Usually I nest during the winters but I'm looking at getting out and doing some snowshoe trips this winter – possibly some hut-camping (winter tent / snowcave camping may come later but I'll need time to gather other gear for that). Currently I use Inov-8 Roclite 320s for summer hiking and love them. They are probably a bit too light / fragile to deal with snowshoe travel but I'd love to hear some experiences using trail runners in snowy winter conditions. I'm probably looking at getting a pair of boots that will deal with the wet snow and relatively mountainous conditions around Vancouver Canada. Depending on outer sole durability, they may be pressed into usage on rainy / snowy days in town (winters in town range from 40F to 25F with most precipitation being liquid). But they will be dedicated to winter use only. My feet are relatively narrow with a strong arch. Any suggestions?
Topic
Winter boots / shoes?
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I'd suggest you look at Zappos and Cabela's wide selections of winter footwear, and especially at Gore-Tex lined footwear by the description of your needs.
In my book most winter footwear is safer if it has a Gore-Tex lining. If you get insulated footwear you need to keep that insulation DRY from perspiration moisture to keep your tootsies warm. So this means some sort of moisture barrier sock like light, seam-sealed neoprene sox from a dive shop.
Finally, be sure to get your winter footwear one size wider to accomodate thicker sox that should be layered over a thin polypro liner sock. In another post I mentioned that, from my Nordic ski patrolling experience, TWO pairs of wicking thin liner socks keep feet warmer than you'd believe.
Eric
Start by reading the three articles by Will Rietveld on Footwear for Snow Travel here at BPL.
I am just back from a snow shoe which got a bit serious. My wife and I were wearing New Balance MT1110GT joggers in an EEEE fitting (Goretex membrane). They were one size too large for normal summer use (eg 45 instead of 44), but the extra size allowed me to wear two pairs of thick wool socks – one pair of Darn Tough Vermone Boot socks and one pair of Ultimax socks. I had nice warm comfortable feet the whole trip.
I slipped into a creek at one stage and got a wet foot. But my foot and socks soon dried out. While I would never bother with a membrane for summer use, I think a membrane is advisable in the snow.
Cheers
Roger
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