Reviews > Footwear > Winter Boots > Baffin Extreme Series Boots > Dennis Shubitowski > Field Report

Field Report - Baffin Vanguard Boots

Report Outline

Tester Information <back to top>

I was born, raised, and currently live in Michigan. I have been camping with family since I was a young tot. I have been backpacking since the early 1990s and have gotten out much more over the last several years as life has settled down. I also hunt, geocache, horseback ride, ski, orienteer, and canoe. I backpack in every season - rain, snow, or shine. My hiking philosophy has definitely moved toward lightweight to ultra-lightweight backpacking over the past couple years from my "backbreaker" days. I now sleep under a homemade tarptent shelter or in a hammock, I usually wear a frameless backpack, and I cook on a homemade alcohol or Esbit stove with a titanium pot. My average three season load for a multi-day trip, including food and water, is usually less than 25 lbs (11.3 kg). During winter, my packweight is generally much heavier or I pull a sled - most of my lightweight philosophy goes out the window.

Product Information <back to top>

Measured Weights (US Postal Scale)

Testing Conditions <back to top>

Michigan has had a pile of snow for the field test period - the most snow in many, many years. I have worn the Baffin Vanguard boots nearly every day for daily tasks like shoveling the driveway and driving to work. Other outdoor activities include my daily walks near work, snowshoeing, backpacking, snowmobiling and general in the snow fun. I have only had one overnight backpacking trip so far during the test period, but the boots have seen plenty of wear in my other activities. The snow was unusually powdery this winter so snowball fights and snow forts have not really been possible in my area (sigh). Temperatures were consistently well below freezing for most all of January and February and bottoming out for a good stretch around -3 F (-20 C) for many days in a row. But, alas, the temperatures in the last few weeks have been far above normal for this time of year and all of our snow is completely gone in lower Michigan. Temperatures have been at least 20 F (11 C) warmer than the average for the last two weeks with some days approaching 60 F (16 C) - in the middle of winter! It has left behind a muddy mess in most locations so the boots have seen some of that weather as well.

Field Report <back to top>

Donning/Removing:

These boots are quite easy to put on and take off. I usually leave the liner in the boot, slip my foot inside, and tie the laces around the ankle area tightly. The top of the boot is wide enough and the liner front is like a shoe tongue that flexes forward and allows insertion of my foot without much difficulty or finagling around. The boots generally stay tied and I have not really noticed them coming untied any more than my other shoes. I have noticed that the boots are much, much more comfortable when the laces are tied tightly. When I have slipped the boots on to do something quick outside and left them untied, the boots were very sloppy and clumsy on my feet. Cinching the laces tightly draws the boot close and snug around my ankle and definitely helps keep my feet in place and heels anchored. I usually also cinch the collar around the top of the boots (to try to keep snow out), but it does not affect the wearing or feel of the boots as the ankle laces do. To remove the boots, I simply undo the laces and uncinch the collar cordlock, hold the heel with either my hand, foot, or convenient ledge or object and slide my foot out. The liner stays in place and does not tend to want to pull out of the boot shell.

Warmth:

These Baffin Vanguards are far and away the warmest pair of winter boots I have ever worn. That is saying quite a bit considering the large number of boots I have owned while growing up in a snow state like Michigan. The two part system of liner and shell is very effective at keeping my feet warm and shedding snow and moisture. My feet have never been cold while wearing these boots including hours (and hours) spent shoveling the concrete driveway in below 0 F (-18 C) weather while standing on ice and snow. I have stood in 2 ft (61 cm) deep, wet snow and still my toes remained toasty warm. I have snowshoed for hours and overnighted in frigid weather and my feet have never once been cold. I am very impressed with the warmth of these boots.

The ability of these liners to move moisture is also amazing. I have never noticed my feet becoming clammy or sweaty while wearing the boots. In fact, we were farm sitting for a bitter cold week during February and I accidentally tipped a water bucket and poured about a half gallon (2 liters) of water down my pant leg and into my left boot. After a few seconds of, "Ooooh, that's cold!" the liners seemed to start wicking the moisture away from my foot, and they seemed warm again within a matter of minutes. I continued doing the farm chores and it was like nothing had happened - amazing! I just removed the boots as normal after morning chores and let them sit in the foyer, and I noticed nothing different when I put the boots back on for evening chores. Any snow that gets inside the boots is also initially cold, but then quickly melts from body warmth and seems to get wicked away. The liners of these boots are very impressive.

Another one of the particular delights of these boots is removing the liners from the boots to wear inside my sleeping bag while winter camping. The liners are very warm with no sharp edges, so I am able to wear them inside my winter sleeping bags and have a head start on warm feet when I first hop into the bag. The benefit is that I then do not have to slip my feet into frozen boots in the morning - I just reinsert the liners into the boot shells without even removing them from my feet. This is a truly delightful winter camping change for me.

