Gear review - In praise of Meindl boots

I recall once seeing an anatomy diagram of the foot and thinking that there was an awful lot of complexity going on down there, until that point I knew a foot consisted of 5 toes, sole, heel and an ankle joint and an achilles tendon courtesy of Homer. A school saturday job working in a shoe shop and I became aware of just how diverse feet can be; the surprising difference between feet attached to the same body; the variety in a population; why there's a very good reason for laces and how people will endure agony to wear the latest fashion brand/style.

http://www.aireurbano.com/foot-anatomy-diagram-tendons/foot-anatomy-diagram-tendons/

From my mechanical engineering perspective, the human foot is a tour de force of biomechanics and anything that complex needs a detailed set of operating instructions, to ensure trouble free operation over its intended design life. Sadly, there are no operating instructions. Faced with this problem an engineer would consider the best approach would be to design a device affording suitable protection and support.

http://www.healthandcare.co.uk/
Physio boot for stabilising foot

I learnt the expensive way, that buying the heavily marketed and celebrity endorsed brand of walking boot might deliver short term comfort and safety, it didn't necessarily equate with durability. Finally I received an unsolicited recommendation to try Meindl Borneo Pro MFS  boots from someone who knows these things, hard wearing, comfortable and some sage advice on boot TLC. 10 years ago I bought my first pair, they are still worn for walking in the woods, the treads worn too far down for the hills, but not worn enough to send for resoling. A 2nd pair were bought 4 years ago for hill duty. What can I say, except they've provided exemplary service from the peat bogs and heather bashing in Wales to pounding talus in the Cuillin's and through the quartzite block fields of the NW Highlands. Though not stated as a winter boot, they're still stiff enough for C1 crampons. The leather boots have been regularly cleaned and waxed keeping my feet dry, except when I've immersed them into water too deep for the Borneo height. A top tip is to wear Merino wool socks washed in natural soap to maintain the wool loft, even when wet, wool will keep feet warm, a better tip is to carry a spare pair of merino wool socks to change into, it's surprising how a wetted Borneo boot still feels OK, emptied out and a dry pair of socks worn. Those who have worn a boot for any length of time know that you can move across the landscape without staring fixedly on the ground you are about to step on, a quick glance suffices and the feet 'sense' or 'feel' their way, the Borneos have acted like a 6th sense. You do need strong walking pole(s) to accomplish this feat safely, as occasionally the feet will be deceived and the walking pole(s) will prevent you planting your face on terra firma. The Borneo soles are just stiff enough to angle up or contour short sections of steep hill slopes and high enough to 'wade' through 5" depth of water/bog. What's not to like?

http://www.aireurbano.com/diagram-of-the-foot-tendons/

Well, in more entertaining and rough terrain - wide expanses of tussocky grass, vegetated boulder fields, relict stream beds, morainic debris, contouring for extended sections of steep hill slopes, my feet were suggesting that 1. I needed to take more interest in map symbols and contour lines and 2. boot soles really needed to be stiffer for rougher terrain. For a few years I'd noted better performing footwear worn by those whose job demands they traverse rough ground. It wasn't quite a case of 'monkey see, monkey want', but on my wanders and when opportunity arose, I'd stop and chat to gamekeepers and stalkers, about this and that. I'd also make a point of enquiring on the performance of their outdoor footwear and the same names cropped up. As one stalker wryly noted about the job, you need 'good boots and a good bed. If you're not in one, you are in the other'. Even hardened to the prices of boots, I'll confess to sticker shock.

Meindl Dovre Extreme GTX
http://www.meindl.co.uk/products/dovre-extreme-gtx

A trip to Norway, inside the Artic Circle in September 2014 finally settled matters, walking over snow blanketed terrain and in the space of 2 days, I turned the same foot on the sides of hidden rocks 3 times, painful, but not serious, but a warning. The Norwegian hunting season was in full swing and hunters were conspicuous by wearing high visibility bibs over their camouflage gear, I'm guessing hi viz attire was the result of an incident involving the words 'misidentification, fatal, shooting, accident'. All the hunters were wearing the same boot style as the Welsh gamekeepers and Scottish stalkers. Back in the UK, desensitised to the sticker shock, and having established with Meindl that I could extrapolate the fit of the Borneo to the Dovre Extreme GTX boots, I ordered a pair.

Meindl Borneo and Dovre boots 2005 to present 

Putting on the new Dovre's and I was reminded of AA Milne's words “When you see someone putting on his Big Boots, you can be pretty sure that an Adventure is going to happen”. Size 11 boots weigh north of 2 kg, some low level, low gradient walks soon recalibrated the legs and I can't say I've noticed the weight or any fatigue, the Dovre's do feel good on the feet though. But then I'm not running, more a case of ambling along, taking in the views and noting the flora/fauna in the way. The increased height of the Dovre means a deeper depth of water can be crossed dry shod and there have been a few swollen 'allts' and 'nants' where I have crossed dry shod wearing the Dovres and would have had to empty the Borneos. So far the boots have met all expectations in walking over snow, slush, wet bog, quartzite block fields, morainic debris, contouring steep wet/snow mantled slopes and I'll update this review some time in the future for durability etc.

Update : a new post on Meindl boots July 2016