Recommendations for warm boots

“Mark,
Out of curiosity, how well have the interchangeable soles held up? I looked long and hard at them before I went with the Apex again. I couldn’t find much online about how durable they are with having to change the soles. I was afraid that I’d drop 2 bills just to have the clips or something break.”

Al,

So far this year, all of the lakes that I’ve fished have had a fair amount of snow on the surface, so other than switching the soles out in my house, I have not needed them for the ice. However this will not be the case when I head out tomorrow night in southeastern WI. The bottom of the soles are fairly stiff, therefore I expect them to hold up for now.
I absolutely DIG the Open/Closing System (BOA M2 lacing system for quick on/off) with regards to taking the boot on and off. With my size 13 it was always a pain getting my bibs on when I was wearing my boots. With this system, I can literately take the boot off in seconds, slide my bibs on and put the boot back on. Basically you pull out the round dial with 2 fingers at the top of the boot, and all the tension (as if the laces were tight) is instantly released. At that point you can slide your foot out. When done, put your foot back into the boot, push in the round dial and begin to spin clockwise with 2 fingers. The more you spin the tighter the tension gets. Simply put, you could put these boots on (secure them) or take them off with mittens on!
I have been out in -32° with wind chills of -50° and my feet were fine. I can’t speak with regards to the Baffin Apex or any other boot.

Mark

I like my Korkers,…comfortable, easy to get on and off, studded sole is great,…they r not as warm as my ancient LaCrosse boots. They also have to be kept dry with boot warmers. No liners to pull out to dry.

Steger Mukluks…never worn anything warmer. Those that know where Will Steger ventured would know how he designed his boots. Made in Ely MN using moose hide.

Probably would not want to drop a running auger on them though…

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I love the Steger Yukon, extremely light and warm but, only really good if it’s cold without possible slush. I have a pair with Manitobah mukluk sheepskin liners. I alternate between those, Muck Artic series and Baffin snow monsters depending on slush and temperature. I have a pair of 20yo ice kings with screws in them for fishing on hard bare ice.

Bass Thumb wrote:

A trick I found to warm up the feet is to add a pair of thick orthotic insoles on top of the insoles that come with the boots. It adds another layer between you and the ice.

I tried wrapping the original insoles in thick tinfoil today, the kind I use in my smoker. Hard to say if it made a difference because I was moving a lot. I usually don’t get cold feet if I’m on the move due to increased blood flow. I recently saw a video on Facebook about people using a piece of foil insulation under their insoles.