Winter Hike/Camping gear for the high peaks?

If the issue is warmth, I doubt there will be more in these boots, but I'm sizing up with mountaineering socks and a liner. maybe even a VBL. your feet get warm moving around and if your core is really warm your body won't sacrifice warmth from your feet, and theoretically its all good. I was going to buy an insulated boot, but they were all really expensive and also I was told by many it was just not necessary.

The liner is not removable, but I'm now considering the raven instead, because they are almost half the weight! I want to find a place to try them on but might have to order and try afterward. I'll let you know what I find out.

Edit: After some additional research it appears that they are not lighter, they were listed at the wrong weight on backcountry. The Rapace are lighter.

Bentgate had both in my size, and I tested them out at lunch today. The Rapace is only 20g / 0.75 oz heavier than my Mountain Trainer Mid, so I couldn't see it being significantly warmer. It had a very similar fit, but was stiffer for crampon compatibility. The Raven fits higher on the calf, but the neoprene cuff didn't overly restrict my motion. It is about 140g / 5 oz heavier than the Rapace, and some of that was extra insulation.

I also looked at the Scarpa Triolet Pro, although they didn't have my size in stock. The advice I received was that the Raven will be a warmer boot than the Triolet Pro, and for hiking it may be a little more comfortable – the Triolet is more of a scrambling and climbing boot. I'm not sure my aspirations extend to mountaineering yet. But they are ordering in a pair of Triolet Pros in my size so I can compare them side by side with the Ravens.

I also tried on La Sportiva and Kayland offerings, but all were too narrow for my feet.

did you notice a difference in the toe box? did either seem narrower or wider? I find scarpa too narrow on my feet…

For both Salewa and Scarpa I upsized 1/2 to 1 shoe size to get a fit I was comfortable with (10.5 and 44 respectively). The Mountain Trainer was a revelation – it's the first boot I've used where the toebox was wide enough without my foot swimming elsewhere. There was no break-in on that boot. Both the Rapace and the Raven felt slightly narrower than the Mountain Trainer, but I really think that's due to the upper materials – and I was wearing thicker socks than I use in summer. The Rapace might have felt slightly wider than the Raven, but I put that down an overall impression based on the stiffness of the materials used, the insulation, and the difference in cuff height. All three use the same Vibram sole, and the last looks identical. I may try a Raven in size 11 on my return trip to Bentgate. Although Salewa manufacture a wide version across much of the range, they don't offer them in the US.

For me Scarpa is still in consideration because size 44 was the sweet spot, both in length and width terms. Half a size either way (43.5 and 44.5) made a significant difference. Green Superfeet fixed the heel lift I detected with Scarpa's insole.

So I ended up ordering the salewa raven. It arrived quickly and I tried them on. I went up a size for the difference in mountaineering socks and liner. Overall I was really impressed with the light weight of these boots for the amount of stiffness. They seemed like a perfect fusion between a heavier mountaineering style boot, and a lighter hiking boot. The sole was beautiful, and the role of the step was very nice. Everything was solid and the fit was ok in the toe box. However, I did find the fit to be a tiny bit narrow for my feet where the toes meet the foot. I have a very slightly wide foot there, bridging on officially wide, but not a problem for most shoes. In stiffer boots this becomes a problem for me, and I found it to be a slight problem here. I could not go up another size or the boots would have been too big. But the main problem I had with this boot was actually with the stitched seam of the neoprene liner on the rear top area of the boot, the part opposite the top of the tongue, where the boot meets the back of your calf. I guess I have a wider calf than the model for this boot, because the top of the stitching on that neoprene would just bite into my calf with every step. After a while it started to really hurt. this would be a major problem for me in the field, and adding layers wasn't possible, it was too close to my skin. Some people with a skinny calf would have no problem with this. For me, it was a deal breaker. I returned them. However, before ordering the Rapace GTX, I did a little more research. I came up with this:

http://catalogue.adidas.com/catalogue/sk/product/G02740/Terrex-Conrax-CP

Gotta find a place to try them on, or I'll just order. They are also insulated so I probably won't have to go up a whole size. I'll give some feedback once I've taken the next step.