Good winter hunting boots

[mdwest]

The only boots I have ever been happy with for this are USA Military surplus “bunny boots”.
These are a white color, double layer rubber boot, with an air space surrounding your foot.
They also have a valve on them that you must open before flying above a certain altitude or, the air in these boots will expand, risking a tear in the material.

We used to call them "Mickey Mouse" boots... general issue for students attending Nor-War (Northern Warfare School).. and I think all of the Alaska based units got them issued back in the day (both guard and active)... WONDERFUL for cold weather..

https://www.amazon.com/Extreme-Weather-Waterproof-U-S-Military/dp/B004ZCW8UO

The white ones I believe are the "bunny" boots.. where the original black ones were "Mickey Mouse" (although we just called them all "Mickey" regardless of color)..

 

[Velo Dog]

People,
thank you for all your answers, making the selection harder and harder.
@ Velo dog ,I had once the US Desert Storm boots, for the stalking in Africa.But the sole was so thin, that I felt every stone.So I mistrust the US Army boots a little bit.
@Longwalker,your Nokia recommendations are rubber boots,can that be ?
Does sombody know the Kamik Cody ?

Regards from Munich
Foxi
(last week in the night -10 almost,
tomorrow +15 ...............weatherforecast )

Hi again Foxi,

I have no experience with US Army desert boots.
But if they hurt your feet due to thin soles, I can’t blame you for not liking them.
Under those circumstances, I would not like them either.
However, if you ever did try the bunny boots in extreme cold, I would bet a keg that you will never bother with any other boot for especially fierce winters.
I’m referring only to the white ones, as the black ones (“Mickey Mouse boots”) although very well made, are not designed for as far below freezing as the white ones (“bunny boots”) are designed for.

Last but not least, there have been some cheaply made “counterfeit” versions of both these boots on the market that do not last for a lot of walking.
Likewise, the material is not resistant to sunlight or very cold temperatures either one.
So, if you ever change your mind about trying bunny boots, do choose wisely when looking for the real ones.

Best regards,
Paul.

 

[Pondoro]

Two good solutions are either some leather hunting boots with wool socks and overshoes or Muckboots with woolen inner soles and wool socks...the latter is what I have used for years...comfortable to - 20 C and lower....snowmobiling too..

Wool, wool...layers of wool...

 

[mdwest]

Last but not least, there have been some cheaply made “counterfeit” versions of both these boots on the market that do not last for a lot of walking.
Likewise, the material is not resistant to sunlight or very cold temperatures either one.
So, if you ever change your mind about trying bunny boots, do choose wisely when looking for the real ones.

Best regards,
Paul.

@Velo Dog is spot on.. Rothco and other discount manufacturers make knock off mickys'.. make sure what you are looking at is genuine US GI surplus.. the knock offs will not be nearly as well made..

I am suspicious this might be the case with your desert boots also @Foxi ... the original desert storm boots were essentially the same boot as the "jungle" boot that had been issued since the 60's.. they just used suede instead of nylon for the upper portion of the boot, and removed the grommets from the side that were designed to allow water to escape the "jungle" version, and took the steel shank out of the sole (it conducted heat from the sand and was very uncomfortable).. the soles on those boots were actually pretty thick, and one of the principal complaints was that they were too rigid and needed time to break in.. it was pretty common for people to replace the soles with vibram soles because they actually wanted something softer to walk on.. The original desert boot was very popular overall though and was considered to be very comfortable for its time (there are much, much better options available today.. but in the early 90's it was considered extremely good kit)..

I think you might have had some knock off desert boots made by wellco or rothco (those companies made millions of pairs and sold them for 50-75% the cost of the actual US military issue boot).. I have never heard anyone complain about a USGI issue desert boot being too thin or soft on the sole.. if anything, the complaint was the exact opposite for most people (too hard and too stiff)..

We (the company I worked for at the time) bought close to 50,000 rothco boots for our people in the early 2000's.. largely because they were considerably less expensive than what we would have paid for other boots.. I think we paid about $35 a set for them back then when buying in bulk)... they looked identical to the old desert boot.. but they wore out much faster, and there were all sorts of "comfort" complaints associated with them..

 

[Mike B]

I have a set of Meindel boots from Cabelas with 400 grams thinsulate in them. I then bring SmartWool socks to match the temp (I have heavyweight down the lightweight wool socks). I have been good from 50ish on down to below zero. Last Elk Hunt I was snow shoeing or walking in knee deep snow and had warm feet. Sitting in a deer blind last weekend in the 30s and I was comfy. If you are going to be in freezing anytime you ever wear them, I think I’d go with heavier insulation boots.

 

[MS 9x56]

sorry for asking this in an Africa forum, but many of you come from cold regions and I wanted to ask, if there was anything new on the shoe market.
I'm looking for a hunting shoe, that allows comfortable walking and I still have warm feet when sitting for three hours at minus 20 degrees.
Greetings +thanks
Foxi

Those 2 conditions are diametrically opposed. Closest I have found are Schnee pack boots.

 

[Tra3]

+1 on Schnee pack boots. They are based out of Montana.
I use 4 different types of footwear for hunting:
Schnee’s packs from 40 F to -20 F.
Merrell wilderness boots for temps from about 20 F to 55 F
Courtney boots from about freezing and up.
Last style of footwear is for antelope hunting: trail running shoes. I am a marathoner so antelope hunting with ultralight gear, trail running shoes and some jogging is my idea of hunting heaven.