Advice for Wading Boots

[Frank Roepke]

I was in a pinch last weekend ready to fish the Feather and my wading boots shrank! I couldn’t get my foot in the left boot so I drove over to Wal-Mart and picked up a $23 pair of hiking boots. I must say, they did the job and I have used them twice since but need to get a real pair of boots.
I loved my felt soles with studs but I don’t think that the “Green” way to go.
Need suggestions.
Thanks,
Frank

[atavuss]

I recently bought a pair of Simms Freestone boots to go along with new Simms Headwater's waders. I did not get a chance to wear the wader boots to break them in other than wearing them for a bit inside the house and they were amazingly comfortable on my first outing. They are not cheap, they are heavy but they work. I ended up getting one size larger than my normal shoe size.
Reviews and information here:
http://www.simmsfishing.com/site/freestone_wading_boot_studded_felt.html
http://i818.photobucket.com/albums/zz107/atavuss/P2180485.jpg

[Ed Wahl]

Frank, since you fish the canyons you should consider rubber soles with cleats. They grab just fine on the rocks in the stream but just as important they won't kill you by slipping off the slopes on the way in and out.
With felt it's like wearing ski's when walking on hills covered with dead leaves or pine needles.
I have a pair of Simms rubber soled w/star cleats and I've been pretty happy with them so far.
Ed

[Fly Guy Dave]

I have an ancient pair of Chota felt-soled boots that get tight in the way that you described in your post. I dump a bunch of water on them (or dip 'em in the stream) first and it loosens them up quite a bit, so you can get your foot inside, no problems. I also have a pair of the Simms Freestone boots in reserve, but I haven't used them as of yet. It's nice to have both kinds of wading boots, depending on the conditions.

--F.G. Dave

[EricO]

You will love the Freestones Dave. i just retired a pair after 3+ years. They are sturdy and comfy.

I just picked up a pair of Korker Redsides. Comes with plain felt and a rubber sole for hiking.
They seem decent and have a pull lace similar to the Chota's.

I am wondering about the Patagonia's with aluminum bars though. I saw a video of a guy wearing these running across wet rocks. Supposedly, the aluminum bars are very soft and malleable- supposed to stick like glue. There was an earlier thread on these a while back.

I'll wait to hear reviews on this board though...they are pricey- $239 bones!

http://www.patagonia.com/us/product/patagonia-rock-grip-wading-boot-aluminum-bar?p=79315-0-602

Eric

[EricO]

Here is a good review on the Patagonia's. Hmmmmm. Sure sound good!

http://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/honest-angler/2012/02/review-patagonia-aluminum-barred-rock-grip-boots

[Frank Roepke]

Eric, excellent link. I will head down to Kiene's and check them out.

Also, I forgot the Gents name who posted the pic with the carcasses, nice!!!!

[weightforwardfilms]

The Simms Freestone with studs are great. Best boots I've ever had and I've had a lot. The studs work perfect.

No matter what, you have to do the 407 bath to kill the invasive species. They can just as easily cling to your neoprene gravel guards. Switching to rubber soles doesn't solve the problem completely.
Jeremy

[aaron]

The Simms alumabite star cleats are excellent and a lot less expensive and bulky than bars. Highly recommended, those in felt are a steelheaders dream. I have them in Freestone felts and love it.

[NCL]

I have a size 11 Freestone Boots on the classified section for sale. The boots were worn twice, so they are basically new and they include the star cleats. I should have gone one size bigger for my right foot.

[golfish]

I bought the Korkers Chrome and used them for the first time on a small coastal for the first time this past weekend. Boa lacing system and removable soles worked well. I brought both the rubber and felt with me and did a couple streamside change outs as an experiment. It worked perfectly, now lets see how long they holdup. They have several different soles available. My only concern is if that boa lacing system fails.

[mykiss_fan]

I have been wearing Patagonia wading boots with felt soles and have been very happy with them. I had a pair of Simms Guide boots a long time ago and they were very good as well but heavy. The Patagonia boots are very light and comfortable. They seem to hold up well but I don't get out to fish as much as I would like so I don't abuse them nearly as much as others.

