Berghaus Men's Explorer Ridge Plus GTX Boot

Decent boot, let down by the slippy sole. It is early days to give a full product review on this boot. However straight from the box they were very comfortable and after 5 miles my feet felt no discomfort or had any blisters or hot spots. I am a size 6 and like my boots snug although I do wear walking socks with them. the leather upper seems fine and has yet not been cut or scratched when going through long course grass. The boots have kept my feet warm and dry even in torrential rain, walking along muddy tracks, through puddles and crossing small streams. The only downside is that the soles can be a bit slippy on icy tarmacked footpaths or wet metal grids, as most of my dog walking is along tracks and fields this is not a real problem to me but for people walking on stones or tarmac it may be. However as a relatively cheap waterproof boot it scores well.

So far these boots have got me around two trips to South America and the 3 Peaks Challenge.- Goretex waterproofing is excellent (great for wading through shallow streams)- Super comfortable and also warm (feet are nice and cosy inside a pair of walking socks and these)- Style is really nice and I’m happy to wear them outside of hiking timesI give them a good clean and wax after use and they look good as new each time. Previous boots have started to fall apart but these are clearly very well made. Definitely worth splashing out a little more for a pair of these. Would buy again but it looks like I won’t need to!

Okay, I said it fitted as expected but here's a tip: My wife goes everywhere barefoot, yes, even runs barefoot, and in doing so has highlighted so many health benefits to me in doing so. I am squeamish, I am a man, I don't run barefoot yet, but I do wear open, flat soled sandals most of the year and always go barefoot in the house. This has the effect of 'opening' the profile of your foot, as opposed to being squashed into shoes or boots all year round. I am normally a size 9 (43) with a small bunion on my left foot so I played safe and ordered a 9.5 with crossed fingers, hoping it would not be too large. I need not have worried, the boots fitted like a glove out of the box, and like all well made leather boots, they will take a little time to 'mould' to your foots shape but most importantly, my toes have room to move and breathe. I have never been able to put a pair of walking boots on and experience such a 'glove' effect as I have with these excellent boots. They are just so comfortable and fun to walk in , great value from a respected name.

Just got the shoes and very excited!! The seem perfect, high quality, it's the second day I've been wearing them around the house to get used to them and up to now they've been incredibly comfortable from the box (remains to be seen how they do under hiking conditions).I normally wear 45-46 shoes, I got an 11 (45.5) and they are quite big, but with two pairs of socks they are perfect, so in the end this was the best size for me.

The boots are great if you only ever walk on grass or sand. If you will ever walk on anything else i would steer clear of these boots, the sole is too solid and provides 0 grip on rocks or stone even waling on tarmac or concrete does not feel very safe. Took them up to Dartmoor to give them a try and had a nasty slip trying to cross some rocks, damaged my left shoulder, right thumb and scuffed up the leather nicely so no chance of a refund and hurting the 2nd hand resale.I have a £15 pair of walking boots from lidls but was looking for something comfier and waterproof (which they are) Splashed out the money for these but wish i didn't.Back to the lidls ones until i can do more research and hopefully find something that meets my needs.