Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting Kenetrek Desert guide boots, opinions

I am thinking about getting a pair of Desert guides. https://kenetrek.com/collections/winter-clearance/products/desert-guide

I would like some good boots without goretex. Any other similar boots I should consider? I have low volume feet.

I have never owner any Kenetrek boots and would probably have to mail order them.

Thanks for thoughts.

If their are rocks avoid Kenetrek....

I am a fan but they have no durability in my environment...

There is a lot of Sherman granite where I would be going with them so that could be an issue. Kenetrek will resole some of their boots. I will have to see if that is a model that can be resoled.

This. I have returned or set on fire 4 pairs of "top quality" randed boots. Gazed at many others as they hung in various stages of disintegration from their owner's legs, often while same owners declared their love and devotion to the brand.

The conditions you describe are my primary hunting conditions -- rocky, cactus, steep, hot-to-warm. I run the Danner Reckoning and they are superb for this purpose. Also, I require a high boot as opposed to a backpacker height boot.

You won't be sorry.

Thanks for the information Talus. I will check those boots out. I had Danner Fort Lewis boots when I was in the black boot army many years ago but the Kletterlift sole they had wasn't good on steep loose rock terrain. I used to like Danner Pronghorns but the last pair of those didn't hold up for one fall. Those Reckoning boots are made in the USA for a change too.

I wore Desert Guides for about 7 or 8 years. It took forever to get them broken in to the stage where I trusted them for going vertical. At first they tore my heals up right quick. Eventually I used them as a work boot around the farm and wore them almost daily. They are tough, the sole is fairly stiff and the vibram is hard. I moved on to Hardscrables for the narrow fit. They have a softer sole, which probably will not last as long as the Desert Guides.

Others make 'desert warfare' type boots, and I tried a couple cheaper ones. Not even close. The Reckoning delivers. Pronghorns are turds.

I know something about hunting in rocky areas.... I spend a whole month hunting the worst rocky country I've ever seen. The ground is covered with rocks, from lemon size to volleyball size. There is usually no place to step between them. So, one walks on top of them. There are very few trails, and all of them are very narrow game trails, not foot paths made by people.
Then there are the slopes into and out of the desert washes. Much of the rock you deal with there will let go after one is half way through placing the other foot.... The rock are not smooth by any means. Even on flats, the rocks can let go as one attempts to keep moving.
My choice for this kind of country are Asolo Fugitive GTX boots. These are Gore-Tex boots. Frankly, even in 100 degree weather, they are not a problem. I'm on my second pair and have a new back up pair when the day comes for new ones. They have withstood several years of this sort of use plus my years round hikes locally.
Ran into a guy at REI when I was buying another pair. He told me his brother, who was on duty in Afghanistan, loved those boots. Said they were the preferred foot gear for our troops there.