Winter boots - I can't wear the L.L. Bean Boots!

[tinsley]

I recently ordered some 8" L.L. Bean boots (duck boots). I thought I would love these, I would be happy and dance across the snow, and I would have them for 20 years before my wife finally made me retire them and buy a new pair. But what happened was I tried them on and I don't like how they look. What really gets me is the heel, I think it makes them look really feminine. I can't keep them. So, now that my dreams and hopes of being a duck boot person are crushed I am on the prowl.


I do like the Sorel Caribou - http://www.sorel.com/Men's-Caribou®/NM1000,default,pd.html


Any other recommendations from you guys? I am in the Midwest and need something to walk around in a bit of snow.


Thanks!

[nix7]

those heels don't do it for me either

http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/33549?pi=197935&qs=3012739_g_shopping&subrnd=0


i think the sorels will look a lot better..

[LesserBlackDog]

If you want some seriously masculine pac boots:


Schnee's

http://www.schnees.com/category/schnees-insulated-pac-boots?r=HOME2a


Kenetrek

http://www.kenetrek.com/products.asp?dept=1


White's

http://www.whitesboots.com/index.php?dispatch=categories.view&category_id=185


All of these are pretty expensive, but excellent long-term investments if you live somewhere with seriously cold winters. They're definitely the kind of boots you would want to wear to work and then switch into regular shoes, though. I have a pair of Schnee's boots that I got on sale one spring, and they are so absurdly warm and comfortable that I sometimes find myself wishing the weather would get miserable just so I could wear them more often.


In my experience, the quality of Sorel just isn't what it used to be. My family all had Sorels when I was growing up. I bought a pair of Caribous a couple years ago and got such bad blisters on the first wear that the knobs of my ankles were literally bleeding through my socks. They look cool, but they're just not very high quality anymore. Plus they are very heavy - my Schnee's boots are taller (13") and feel much lighter on my feet. Plus the Schnee's are just narrow enough that you can actually drive with them.

[Ben]

+1 for schnees. (although I like bean boots too)

[tinsley]

BenR, thanks for the suggestions! The picture you posted of those Schnee's are dope. I like those and the 10" Kenetrek Grizzly. They are very similar boots.





BUT, I still go back to the Sorel for styling. I want to have my cake and eat it too. Look at the difference between the Schnee's and Kenetrek and these Sorel 1964 Premium T:





It's true about the Sorel quality. I have read a lot of reviews about how good Sorel used to be, before everything they produced came from China.

[bassopotamus]

Those Scnhees look pretty cool, but for what it's worth, none of the critters I've killed while wearing my Bean boots called them feminine.