What boots for people with bad feet

[slicksbeagles1]

I'm sure there are people on here just like me that have bad feet and wear orthotics. I'm looking for waterproof and comfortable boots that you can wear hunting  all day walking or standing still.
Thanks

[Sir-diealot]

To be 100% honest with you recommending shoes for bad feet just about always goes wrong because it is such a personal choice and no two foot problems are the same. I have nerve damage in my left foot as well as other problems because of the frostbite I had in my wreck in 88 and have had people suggest shoes and it about always turns out wrong.

I won't buy mail order at all anymore, I have probably spent close to $500 shipping shoes back to companies over there years.

My best suggestion is find a place that sells a lot of shoes and plan to spend half the day trying shoes on and maybe even buy two pair of the same kind to get a proper fit for both feet, I have done that more than once. (You can sell the mismatched pair on ebay easier than you think because there are others with same problems with opposite feet and they don't want to buy two pair)

My last suggestion and something that I would love to do but can't afford are custom made shoes. I know there is a guy out in CO that is famous for custom made hunting shoes, but I can't even afford to get there let along have them measured up and made. I will tell you this much though, if I ever do have the money that is where I will head.

[Tail Feathers]

Isn't it Russell that makes custom boots?
Worth the money if they save you lots of time and off the comfort you need.

[Sir-diealot]

Isn't it Russell that makes custom boots?
Worth the money if they save you lots of time and off the comfort you need.

I honestly don't recall the name, I saw it in a copy of Bowhunter magazine several years ago but would try to find out if I had the money. By the article he would make them to your specs, waterproof, scentlok, snake proof whatever. I am thinking he was in Colorado Springs

[LaLongbeard]

I bought a pair of the Russell's turkey hunter boots sent all the measurements they asked for etc. Waited over 6 months (3 months longer than they said ) and when they got here they were not only the wrong style boot but did not fit at all. I don't have odd shaped feet or foot problems I do fine with off the shelf boots and these "Custom" boots were way off. They don't normally give a refund but this time they did. You'd probably have to go to Berlin Wisconsin to the place they build them and get fitted and try on several pair to get it right imo not worth the money or trouble.

[jryser]

I have had multiple surgeries on both feet (10 on each) from spina bifida and muck boots are awesome.

I have had custom this and that off and on my whole childhood. Mucks and crocs baby!  Lol. Like several have said here / each person will have what works best for the individual. 


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[greencop01]

I've got a bad right foot, badly broken ankle and compartment syndrome with a MERSA infection. I've found over the years Muck Boots work well for me. I also go to the LLBean flagship store in Freeport Me. I need a EE width boot and they have several different pairs and in fact I'm trying a new pair, BOA Kangaroo upland boot. They also have several Merril hiking shoes. I go there and the staff are helpful and bring out 6-8 pairs of different sizes and styles. I go there to try them on and then wear them around the house for several weeks to give them a good trial. Its something you gotta deal with and I don't stay home and have a pity party. Ya got to get out there and play the game. I wear custom shoes with custom molded orthotics and make do with outdoor boots sometimes with my orthotics in them. After 7 surgeries I still go turkey hunting 'cause I have too!

[GobbleNut]

Having never paid more than $50 for a pair of boots in my 67 years, I can't really make any comments about how much better expensive boots might be.  I will say that the best two pairs of hunting/hiking boots I have ever owned were Survivors that I got on clearance at Walmart for $7 a pair.  True, they were not waterproof or snake-proof, but in terms of durability and comfort, they were nothing short of amazing.

As a western big-game hunter, I often hike many miles in a day in terrain that would test the comfort and durability of any boot.   Those cheapo Survivors passed every test I put them through.  If I could find them again, I would buy them in a heartbeat.

Conversely, I also picked up three more pair of Survivors on clearance later, but those were 8" boots rather than 6" like the others.  I thought those would be just as comfortable as the others, but when I started wearing the first pair of 8", my right ankle started killing me within the first mile of hiking in them. 

I suppose the point of this is that some folks think that you have to automatically pay through the nose to get a boot that will last and not tear up your feet.  That may be true to a degree, but I believe the important thing is to find a design and style of boot, regardless of price, that suit your feet.  Sometimes those come at a really inexpensive price, and the good thing about those is that if they, for whatever reason, don't work for you, you didn't pay a small fortune for a boot that you can't wear. 

On the other hand, if someone needs some camo, size 11, 8" Survivors, I have two brand new, never-worn pair that I will let go pretty cheap....   

[High plains drifter]

Wolverine

[Turkman12]

Meindl Perfekt Hunter Boots sold by Cabelas.  Made in Germany.  All leather and waterproof.  Comfortable from day one.  Have owned a pair for six years.  Wear them for hunting and hiking.  Between hiking and hunting I have put thousands of miles in them.  Almost no sewn seams to rub your feet raw.  Have walked through streams and shallow creeks and my feet have never gotten wet.  As long as you clean and wax them 2 or 3 times a year they stay waterproof and will last many years.  Most comfortable boots that I have ever owned.   They have a cork footbed that molds to your feet after you have worn them for a while.