Boots alpine

i am also wondering if anyone has a pair of meindl makalu boots, am looking at getting a pair, i have a pair of scarpa pro gtx i think but they are forever giving me blisters so am going back to meindls as i never had a problem with my island pro"s. have had the scarpas for over a year and they have not improved. i have always had trouble with spurs on my heels and the scarpas just wont stop giving me trouble. by the way if anyone wants to buy the scarpas let me know!

I have a pair of meindl Tafana they have been a lifesaver for me over the last three years. The first six months were tough but i changed the inners to a more moldable set and it did the trick. As a boot they are a little heavier than some but boy have they taken a pounding. Meindl seem to have taken advice and have introduced a boot that is a little wider for NZ feet.

There are so many factors regarding the fit with boots and therefore no one brand is right for everybody but i've enjoyed the benefits of the La Sportiva Lhotse over the last decade (several pairs of course). It is a step up from the Karakoram in the range but similarly the flex in the leather upper it allow it to continue to perform admirably as a tramping boot. Some stores may only get the Karakoram without the Gore-tex membrane. I would recommend a model to include the Gore-tex membrane.

Have worn out 3pairs of meindl makalu. Had a good run with them,never had blisters from them and really cant fault them. Recently bought Lowa tibet pro gtx, awesome boots and personally I feel for "me" that they are a better fit and seem to offer a bit more anklle support...

I wonder if you should keep trying a little longer with the scarpa every one i talk to remarks over how long it takes to break them in then how wonderful they are after that.

i know it would be much better for the bank balance to keep perservering with the scarpas!, the trouble is how long do i give them before i say thats it?!. aprt from giving me blisters they are not a bad boot, i will have to give them a few more chances maybe and see what happens!

Hi Russy Not sure if it'll work but you could try gluing a doughhut of closed cell foam where your spurs make contact with the boot (if you had the room to glue it - maybe you could make room by wearing thinner socks). I did this with a pair of climbing inners and it worked a treat. My evil Sportiva Makalus gave me heel blisters but after 10 days wearing a closed cell foam, compede-type, duct tape dressing combination whilst continue my Fiordland traverse, I never had further blisters so I guess they broke me in, not the other way round! I assume you know the trick of wearing 2 layers of sock. Perhaps 2 thin layers will do it. There are some nice thin coolmax socks around (not cheap). Old "Gold Tops" nylon socks last forever. They might do for an outer sock. You can also use your shoelaces to isolate sections of lacing. You could maybe lace your boots up with the heel well towards the heel cup, cinching up round the toes quite firmly to stop forward slipping which might mean there would be less slop in the heel. Not sure if this would work! If you ever get blisters on a tramp, wearing sandals may enable you to walk out without resorting to suffering or helicopter evacuations! Caveat: be aware that bootwearers reduce their sense of proprioception (awareness of position of body part in space) so this may incur a twisted ankle if you're not used to having unbound ankles i.e. wearing sandals. When people twist their ankles, they munt their proprioception big-time for the term of their injury and it is advisable to regain it with the use of wobbleboards and suchlike. By binding your ankle as soon as you twist it, after RICE, you increase the sense of proprioception which stops the injury reoccurring while you walk out). I had Scarpas and they were great but as you know, boot models are as idiosyncratic as feet e.g. I have a high volume foot (high arch) with surfers knobs and heel spurs.

If you're doing it anticlockwise watch out for the Ruggedy Stream about 15 minutes from the East Ruggedy hut. I got here from Long Harry after spending the intire day walking in a thunderstorm and the stream which is apparently ankle deep and half a metre across was waist deep and 30 metres across. If ever you wished you had a tent, that would be the place. It would have been a long 6 hours turning around to walk back to Long Harry (I got across but it was pretty unpleasant)! The track from Freshwater Hut (actually, once you are past the Rocky Mount turnoff) to North Arm is simply diabolical. Worst day of the whole trip, thouroughly unrewarding and did not enjoy it in the slightest. I used to think people were nuts catching the watertaxi to or from Freshwater but I now completely recommend it. By all means,http://www.jeansonlineclothing.com/ climb Rocky Mount... the views up there are fantastic... but dont bother walking to North Arm. Not worth it, especially after 8-9 days allready.

i ended up buying some meindl island pro's, they have been fantastic from day one, no blisters or any problems at all, they are half a size bigger than my scarpas so i think that has been the problem all along!, now i just have to onsell the scarpas!