Got some new boots

[hwi]

Picked up a new pair of Oakley LSAs from Amazon. The Water multicam model is on sale for 50% off so I couldn't pass it up.

www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005B6E9OQ/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00

I live in a wet area and hike through swampy trails somewhat often and my take on boots to use in a wet environment is different than some. When hiking in a truly wet environment a waterproof boot is not going to keep your feet dry for very long, eventually it will soak down through your pants or socks or you will be in water that goes above the top of the boot.

Basically, once this happens you are screwed with a waterproof boot. Your feet are going to be miserable the rest of the day because waterproof boots take forever to drain and dry out. Even the touted Gortex is not good at drying out, it clogs easily and once clogged dries just as slow as any other waterproofing material.

I am of the mindset that you need a boot that can drain quickly and dry quickly. My first experience with this type of boot was the Vietnam style jungle boot. They do drain and dry much quicker than most boots, but the couple I have tried were quite uncomfortable, especially at the heels.

This put me on a quest to find a more modern and comfortable boot that could dry and drain quickly. Ultimately, my story ends here because I am a cheap bastard and snatched these up when I saw them on sale. LOL

I did look at a few other boots, most notably the New Balance(formerly OTB) Abyss II and Desertlights, but they were both over $100 and not 50% off, haha.

Anywho, these things are light as hell(lighter than 1 pair of my running shoes and of equal weight to my 2nd pair) and are flexible and comfortable right out of the box. The material that is camouflaged breathes extremely well and there are drainage holes on the bottom of the boot(somewhat similar to the Abyss). Excellent for warm and wet weather.

I'll be giving these a first test out in the wild tomorrow, so hopefully they are as good as they seem to be right now.






Edit: The lighting in the first pic is off for some reason. The 2nd pic is true to color.

[kenny256]

Those look really nice!

Light weight as well?

[hwi]

Yeah, they are super light. Easily the lightest boots I have ever had.

Was out and about in the sticks today for around 8 hours today and they were great. First time I had worn them and they required no break in time, they were perfectly comfortable.

[Willieboy]

Good job HWI. Do the boots provide adequate support and protection from rocks and stuff?

[hwi]

I just took them out again all day and this time I went in water, a lot of water. I was in water up to mid torso(I'm 6'1") for a good amount of time and got soaked to the core, the boots dried super fast, I was extremely impressed. If you need a fast drying boot then definitely consider this one. The water drains out the bottom holes very fast and combined with the breathability of the boot makes it dry out nice and fast. Now I just need to find a sock that dries equally as quick(any suggestions?).

As far as adequate protection goes, they support the foot quite good, they don't have a lot of padding from the ankle up, similar in material to jungle boots in that nature. Florida is not rocky at all, there is essentially no rocks, just corral, so I am not the best judge of that. For my environment they provide plenty of support and protection.