I wanted to point out Patagonia's great customer service, which I think has been mentioned before on other, older board threads. The felt sole on my pair of 4 yr old wading boots started to come off (told you I am easy on boots). I took the boots into the SF Patagonia store and asked if they could send it to Patagonia for repair. I was willing to pay for the repair since any repairs or damages to boots 4 yrs old should be my responsibility. The Patagonia store does not carry any fishing clothing or boots so they called the online store who then asked my size and where to send a Brand New pair of wading boots. The SF store kept my old boots, presumably to be recycled, and I received the new pair of boots in the mail 3 days later. I had heard about their great customer service, but it was refreshing to experience it first hand. So Patagonia might be pricy but their customer service can't be beat.

[Siskiyoublues]

Mykiss and anyone else using the Patagonia boots,

How do they fit relative to your regular shoe size? I have been using a pair of the Simms Freestones and needed a size 12 to fit comfortable over my wader booties. I'm usually a 10 1/2 to 11. Are the patagonia's (riverwalkers specifically) the same way? Should I order a size up?

[JasonB]

I bought the Korkers Chrome and used them for the first time on a small coastal for the first time this past weekend. Boa lacing system and removable soles worked well. I brought both the rubber and felt with me and did a couple streamside change outs as an experiment. It worked perfectly, now lets see how long they holdup. They have several different soles available. My only concern is if that boa lacing system fails.

Bought my wife a pair of the Chrome boots, and they are indeed nice and light and swapping soles out is slick and easy. We both give a huge THUMBS DOWN! on the "boa lacing" system, as there have been several issues so far (probably 50 days use or less).

First problem came after about 10 days or so of using them when the wire came unhooked from the ratchet. We have also had the ratchet slip, we had the wire come unhooked a second time and for the longest time could not get the top off the ratchet system to rethread it. Be sure not to loose the tiny "tool" that comes with the boots, or this could be really difficult to deal with.

There have been a couple of other issues as well: in terms of longevity, the rubber sleeves that are supposed to guard against the wire cutting through the lacing channels tend to slip and slide around a lot, meaning that at some point in time the wire will cut through the channel. Her gravel guards also seem to be really prone to hit the release button on the lacing, so she often forgoes using the gravel guards with her waders to avoid the possibility of having the boots being loosened while she's in the middle of the river.

It's a nice idea, but seems to me that it was rushed through the R+D process and some of the kinks were not worked out. It would also be more difficult to deal with while out on a trip; I like the idea of being able to deal with any sort of failure with minimal tools and materials, and standard lacing has all sorts of simple fix options while out and about. I am in the market myself for some new wading boots, and from what I've seen with all the issues with hers, I would not buy a pair of Chrome boots with the boa lacing right now.
JB

[Terry Imai]

If you're going to do canyon fishing, I would suggest that you keep your rod and reel in a protective case and place your waders and wading boots in a light backpack. If anyone who has done their share of canyon fishing will testify, it's not "if" you take a tumble rather "when" and more rods and other equipment get destroyed from those missteps. I purchased the Simms Freestone and found the construction and fit "first rate" with them but found after several fishing trips that the rubber soles were worthless. This is after I put the Simms starbrite studs along with then installing the aluminum studs. I was able to get a nice exchange with Simms (thanks again to Bill and staff for standing behind all of their products) with felt. If you want to be "green", I would highly suggest you find someone of your same foot size to try out the rubber soles before purchasing your own pair. IMO, the American River has some of the slickest rocks around and if you believe you have good foot with the borrowed rubber soles, then go ahead and pick yourself up a pair.

You won't take my felt soles away from me...

[golfish]

Bought my wife a pair of the Chrome boots, and they are indeed nice and light and swapping soles out is slick and easy. We both give a huge THUMBS DOWN! on the "boa lacing" system, as there have been several issues so far (probably 50 days use or less).

First problem came after about 10 days or so of using them when the wire came unhooked from the ratchet. We have also had the ratchet slip, we had the wire come unhooked a second time and for the longest time could not get the top off the ratchet system to rethread it. Be sure not to loose the tiny "tool" that comes with the boots, or this could be really difficult to deal with.

There have been a couple of other issues as well: in terms of longevity, the rubber sleeves that are supposed to guard against the wire cutting through the lacing channels tend to slip and slide around a lot, meaning that at some point in time the wire will cut through the channel. Her gravel guards also seem to be really prone to hit the release button on the lacing, so she often forgoes using the gravel guards with her waders to avoid the possibility of having the boots being loosened while she's in the middle of the river.

