Lowa Camino

RdRdrFan

WKR
Joined
Nov 19, 2015
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Thinking about these for early season archery antelope and elk in AZ and NM. I like the way the Lowa's fit my foot and think the Camino's might be better for the warm weather, low desert type hunts. So what do you guys say? Get the Caminos or just say screw it and go with the heavier and stiffer soled Tibets?

Would really like to hear from folks who have owned both or at least owned the Caminos.
 
I have both, and like both... but for different reasons. The Camino often gets overlooked as a 'tweener of the Ranger and Tibet. IMHO it is closer to the Tibet than the Ranger. I tried the Rangers a couple of times but didn't feel they were stiff enough for off trail hiking with a heavy pack. The Tibets have got to be one of the most popular boots of all time and I have been happy with mine. Most of my hunting is in Utah with a bow for mule deer on and off trails, often with steep slopes. I found the Tibets to be way overkill for trails and great in the steep stuff off trail. The Caminos are a step down from the Tibets in stiffness, traction and weight and I have found them to be the best compromise for my uses. Stiff enough for steep stuff and great on regular trails. I've always needed a heavy sock to get my Tibets to fit right, with the Caminos I can use a lightweight sock. With the difference in boot and sock weight, the Camino saves over a pound on my feet. Many will say a pound on your feet is worth 5 on your back and I tend to agree. So with the Camino I lose some off trail capability but lighten my overall load noticeably. If the trip is predominantly off trail on steep stuff then I go with the Tibets.

I also went with the leather lined versions in both boots and couldn't be happier. They are not waterproof like the Goretex versions, but I rarely see extended wet periods when and where I hunt. The leather liner molds to your feet and breaths much better than Goretex.
 
I have both, and like both... but for different reasons. The Camino often gets overlooked as a 'tweener of the Ranger and Tibet. IMHO it is closer to the Tibet than the Ranger. I tried the Rangers a couple of times but didn't feel they were stiff enough for off trail hiking with a heavy pack. The Tibets have got to be one of the most popular boots of all time and I have been happy with mine. Most of my hunting is in Utah with a bow for mule deer on and off trails, often with steep slopes. I found the Tibets to be way overkill for trails and great in the steep stuff off trail. The Caminos are a step down from the Tibets in stiffness, traction and weight and I have found them to be the best compromise for my uses. Stiff enough for steep stuff and great on regular trails. I've always needed a heavy sock to get my Tibets to fit right, with the Caminos I can use a lightweight sock. With the difference in boot and sock weight, the Camino saves over a pound on my feet. Many will say a pound on your feet is worth 5 on your back and I tend to agree. So with the Camino I lose some off trail capability but lighten my overall load noticeably. If the trip is predominantly off trail on steep stuff then I go with the Tibets.

I also went with the leather lined versions in both boots and couldn't be happier. They are not waterproof like the Goretex versions, but I rarely see extended wet periods when and where I hunt. The leather liner molds to your feet and breaths much better than Goretex.

Thanks. This is exactly the type of info I was hoping to get.
 
Russ makes excellent points.

I also own both Camino GTXs and Tibets, neither leather lined. I have a set of Caminos I will sell, see below.

I archery hunt, CO in Sept. High elevation/very steep. I have many days in both boots with light to heavy packs. I TOTALLY second Russ RE boot weights, heed his words-- The Tibets are heavy and you will know it when you are wearing them. In fact, if you plan to use them, I highly recommend training with ankle weights in order to simulate boot weight when hiking in lighter footwear. The Caminos are notable lighter than Tibets, but sacrifice almost no support (in my estimation). I LOVE my Caminos, best boot by far for me. I have many hours with 35-60lb packs while wearing them. Caminos are amazing for side hilling, steep/rocky climbing and back to back days climbing. I find the Camino's sole to be incredible "accurate" (for lack of a better term) when climbing in rock. You feel like a mountain goat and simply know where your foot is at all times when you're on rock in the Caminos. I find the Tibets to provide great support and better for extreme loads (i.e. over 75 lbs for me) , but they are so big, they feel downright clunky sometimes. Solid, but clunky. They also take longer to break in... as in, do NOT take them hunting right out of the box. Tibets for me took about 4 days of real hiking to break in, and be sure to get them wet once while hiking to help the process.

Notably, the Tibet's have fewer lacing holes in the lower foot. This means that the don't extend to the toe box area, so the toe box is huge and has no way to adjust. The plus is that the toe box on the Tibets is cavernous and your toes have space. The downside is that you can't snug it down. I HAD to install aftermarket insoles so my foot would lock in better. Once installed, the boots are bomber. The Tibets have a phenomenal lacing system, best I've owned... one step better then the great system that the Caminos have (except for Tibets not having enough lacing points below the ankle). The Tibet lacing systems is *great* because the heel lock eyelet has a cam lock built it. Once you tension the lower laces, you close the heel lock eyelet cam and "voila" the lower boot tension is then completely isolated from your chosen upper boot tension.