Comfort:

The Vanguards are not a very comfortable boot for me to wear for long periods. I have a high arch in my feet and the instep of these boots is almost completely flat. They offer little support outside of what is given by the thick liner. When I wear the boots for any length of time or under the weight of a pack, it does not take long for my feet to become sore and tired. I do not notice it as much during shorter wear times or when I am sitting (for obvious reasons). I plan to try a standard shoe insert either inside the liner and directly under my foot or on top of the waffle insert outside and below the liner to see if that makes a difference during long term testing. The GelFlex material in the heel really does make a difference too. This is especially noticeable when the boots are worn on firm surfaces like concrete. Each step seems to have a nice, soft absorbance that is not at all unpleasant but cushioning instead. I think pairing the GelFlex soul with more arch support will make for a very comfortable boot.

It also does not seem to matter in the least what type of socks I wear inside the boots as they have all ended up at the toe! Because these boots are not really flexible like lighter footwear, the action of walking essentially causes my socks to ever so slowly creep down toward the toe with every step. Depending on the sock, it can get quite uncomfortable with a large wad of fabric underneath my toes. I have taken in many instances to not wearing socks at all inside the boots. The boots are still comfortable to wear but I definitely notice when some stray snow gets inside the boots! Outside of that, the boots wear about like any other pair of winter boots I have worn - I cannot expect to have the agility and flexibility of a trail shoe in winter boots. These complaints, however, would be common to nearly all winter footwear of this type. Surprisingly to me, I am also able to drive quite safely and comfortably in the boots even considering that my truck has a clutch (manual transmission). If I have to do a lot of shifting my ankles do get tired from the general lack of flexibility though.

Wear:

The boots have worn fairly well so far. The tread has some wear and a few chunks taken out of the bottom, but it still looks fairly new and shows nothing unexpected. The traction that the tread provides in the snow is excellent. The Cordura uppers still look as good as new and seem to shed moisture, dirt and salt with no problems. None of the fabrics have stained or ripped and all seams are as good as new with no fraying or unraveling. When I first tried on the boots, I could not believe how snug the liners were - it was almost difficult to slide my foot inside them! This, sadly, is no longer a problem. The liners seem to have compressed somewhat and are no longer as plush and fluffy as they were initially. Still, however, they are by far thicker than any other similar liner I have worn or owned previously. Because of this, my foot now moves a little more sloppily inside the shoe, but I have not noticed any issues in regards to loss of warmth at the temperatures I have experienced so far.

General Comments <back to top>

I have been quite pleased in general with the Baffin Vanguards as a winter boot. This boot is an excellent all-around boot for general playing in the snow. The plusses of the boots are their incredible warmth and quality construction - all of the materials are top-notch and the wear has been quite good. The shells still look good as new (once I brush the mud off) and the liners are still thick and warm regardless of losing some loft. There are some minuses as well that I have found so far during the test period. In addition to needing general foot support, I would also recommend that the cord material to cinch the top of the boot closed be made of cord with more elasticity. The current setup of rigid cord and a cordlock never seems to be able to get tight enough around my leg. I was constantly noticing snow getting inside the collar of the boot during most activities. It was never such a large amount of snow to make the boots uncomfortable in the slightest, but just enough to be annoying. Also, when both the laces are and collar are cinched tight, the upper shell of the boot is really puffy. This is good as far as loft and warmth goes but bad as far as swishing together when I walk. This could be alleviated somewhat by lining the inside calf portion of the boots with some leather or similar material.

The boots also do (barely) fit in my pair of Tubbs snowshoes. I personally would not consider this boot an ideal snowshoeing boot. The boots are fairly heavy and when combined with a similarly heavy snowshoe, it makes for a tiring romp (or good workout depending on your perspective) in the snow. I tried the boots on in Redfeather, Atlas, and Crescent Moon snowshoes and they would not fit in the bindings. The use of the term "snowshoe heel" simply refers to the heel ridge that sticks out to provide a place to hook a heel strap to older, wood framed style snowshoes.

Continued Testing Plan <back to top>

Hopefully winter has not left Michigan for the season. This weather has been crazy lately feeling very warm and spring-like when there should be a pile of snow on the ground and be darn cold still. Even the spring birds have been fooled and have started to make their appearances. Usually we have snow well into April, so I am expecting a return of Old Man Winter before he throws in the towel for the season. I will continue to test the boots as is feasible during this time. I will report on the difference a footbed insert makes in the comfort of the boots, and I will continue to monitor general wear and tear to report how the materials hold up. Thank you to Baffin and BackpackGearTest for the opportunity to test these fine winter boots.

Reviews > Footwear > Winter Boots > Baffin Extreme Series Boots > Dennis Shubitowski > Field Report