It's a nice idea, but seems to me that it was rushed through the R+D process and some of the kinks were not worked out. It would also be more difficult to deal with while out on a trip; I like the idea of being able to deal with any sort of failure with minimal tools and materials, and standard lacing has all sorts of simple fix options while out and about. I am in the market myself for some new wading boots, and from what I've seen with all the issues with hers, I would not buy a pair of Chrome boots with the boa lacing right now.
JB

Thanks for the report, gonna order a spare knob and lace for piece of mind. Going to the Rogue at the end of the week, guess I'll pack my old boots as a backup.

[Frank Roepke]

I ordered a pair of Simms Guide at Kiene's. felt with studs on the side. So much for going green!

Thanks for all the advice!

Frank

[mykiss_fan]

Mykiss and anyone else using the Patagonia boots,

How do they fit relative to your regular shoe size? I have been using a pair of the Simms Freestones and needed a size 12 to fit comfortable over my wader booties. I'm usually a 10 1/2 to 11. Are the patagonia's (riverwalkers specifically) the same way? Should I order a size up?

The Patagonia Riverwalkers are sized to accommodate neoprene foot waders. For reference, I am not a big guy and wear a 7 1/2 running shoe and a size 7 (med. width) in dress shoes and the Patagonia Riverwalkers in size 7 fit my neoprene bootie waders great. You should be able to order the same size as your regular shoes. If you are 10 1/2 - 11 in street shoes the size 11 Riverwalkers should fit wader booties fine. From my experience, if they don't fit, Patagonia will swap the size for you no problem.

[ricards]

I was in a pinch last weekend ready to fish the Feather and my wading boots shrank! I couldn’t get my foot in the left boot so I drove over to Wal-Mart and picked up a $23 pair of hiking boots. I must say, they did the job and I have used them twice since but need to get a real pair of boots.
I loved my felt soles with studs but I don’t think that the “Green” way to go.
Need suggestions.
Thanks,
Frank

I soak my wading boots in a bucket of water prior to hitting the river. Sometimes overnight.

[Siskiyoublues]

The Patagonia Riverwalkers are sized to accommodate neoprene foot waders. For reference, I am not a big guy and wear a 7 1/2 running shoe and a size 7 (med. width) in dress shoes and the Patagonia Riverwalkers in size 7 fit my neoprene bootie waders great. You should be able to order the same size as your regular shoes. If you are 10 1/2 - 11 in street shoes the size 11 Riverwalkers should fit wader booties fine. From my experience, if they don't fit, Patagonia will swap the size for you no problem.

Thanks! sounds great. I am hoping to pick up a pair of these in felt for the Pit and Mccloud. Those rivers leave me with little faith in my rubbers.

[BigSmallFly]

I seem to be very hard on boots. My history has been to spend what I can afford each season because, I haver not found a boot yet to last more than one season. Simms rubber sole? 3 trips. Korkers, .5 Season. Cabellas? .75 Season. Felt last longer since they wear at the toe and heal, instead of seperating in these areas. Once seperation starts it's over. My longest lasting pair has been LL Bean but they are heavy.

[Terry Imai]

I have gone through many wading boot models and each had some good and bad points. I do agree with some boots weighing so much to make tough extensive walking. I have a pair of Danner's (over 15 years old) that I replaced because I was tired of presoaking the boots. I picked up the Simm's Freestone and I can give a total thumbs up for the boots especially if you get it with the felt soles along with their cleats. You cannot go wrong with Simm's workmanship and the only reason why I replace them is I just get tired of using their products for so many years.

[JGB]

Comes down to personal taste/needs.

The Big Three(S, P, and O) are equivalent to The Big Three Auto Makers from Germany. Quality, warranty and customer service are going to be top notch. So is $$.

Then there are the rest...some good some not so. Shop carefully!

Chuck Taylor high tops with indoor/outdoor carpet glued to the bottom work great - imagine them studded(?)!

Once you're in the water, studs pretty much make the sole composition irrelevant. Out of water distances/surfaces will be the relevant factor in sole selection.

BTW - If yer gonna be boatin', skip the studs.
JGB

[Frank Roepke]

I got a call from Kiene's today, Simms Guides felt came in! I picked up the boots and headed out to Sunrise for some swinging action. EXCELLENT BOOTS! Support and fit are right on, traction was as epected with felt soles, very good.
As always, thanks for the great service Kiene's :D

Frank