Goretex Boots

“I am in the market for new boots, and I am considering day hiking boots. But, they all seem to be lined with Goretex. I worry that it will be like wearing plastic bags over my feet.
What has been people's experience?
Are they too hot?
Do your feet sweat more?”

“If you can afford the goretex, get it. I won't go back to non goretex. I won't even consider waterproof breathable if it's not gore tex. (I've done that with ski pants). It is so nice to have dry feet all day. Just wear good socks to help move the sweat away.”

“I just got some, but haven't worn them out on the trail yet. So what's the verdict?”

“I have some, it's not like wearing plastic bags at all. They breathe well enough, I've never gotten blisters or wrinkled feet from perspiration, even in the dead of summer in the Cats last year. Get the goretex.”

“I have major sweat problems with goretex lined boots. By the end of the day feet are literally squishing in sweat. I've gotten bad blisters because of this.”

“Smack goretex around--Ooops wrong thread.”

“lol Tango!”

“naah. Never the wrong thread, so long as his thread gets to the bottom of the page.”

“My first hiking boots were goretex, I would never even consider anything else. Just like I said, my first ones...so I have never had anything else but goretex. I guess I can't compair.

I can tell you that I have never had wet feet. I don't sweat too much in them (not like I would in any other boot).

2 days ago I bought me some lightweight hiking shoes. Again: goretex, and I love them.”

“I've never had a big problem in them. My feet don't cause a whole lot of problems though. My wife is thankful for that.”

“I'll log a vote for Goretex. If your feet sweat, pack extra socks. I've heard some folks use Mitchum too but i've never tried it. Filtering, fishing, panning for gold, fording small streams, muddy trails, chasing beavers, each time you'll wish you'd bought the Goretex.”

“I would think that when chasing beavers, latex is better than goretex...


j/k”

“I wear all leather goretex boots and heavy smartwool socks. (same boots monkeyboy and skeetah bait have - LLBean crestas) My feet don't sweat, but try powder.”

“I LOVE my gortex-lined boots. Never had a problem with 'em. I wear Smartwool liners under Coolmax outer socks and my feet stay dry and comfy.”

“What do you use to treat the leather exterior, if you have that and if you even need to do that, what with the lining? My new Asolos are nubuck leather with the Goretex lining.”

“Nasty nasty gortex. I mean I like the stuff in winter when my feet are cold anyway, but in summer the stuff makes my feet get stupidly hot. I think a lot of it depends on whether you suffer hot sweaty feet anyway.”

“I have a pair of gortex boots as well. Had trouble with blisters because my feet sweat a lot. I have used Coolmax liners under my Thorlo's and have not had a blister yet. Definelty go with liners!”

“i wear the ll bean cresta hikers also and will not buy a different kind (assuming they will eventually wear out) unless, heaven forbid, cresta hikers become unavailable.”

“baume66 - I'm on my third pair of crestas, the last pair lasted me about 5 years. The vibram soles wore down so much I was slipping alot.

I noticed my new ones don't seem to be as stiff, and I'd prefer they were.”

“I've gotto look at the Crestas, mainly because they come in wide. They're not too heavy are they?”

“crestas

it says 3lbs 7 oz.”

“thanks twig, that does sound fairly heavy... supposed to be comfy though.”

“lizs, I have some stuff I spiff up my boots with, think it's called "Boot Guard."
I'll look when I get home. I don't know how that would be for nubuck though.
There's also something else I use for the seams, I'll see what that's called as well.”

“If you generally have hot sweaty feet like me, don't go with the gortex.

I bought the non-gortex Montrail Torre's and I've been very happy. I work the leather with NuBuck and Suede and Seem sealer and I've never had wet feet. Even forded six streams with water over the toes in one day and hiked in slushy snow and mud with no water inside.”

“...Nikwax is good...”

“I've never treated Gortex boots with anything except mud. The only care I've put into my Danners in four years is avoiding pavement for training or hiking to keep from wearing the Vibram soles.”

“When I was researching this question about a year ago the general consensus (gear reviews, rec.backcountry, etc.) was that Goretex is probably good in a fabric boot but superfluous and ultimately a potential problem in all leather boots. The problem is that after a while the Goretex pores clog up and they won't breathe anymore. Personally I stick with all-leather, non-Goretex boots and treat them with Nikwax and seam sealer.”

“Well, I hope this clears things up for ya...”

“my crestas are all leather. i have feet that are quick to sweat. i have never had a problem with blisters. i clean mine with saddle soap and rub them down with mink oil. this has worked great for me.”

“I was just looking at Outside magazine's website (www.outsideonline.com) and ran across -GASP!- a gear forum. Here is what their "Gear Guy" said about this very topic:

Jim Milos - 10:20pm Apr 7, 2000 PST (10.)
I just want to see if I'm getting this straight. Plain leather breathes better than leather with a Gore-tex liner. Okay I'll buy that. Now slather it with a waterproofing product of any brand. Does it still breath better? If it is keeping water out, it must be keeping it in too.



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The Gear Guy - 09:17am Apr 10, 2000 PST (10.1)
The thing is, Jim, that a GT liner does not obviate the need for any other leather conditioning. In other words, a boot with a Gore-Tex insert needs to be NikWax'd or whatever just like any other boot. Otherwise the boot leather will saturate, and while the liner may keep you dry, the boot will feel cold and clammy -- and heavy. So the equation runs like this: Boot + GT liner + conditioner versus Boot + conditioner. The second one will breathe better, every time. For that matter, a non-GT boot will breathe better in almost all circumstances, even when sealed and compared to a GT-lined boot that has not been similarly treated. The exception might be when compared to a boot that has been heavily coated with a waxy sealant such as Sno-Seal, which can create a pretty non-permeable layer (although it also wears off.)”