Don't overlook the advantages of good gaiters. A well broken in pair of uninsulated boots treated with Bees Wax and then insulating gaiters works pretty well. Far better than something that you can't walk in. With two pairs of socks good for all but extreme cold and wet.

I used to use the super gaiters but lost them somewhere and am looking for a replacement. Hard to find insulated ones that are quiet and don't collect snow.

I have too many hunting boots, including Kenetrek Mountain Extreme 400's and three pairs of Schee's pacs in different weights from unlined to insulated-with-thick liners.

The one for-sure comment I'll make is that the Montana Pitchblend that Schee's sells for waterproofing leather is the best I hav ever used, and I've used most of the leather treatments on the markets. It's a combination of beeswax, oil and pine pitch that really waterproofs leather BUT also lasts longer than any thing else I've tried. I would definitely recommend ordering some.

I have good luck with the Kenetreks in wet conditions. I wore them in Alaska for two weeks of bear hunting last fall, when hiking across tundra in the rain and crossing swamps and creeks. I was the only guy in the two camps I hunted in that didn't get blisters or wet feet.

That said, when I really truly want my feet to stay dry I wear pacs. If I'm snow-hiking a lot in moderate temperatures I wear lighter Schnee's, which are warm enough when hiking and abssolutely waterproof in wet snow.

In colder temperatures I sometimes wear my really big, insulated Schnees even though they are clumsier, because in colder temps I'm often sitting as much as hiking, since the animals will be moving more.

Might also mention that I froze my toes a couple of times when much younger, due to mediocre boots and really cold weather, so my feet are very sensitive to cold.

rost:

I have hunted elk in Colorado since 1978. I have also done lots alpine mountaineering and cross country skiing all over North America during the same time frame.

My experience has been the same as those who say that leather boots, even those that are lined with Gortex or similar product and also have the waterproofing well maintained will eventually get soaked when walking through melting snow. I use to take two pair of good leather boots to elk camp and when one got soaked I would switch to the other pair and let the first pair dry out in the cook tent.

In the last ten years I have been taking a good pair of alpine mountaineeering boots and a good pair of leather boots.

I own a pair of Sportiva Trango and a pair of Sportiva Karakorum boots. The Trangos are multipurpose boots for the approach and for mixed rock/ice climbing. The Nepals are intended for use on pure ice/snow climbing.
http://www.sportiva.com/products/cat/M

I also own a pair of Asolo Sasslong boots. They are leather boots with a full rubber rand and Gortex lining with penetrating waterproof coating in/on the leather. They work best when most of your hiking will be in dry conditions and with ocasional snow/mud. http://www.sierratradingpost.com/Asolo-Hiking-Boots.html

I recommend against using boots that go way up onto the calves. They are just too heavy for me and it's hard to get good ankle support.

I also highly recommend in favor of using OR Crocodiles gaiters. They weigh a lot less than high boots, help keep snow from getting inside your boots and help keep your calves warm. They are real easy to put on/off and once they are on, they stay on. http://www.rei.com/product/725915

There is usually lots of hiking involved with elk hunting and so I recommend against any kind of pack boots, because they just don't fit well enough, at least not on my feet. They fit loose no matter how tight I tie the strings, so my feet slip inside the boots and that causes blisters.

KC

Jeff,

It's a conundrum, because in my experience if you insulate the boots enough to truly have warm feet when you aren't moving, they'll be too hot when you are. Which is true of most cold-weather gear but you can't "layer" your boots.

I use Redwing Irish Setters, leather with insulation and gore-tex. They've never leaked. Dry snow won't make your boots leak anyway. The worst is wet, gloppy snow that hangs on the lower brush. That's a test of your pants or gaitors and boots.

In truly cold conditions I just figure my feet will be cold and that's what it is. Where we hunt it's been as cold as -15F walking in in the morning. Cold. I wore surprisingly light gear hiking in, so as to get as little stuff wet with sweat as possible. Then layer it on when it's time to sit and watch a saddle or whatever.

I'm very tolerant of cold; maybe from being a skier. If your goal is to have perfectly comfortable warm feet, without ginormous clonkers on them, I don't know what the solution is. Even my Sorels won't keep me warm when it's truly cold and I'm not moving around.

What I do when I stop to glass for a couple of hours on really cold mornings is I add lots of clothing to what I'm wearing. The top half gets a DAS parka with hood as well as the fleece cap and fleece Baclava that I'd be wearing. This leaves on the eyes open for glassing. My legs get wrapped in my wind parka. I put on extra gloves for my hands. Any extra fleece tops I have go on under the DAS parka, etc.
I sit of a piece of ensolite that I carry with me. Haven't needed any insulated boots yet. E

Anyone use those air activated foot or toe warmers? Heard from a couple guys that use them and they think they are great.

470Nitro.I have used them for years They work very well You can't use the hand warmes for foot warmers as they are a different formula. I used some up in Alberta fro a week one year in my Sorels It was -25 and I had to change a set out mid day and chang emy inner packs every day to let them dry out,but my feet stayed warm.
I just picked up a box each of toe warems andhand warmers from Costco and it worked out to about 35 censt a pair

Saddlesore

Thanks for the input. What brand do yo think works best? I see most of the toe warmers peter out after about 6 hours, which really isn't an issue if you remember to take a spare.

I'm not quite so much worried about myself... my wifes feet get cold our hunt could be over. I always have the toe warmers in the backpacks, never used em though. Never had snow in MZ season yet... not the years we went.

I'll look into the non leahter boots, but so far we have waterproofed our boots 2 times a year, very well and with heat, and I"ve walked in wet swamp stuff one time well over 14 hours and until I stepped into a bottomless hole that almost killed me, my feet were only sweated, not wet.

Seems like our current boots will be fine, and then could add some mountaineering boots as the backup. I'll get good gaiters, not the bass pro stuff....

And I"m inclined to buy a pair of the big insulated things that go over boots, but if we sit, I"ll make the wife take her boots off and then the overboots on to stay warm.

We do layer, no need to worry there... starts with silk, merino wool, and then it gets more interesting after that... a heavy wool coat and rain gear are always around.

Nitro.Really can't say which toe warmer is best.I have uaually just grabbed what Walmart had or at times Cabelas had them on sale.Mostly Grabbers I think. Really need to keep them sealed.I think I have noticed some deterioration over time.If they feel lumpy or a bit hard they are no good.They have to be nice and powdery.
I don't think a lot of guys hunt the extrmes I do,nor sit in a saddle for 3-4 hours riding to a hunt area.Then get off and hunt several hours in snow ,etc ,and get back in the saddle and ride back for 3-4 hours.If one is moving, feet stay fairly warm. A lot of guys that have hunted with me say I hunt too hard to suit them. Usually hunting muzzy is like hunting in mid summer for me.