PAC boots?

TedO

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Dec 2, 2022
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166
Hoffman, then Schnees.
Kennetrek's aren't bad either.
 

Tauntohawk

Lil-Rokslider
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Jan 15, 2015
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271
Im in my Hoffman's right now on a cold windy sloppy day of NY hunting and my feet have been the only comfortable thing all day. in a stand the rubber does still absorb some of that cold from the metal platform so I do still slide on arctic shield boot covers when it's 20's or less

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Joined
Dec 17, 2021
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I'm going with Baffin. My Dad, Wife, and I use Baffin and we've been really pleased with them. MY Dad and I use these.

 

mtwarden

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^ those look a good warm boot for stand hunting, ice fishing, etc- not sure how they would fare hiking a bunch of tough miles though
 
Joined
Dec 17, 2021
Messages
72
^ those look a good warm boot for stand hunting, ice fishing, etc- not sure how they would fare hiking a bunch of tough miles though
From the original post.......

Looking to finally grab a pair of pac boots for tree stand hunting in upstate NY.
 

Dented

WKR
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Jan 4, 2021
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442
I've got old well built Sorrels, and new Hoffman's. The Hoffman's, hands down. And I use them in a tree stand.
 

Diveslot6

FNG
Joined
Feb 3, 2013
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Location
Eagle River, AK
Always a good topic!

From experience, can share two things: Baffins and also different perspective on keeping warm in winter, which might apply for you.

The Baffins were worn by a bowhunter I met while I was small-game hunting with a friend. He was in the last week of his Alaska winter tag moose tag. We had a few minutes chat with the hunter. He swore by the Baffins as effective for the month he'd taken off work to stand in the snow during a cold winter. He told us a story from his tag hunt the year before. As he waited at full draw to arrow a fine bull walking behind cover, another bowhunter riding shotgun in a passing truck, spotted the same bull unaware of the stalk in progress. The closing door spooked the bull, who darted across the open shot opportunity only to be shot by the passenger.

The other take on keeping feet warm, vapor barrier liners, comes from my personal experience while steelhead fishing each Fall on Alaska streams. The only thing that really worked for me was this Vapor Barrier Liner idea from Andrew Skurka, a guy on the backpackinglight website. He explains the idea in this 2009 article, though you'll need subscription to access; https://backpackinglight.com/vapor_barrier_liners/

And here's something more recent - 2021 on another site on the same subject:
https://sectionhiker.com/vapor-barrier-socks/.

For me and the silnylon version, they work. REI no longer sells them. Rab and Warmlite used to carry them.

Good luck.
 

cgr1971

FNG
Joined
Mar 3, 2017
Messages
96
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
I would look at the Hoffman Mountaineer Boot. For situations with little movement, you are going to want to stay with a 9mm felt liner. Thinsulate liners are better designed for more active use in cold temps. Felt liners will retain heat much better than Thinsulate. For what it's worth, we still make all of our uppers here in Idaho. From what I have heard, we are the only maker of pac style boots still doing this in the states. We do have a 15% off sale going right now also for the weekend.
I second this. I have extensive use of both Hoffman and Schnee's pac boots. The wool liners are definitely warmer than the thinsulate. I have both Hoffman Mountaineers and Schnee's Extremes. They are both good boots and good companies to deal with. The insulated bottoms on both models make a big difference compared to the uninsulated rubber bottoms. I mix and match shells and liners all the time. The absolute warmest combination is probably the Schnee's Extreme with the the Hoffman felt liners in them, but it's not a big difference from the Mountaineers. I never use my Extremes with the thinsulate liners. The felt liners are thicker, so you have to size the boot accordingly if you want to wear them in the Schnee's boot. The Hoffman Mountaineers is the best bang for money.
 
Joined
Aug 21, 2021
Messages
439
Location
Colorado
Recently tried out hiking in the Kenntrek pacs I got off this forum and I have to say they are excellent for hiking in the mountains. Felt like form fitting moccasins and were not sloppy on my feet like sorels have felt in the past. Now that does not mean I'd try to go up rocks and difficult terrain in them - but for just regular hiking about the mountains I can't recommend them enough! My feet stayed really warm but did not overheat. I do have a pretty wide forefoot though so they fit me real well and the heal was not too big either.
High end pac boots are an eye-opener for me - I won't be without going forward for sure.
 
Joined
Aug 22, 2022
Messages
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I would look at the Hoffman Mountaineer Boot. For situations with little movement, you are going to want to stay with a 9mm felt liner. Thinsulate liners are better designed for more active use in cold temps. Felt liners will retain heat much better than Thinsulate. For what it's worth, we still make all of our uppers here in Idaho. From what I have heard, we are the only maker of pac style boots still doing this in the states. We do have a 15% off sale going right now also for the weekend.
Have been back and forth between Hoffman boots too. Any 15% discount codes available now? I'd love to order soon. Thanks!
 
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