I'm looking at buying a pair of lightweight hiking boots. The ones I have in mind are Vasque Breeze 2.0. They offer them with or without Gore Tex. These boots will be used for hiking in the mountains(mainly in the summer), and possibly early season antelope hunts.

Is it worth the extra money to get Gore Tex? I think it's $20 more for Gore Tex.

Summer temps are how hot? I know that I like a leather boot for summers and go to the insulated w/gore tex for cooler temps. In my opinion the gore tex really makes my feet sweat by trapping sweat in the boot during warmer temps.

However, my use is in Az and we probably don't have the same water problem as Minnesota!

Get the Gore-Tex and spend some money and get some real good socks. "Fits" make some great merino wool socks that your feet will love. They aren't cheap but worth the money.

Comfortable feet will get you farther than cheap shoes...

My guess is the temps will be in the 70-90 range for most of the use.

Shrapnel,
How do those socks compare to Darn Tough or Smartwool? I have a few pair of each and they seem to work well. However, I'm always up for trying out new stuff. It's just money

Jcubed,
How do the all leather boots do when you get them wet?

For me, I never had an issue even in snow and dew with the leather but as sharpnel said, socks are a huge factor in whatever you choose. I use the gore tex/leather combo in fall and winter but tend to stop there.

Fits are light and unbelievably comfortable. I have some Smartwool too, but Fits are as good as I have had by any manufacturer...

I'm with Shrap... Fits makes some bad ass socks. I have been wearing them exclusively for any outdoor activity for the last 2 years and love them. All my smart wool socks have been relegated to glorified house slipper use.

If you're using boots in temperatures between 70 and 90 degrees then gore-text is not good, IMO. In those condition if you step in water and you have good socks like the others have mentioned your feet and boots will dry and on their own and breathe much better. Gore-tex in hot weather will make your feet sweat. Sweaty feet = blisters.

After a day of desert hiking in gore tex my feet are soaked from the inside out. Much prefer unlined boots unless i absolutely need them for wet conditions.

I would get them with the gore tex. I bought some lighter weight more breathable boots that were just water resistant and hated them. A short rain storm and walking in the wet brush afterwards would leave me with wet feet. This especially sucks when you're planning on hunting for a few days in those boots. I love the gore tex boots I have now. It seems like I walk through dew or get rained on or something happens everyday in the mountains that would get my feet wet otherwise. I wear them with a nice set of merino socks that wick moisture. Yeah my feet sweat more but I think it's worth it having the waterproofness.

I have made two trips across the Grand Canyon, rim to rim, both is June and wearing boots with Gore Tex. Were my feet hot, you bet! My whole dam body was hot. As other have so aptly noted, good socks are the key. (Thanks Shrap for the suggestion on Fits.) Hot or cold weather, If I am out all day, or on a pack trip, I like to change my socks part way thru the day. Sure feels nice to air out the feet and put on fresh socks. Never have suffered from a blister either.

Another big shout out for the FITS socks. I've used Smartwool, First Lite, Darn Tough, and others I have forgotten. FITS are all I buy.

Steve

If I had only one good pair of hiking boots, they'd be Gore-tex lined. I wear the Gore-tex most of the time, in most conditions. I do have unlined boots that I wear in hot dry conditions.

If you are hiking when you want your feet to stay dry in mud, rain, puddle jumping then Gore-tex or another good sock liner membrane is essential for cloth and leather boots. Either way, good socks and timely sock changes are needed. A great deal of foot pain and discomfort is operator error, not boot failure.

If you are primarily using the boots for hot weather and dry conditions, then Gore-tex is not your friend as breathable is a very loosely used term. Any waterproof barrier will dramatically reduce a a cloth and leather boots ability to breathe. That being said, when it's really hot, a breathable boot doesn't magically result in cool feet.

Goretex is at its worst when it's near freezing and very wet. The Goretex booty is on the inside and the insulation is outside exposed to the water. When it gets soaked, the boot is like standing in icewater while wearing a plastic bag over your foot. I never have figured out why they don't put the Goretex on the outside of the insulation.

I'm another believer in Gore-Tex boots; but won't disagree with the few nagative posts already stated since I don't have enough experience in those conditions to dispute them. But for $20 dollar difference in price over the lifespan of a good pair of boots, the cost of Gore-Tex is very trivial.

Gonna be the lone dissenter here. During the cooler months I won't be outdoors without waterproof boots. But during summer hiking here in GA I'd pay more for non-waterproof boots to get them. They are lighter and much cooler. Yes, your feet get wet, but as others said it is good socks that matter. Your feet will be just as wet in gore-tex boots, it is just sweat instead of water. And the non-waterproof boots dry out a lot faster.

Hiking here means lots of stream or river crossings. Unless you are wearing hip boots you're gonna get wet anyway.

If you only have one pair of boots (who does that) then I'd have to say buy the goretex versions.



Wear uninsulated boots with good wool socks inside everything. I've not owned insulated boots in 20 years and have been comfortable down to zero. Below that and typical hunting/hiking boots don't work well anyway

Or bite the bullet and get a pair of custom Russell boots. I have two pair, both all leather, one with a triple vamp (high country hunter), the other a double. The vamp refers to the number of layers of leather on the boot. I have never had wet feet, hunting in rain, sleet, snow or crossing streams. The boots seem to breathe well, but do not allow water to get in quickly. As others have said, good socks are key to foot comfort and warmth. I'd still be wearing the triple vamp boots, but a serious ankle injury forced me to get some boots with extra ankle support. The triple vamps were purchased in 1991 and I'm on my 4th pair of air bob soles. .

Spend the $ and cry once!

I use non goretex all leather and leather lined boots for their breathability and comfort. Used with Darn Tough wool socks and seam sealed stitching my feet stay dry and in great shape. 90* to 0* I wear the same boots and socks. High build wool socks are amazing at temperature and moisture regulation. Gaiters to keep water from your pants and socks to keep them from getting wet and soaking down into your boots. It would need to be extremely wet for me to consider goretex boots. Sweat tex is what it should be called.

I would not use Gore tex for the conditions you describe. It is HOT. But since I run mine in winter, I need it.

I'd be hard pressed to depart from my exclusive use of Darn Tough socks for hunting in cold weather. Since you've used both, why choose FITS over Darn Tough?