Cold feet mountain hunting: 200-400g insulation?

[Where's Bruce?]

I just double up on Darn Tough socks in my uninsulated boots.

 

[pods8 (Rugged Stitching)]

What Stid said - boots cant be too tight. Also take a look at primaloft instead of thinsulate. They claim about twice the warmth of thinsulate. I have Lowa mountain hunters with 150 grams of primaloft and my feet are rarely cold. However, one year dealing with almost two feet of snow and no stove, my boots froze every night and I was miserable putting my feet in them each morning.

Were your feet able to heat them up over time though or not really?

I just double up on Darn Tough socks in my uninsulated boots.

Double socks is fine with me versus insulated if that works, but I need to size up my boots for it.

 

[duchntr]

If you're hunting in temperatures that consistently stay around 10degrees like you said or even anything below 32 you need a boot made for cold conditions with insulation built in. When shopping for mountaineering boots be aware the reviews can be deceiving because the users could be using them in a consistent high output state which lets them push lighter boots into lower temperature ranges, which does not really apply to walking a little and stopping to glass for extended periods. Id look for something with atleast 400g with a good coating of snow seal. Also if you start with cold feet don't stop until they warm up as it will only get worse, put an extra beanie on when you stop and put your feet on top of a pad and wrap up in a woobie or wrap your feet in an extra puffy.

 

[pods8 (Rugged Stitching)]

Tricky part on CO is it can be 10F in the morning but 50-60 in the day. We hunt high output getting places and once we spot stuff we go hard so glassing in the morning needs to be balanced against laying down lots of miles in terrain thus PAC boots are no go when we're climbing hard in terrain. I have 4 seasons on my current boots so they aren't a new item for me, it was just notably colder this year and I want be prepared for that going forward.

My body layers are fine to rather warm at times as I had along puffy pants and two puffy jackets for the really cold stuff and did sit on foam or my pack.

With my current boots I couldn't glass the mornings under the criteria of don't stop till warm thus why I need to improve upon that baseline.

 

[Stid2677]

I have not used these, but have used many of their other products. Wiggys sleeping bags are good stuff.

Overboots

Thes might work instead of extra socks.

Wiggy’s Lamilite Insulated Socks for Hunting, Backpacking & Climbing

 

[Davebuech]

Ive used thinsulate boots (Meindel) but my feet sweat when I hike even in temps in the teens. Then when I stop they still get cold. Ive gone back to non insulated boots that can dry quicker and Im pretty anal about drying them out each night. Yes, insulated boots will take longer to dry. Pack boots are great for around town or levelish ground but not for demanding mountain terrain. Firing up that Ti stove of course is the best option and what I do mostly at camp. I always try to make sure my boots are dry every night but easier said than done sometimes, especially when not packing a stove. A few things you can do to help dry your boots at the end of the day without a fire/wood stove is to take out the insoles and put them in your sleeping bag at night. Mine are dry by morning. You can also drop a couple of hand warmers (or larger sized) into your boots when you turn in. If I am car camping I stuff them with newspaper for an hour or more when I get back to camp, then pull out the paper and throw in the hand warmers. Walla dry boots in the am.
When Im glassing and it gets that cold, I take my wobble, wrap up well (sometimes take down booties but not overboots and as you know dry socks). Change out socks, put on booties, drop hand warmers in my boots while my feet are wrapped up but often times Im lazy and just build a fire!

 

[Steve O]

I could be naive but I have concerns about PAC boots for mountain hunting. They good for climbing/dropping steep continuous slopes, side hilling, rocks, etc? Seems like locking in a heel climbing and good support side hilling without your foot rotating in the boot?

The Stone sheep in my avatar was taken because of the Schnee Hunters I was wearing. My well broken in “sheep hunter “ boots had turned my feet into hamburger after 44 miles into the concession. I finished out the hunt in the Schnees. I’m going to Kodiak deer hunting shortly; I’m taking those same boots. Are the perfect for the sheep mountains? No. But they do just about everything well.

The Schnee Hunters or Kennetreks would be my pick for what the OP described.

 

[Steve O]

Also take a look at Goresocks.com these are the best socks I’ve ever worn. Pull moisture out incredibly well.

 

[1signguy]

I find that the only time I have an issue is if my Kennetreks are not warm when I first put them on- if my boots are cold when they go on it’s a tough mourning to glass unless I have a good climb to my first sit. So-
I now find a few stones when setting up Camp that I can get warm on the titanium stove. These get stuffed into a pair of socks and dropped into the boots for a few minutes in the am. Getting those boots warmed up doesn’t take but a few minutes while having some coffee.... This makes all the difference in the world!!! No cold feet.
Can’t say enough about the Kennetreks too- I really love them. Best boots I have used period!

 

[pods8 (Rugged Stitching)]

Rocks or small water bottles warmed up and dropped into my boots in the AM was something I had running around in my head as well to help avoid starting out behind the curve on foot warmth already.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

Were your feet able to heat them up over time though or not really?



Double socks is fine with me versus insulated if that works, but I need to size up my boots for it.

Try adding a pair of shorty socks before sizing up, usually a little lace loosening will suffice.