Unlike Russ, I would not own leather lined boots. They take too long to dry and grab my socks when damp. My feet sweat when it's hot and September can be 80 degrees or as cold as 15. I don't want a damp liner, damp liner = sock friction = blisters in my world. Nor can I take a chance on soaking an all leather boot and having no way to dry it.

In summary-- You can't pick a loser with either boot. I like Camino because it's lighter, still offers tons of support and has an accurate sole.

**FYI- I have a set of 11 1/2 almost new Camino GTXs (Goretex) that I will sell. I have the original box and these boots also already have a set of $40+ thermo forming insoles in them, which still can be re-formed 3 more times (put in oven on low, follow directions). I also have the original insoles.

Used them four days, so they are broken in but just about new. They were a fraction too small when my feet swelled a bit and my big toe would just kiss the front of boot on steep descents, so I moved up to 12s. I will let them go for $135 plus actual shipping if you or anyone else is interested. If interested, PM me. Original poster has first option on the boots.

Hope this helps!

JL
 
Thanks JL. If they were 11's I'd take you up on your offer as that is a steal of a price.
 
Anyone know the difference between the "flex" and the "freeflex" versions? They appear to have different SKU's but I can't find anything that tells me the difference.
 
I agree with Gotdraw? about the limitations of the leather lining. Last fall I wore the Caminos on a day hunt in 12" or so of wet snow, knowing that a leather lined boot was probably not the best choice... After a few hours the exterior leather finally started to leak and by the end of the 8 hour day the full boot, inside and out, was completely soaked. It took a solid couple of days inside the house to completely dry. Needless to say, that would have been a disaster on an extended trip.

However, in the areas I hunt that kind of extended exposure is very rare and a well maintained leather boot should be able handle quite a bit of exposure to water before soaking through. I find the leather liner to breath noticeably better than Goretex which helps keep my feet cooler and drier during early season hunts. My feet sweat as well and the leather liner does accumulate some moisture. But I have found my boots will dry out overnight while in the field.

As far as the "flex" and "freeflex", I would be surprised if there were 2 versions of the boot. One website I found mentions both words in the same product description.
 
I agree with Gotdraw? about the limitations of the leather lining. Last fall I wore the Caminos on a day hunt in 12" or so of wet snow, knowing that a leather lined boot was probably not the best choice... After a few hours the exterior leather finally started to leak and by the end of the 8 hour day the full boot, inside and out, was completely soaked. It took a solid couple of days inside the house to completely dry. Needless to say, that would have been a disaster on an extended trip.

However, in the areas I hunt that kind of extended exposure is very rare and a well maintained leather boot should be able handle quite a bit of exposure to water before soaking through. I find the leather liner to breath noticeably better than Goretex which helps keep my feet cooler and drier during early season hunts. My feet sweat as well and the leather liner does accumulate some moisture. But I have found my boots will dry out overnight while in the field.

As far as the "flex" and "freeflex", I would be surprised if there were 2 versions of the boot. One website I found mentions both words in the same product description.

Ok. Thanks. Looks like it will be the GTX for me.

As far as the flex/freeflex....on shoebuy they have the same basic description but are listed as two separate items with two separate SKU's so I wasn't sure.

Thanks again to both of you.
 
I had a pair of Lowa Baffin leather lined boots. I absolutely loved them for dry weather use. I wore them once on a climbing trip in Glacier NP where it rained for 72 hours straight. Leather lined boots absolutely suck in conditions like that. After that, if there was any rain in the forecast I left them home.

The leather lining is as comfortable as it gets in dry weather.
 
I have 4 different pairs of Lowas. Hunters, Tibets, Caminos, and the renegades. The Caminos are a solid boot for early season hunts with moderate packing. They have plenty of support for a light weight boot and can handle heavy haul outs if needed. In my opinion they are the perfect blend between the renegades and the Tibets. I have had them for three seasons on mule deer, elk, and sheep hunts and they have held up well. The only down side for me is they don't have a full rubber rand, it stops just short of half way and has delaminated but you can get good shoe cement and adhere it back. I suspect that one of my boots leaks but I need to investigate that to make sure it's not sweat.
 
As a long time user of Lowa boots in various models, I finally got around to meeting the Camino in person and I think I'm going to love this boot!

Does anyone know of another source of wide sizes other than REI?

thanks,
Jeff
 
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