mediocre leather, but the tongue was synthetic material with a somewhat coarse texture like canvas.

Then it hit me: evaporation/melting! Ice/Snow requires energy to melt into water, and water requires energy to evaporate. Both of these processes suck energy in the form of heat from nearby sources. This is the opposite principal of why ambient temperature tends to rise when it rains; condensing water releases stored energy in the form of heat into the environment. Both of these processes occur in our refrigerators constantly: liquid is evaporated to suck heat out of the interior of the fridge, then compressed so that it condenses (releasing waste heat) and can be cycled back for evaporation.

I started wondering about that coarse synthetic tongue, which, even when freshly waxed/oiled, trapped water or ice on the surface. Then I noticed that when I neglected oiling the boots, the leather parts would quickly turn dark as water/snowmelt saturated the outer surface, and that was when my feet felt the wettest. I came up with the conclusion that even if the boot's materials are not letting water in, if there is enough evaporation happening on the outer surface, it will suck enough heat out the interior of the boot, tricking me into thinking cold water is leaching in.

So I switched to all-leather work boots for winter chores and regularly hot-pack them with snowseal. When ice melts on these boots, it beads up on the surface rather than saturating into the material, and I noticed that my feet never feel wet. A drop of water will evaporate much slower than the same amount of water spread out across a surface.This is one of the many reasons why I am being converted to quality leather footwear with minimal synthetic elements. Aside from the synthetic foot stink, I think all-leather with a membrane liner is a decent combo. Like others said, the membrane is sort of a back-up in case your leather breaks down or forgets to remind you to oil it.

I have also come to realize that it is unreasonable to expect any boot other than rubber boots to be waterproof. Good boots should keep your feet dry in reasonable conditions, but to expect to be able to stand in water and not get wet is not something I do anymore. I think the better option is to keep your feet out of standing water, or wear rubber boots.

 

[Seeknelk]

I feel that if you DONT use a good waterproofing like snow seal, water soaks thru the leather and is between the goretex or whatever membrane. Then with constant flexing, that water is literally forces thru the "waterproof" membrane and the breathability is also gone from all the soaked leather blocking vapor from escaping.
The snow seal probably blocks vapor escaping also but really ,how much makes it out thru a leather boot? I guess a decent amount must get out. Anyone ever see the white residue lines around the bottom of your gaiter or pants on the leather. I'm pretty sure thats salt and stuff left there from sweat?
Anyway, if it's real wet I think you need a good waterproofing treatment. What's best I know not.
I've been using a non lined boot(VEVObarefoot tracker forest) and plan to test sno seal next. Feet were absolutely soaked from light grass and brush that was wet. With gaiters.

 

[z987k]

These are generally my hunting boots.

M's Guide BOA Wading Boot - Vibram | Simms Fishing Products

SIMMS Men's Guide BOA Boot - Vibram. The rugged, responsive boot stacks agility and stability with maximum traction.

www.simmsfishing.com

You give up on the boots being waterproof. Put some waders on, or I run the tundra hippies.

Walk through tundra swamps without a care in the world.

 

[madcalfe]

I'm on year 5 with my kennetreks and have never had wet feet.
on my goat this September it rained all day with 40 km winds I was literally soaked to the bone but my feet were still dry. My boots are starting to fall apart even. toes have all been shoe glued and soles starting to separate.
i just wax them before every hunt and run stone glacier gaiters