Best winter boots?

[Ellen Forradalom]

My Doc Martens want to retire to a nice little place on the Gulf Coast where they'll never have to work the snowy, slushy streets again. What are the warmest, most stylin' winter bootsfor women?

(No, I never liked LL Bean's Maine Hunting Shoe, not even during its fashion heyday of 1982.)

[mykpart]

1. I like to

just tie plastic bags over my Reeboks!

[Ellen Forradalom]

2. Woo, that's stylin' all right!

now why didn't I think of that?

[Twillig]

3. Matterhorn boots kick ass!

The must have boot for the troops. Impervious to everything.

Chick boots too, i see!

http://www.vanderbilts.com/brands.php?bid=12

[Ellen Forradalom]

4. Whoa, those are hardcore!

I'd run away screaming from someone wearing a pair of those!

Maybe I should get a pair. Then when someone tells my son, "Your momma wears army boots," he'll blink in incomprehension. "So?"

[Twillig]

8. I thought Doc Marten's were hardcore..

I dunno. We had to pay top dollar back in the day when I was in the army for these quality boots. Basic training issue boots suck, of course.

If you gotta slog thru slush, snow, and mud, kick a lil' ass!

http://www.shoestoboot.com/category.cfm/164

[DuctapeFatwa]

5. Reindeer fur ones from Finland

Why mess around?

[Ellen Forradalom]

11. Finnesko boots?

I might be mistaken for one of Santa's elves, but they are cool.

[DuctapeFatwa]

14. Ohhhh! those are BETTER than mine! Where can I get some of THOSE?

Those are the ones I wanted but had to settle for the regular conservative executive ones with the real wide cuff thing.

[Ellen Forradalom]

16. You'd have to raid a museum

Or join the Sami.

[happyslug]

6. Style, comfort AND function are mutually exclusive in winter boots.

For a boot to be any good it has to keep your feet warm and dry. Warm requires some insulation which makes the boot fat (See the US Army Mickey Mouse boot for example). Dry requires some sort of barrier to prevent water from entering the boot (And at the same time permit your foot to release sweat). Another factor is surface area on the ground, the more surface area at the bottom of the boot the more grip it will have on any ice or snow patch (anther factor boots tend to be "big").

Thus what type of compromise with style are you willing to make? In recent years I have been using overboots with tennis shoes with Neos overboot in winter (In bad weather I switch to my old Army Mickey Mouse Boots), warm, dry but makes your feet look like you are a clown).

http://www.onlinebootstore.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=obs&Category_Code=NEOSovershoes
http://www.campmor.com/webapp/commerce/command/ProductDisplay?prrfnbr=73550&prmenbr=226
http://www.rei.com/webservices/rei/DisplayHome?siteID=5%2At5lkTnZI8-m%2FznLf8MmS7oD%2A76nATCIw
http://www.orvis.com/store/product_choice.asp?adv=19793&dir_id=1137&pf_id=150Es&group_id=1162&cat_id=324&cktst=true&subcat_id=1

[Maine Mary]

7. LL Bean boots suck

They outsource too much so the quality is terrible. I used to be a stitcher at both Dexter and New Balance. With 12 years of stitching experiance I can tell you that IMO their footwear has much to be desired. The clothing line is pretty decent though if you like that kind of style.

[wabeewoman]

9. Can't say about snow

but for the rainy northwest you can't beat Muck boots. Course they are farm boots and not fashion boots. So guess this is no help at all!

[Ellen Forradalom]

12. I happen to think that the farm is fashionable!

Those Muck boots do look good.

[HEyHEY]

10. I'm up again!

Sorel's are great boots for snow.

[BlackVelvet]

I bought a pair of Danner Hiking Boots. They are the best boots I have ever worn in the snow, ice, or rain. I not only wear them hiking I wear them for most everything including shopping. They are expensive but will last forever.

[Ellen Forradalom]

17. Welcome to DU!

And put on your hip-high waders before heading over to the General Discussion forum! It's prone to outbursts of mudslinging.

:toast:

[Ellen Forradalom]

18. Welcome to DU!

And put on your hip-high waders before heading over to the General Discussion forum! It's prone to outbursts of mudslinging.

:toast:

[newyawker99]

20. Hi BlackVelvet!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[BlackVelvet]

24. Thanks for the welcome!

This looks like an interesting board.

[Ellen Forradalom]

25. "Interesting" is the understatement of the week

n/t

[Robb]

15. I second Sorels

If you really want warm and dry feet. I swear by Sorels. Take it from a musher. :)

...plus Mrs. Robb the VP has a pair that are a little more stylish but just as warm and dry.

[GregW]

19. Yep! My winter hikers are Sorels

[TreasonousBastard]

13. Eskimos know best...

http://www.mukluks.com/index.shtml

[Quahog]

21. Check Cabela's catalog

www.cabelas.com

They carry just about every brand in the world. Their focus is on hunting gear. I don't hunt, but folks who do know a thing or two about staying warm and dry in crappy conditions. I bought a pair of these two years ago:

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jhtml?id=0006209830158a&navAction=push&navCount=2&indexId=cat560046&podId=0006209&catalogCode=XD&parentId=cat560046&parentType=index&rid=&_DARGS=%2Fcabelas%2Fen%2Fcommon%2Fcatalog%2Fitem-link.jhtml.1_A&_DAV=MainCatcat20564&hasJS=true&hasJS=true&hasJS=true

Sexy and stylish? NOT! But very warm and very dry for nasty New England winters. Hey, their good enough for the guys who run the Iditerod, so I figured I couldn't go wrong. They've been through a couple of very wet, snowy winters and still look like new. I like the shearling liner especially. I love winter weather, but I HATE having cold feet!

These are kinda cool, and come in womens' sizes too:

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/pod/standard-pod-wrapped.jhtml?id=0022452&navAction=push&navCount=2&indexId=cat560046&parentId=cat560046&parentType=index&rid=&_DARGS=%2Fcabelas%2Fen%2Fcommon%2Fcatalog%2Fpod-link.jhtml_A&_DAV=MainCatcat20564

[XNASA]

22. My Merrill's lasted 12 years.

I'm not sure about style.

I dress for comfort myself.

Here's a link to the Merrill Women's Winter Footware page:

http://www.merrellboot.com/catalog/gallery.asp?NavID=WWIN&nxtpage=1

I kind of dig the Yeti High's.

Hey, where you bin? We lost track of you.

[Ellen Forradalom]

23. I bin right here.

Lost my job. Surf all day and all of the night. When are you stopping by to help drink the bourbon?