These are great-looking boots and I was drawn to them because of their Maine-made quality. As soon as they came in the mail, they were on my feet and getting me through some serious ice and snow. However, after a week of wear, I developed a terrible pain in my achilles tendon where the rubber met the leather of the boot. I made the mistake of ignoring it, thinking that perhaps it was sore from "breaking them in," but the pain got worse and doctor's visits ensued. It put a big damper on my ski season and every step is painful. Needless to say I've stopped wearing them.
Despite my poor experience with this boot, LL Bean was great. Took them back, no questions. Perhaps I had a "lemon" pair? I've heard that working them in with baseball glove grease is a good way to loosen the very stiff leather, but I decided not to take my chances.
I was a little nervous about buying these boots for my daughter as a Christmas gift as she has a high arch and often has problems with fit. After reading earlier reviews, I stuck with her usual size and the boots were terrific! She finds them quite comfortable--warm but not heavy or unwieldy. Of course, New Jersey weather, even with a Christmas blizzard, is no match for Vermont, so we'll see how well they do when she returns to college at the University of Vermont! Meanwhile, the specific instructions on how to fold over the tops of the boots and lace them so that they can be slipped on and off helped to turn the boots into an everyday shoe.
I have 4 pairs of LLBean boots, one pair are the original hunting boots I bought in 1976 in college at UVM. They were just recently resoled by LLBean & are still GREAT (although uninsulated!). I bought these Shearling 10" boots upon moving back to Vermont over a year ago expecting the same great waterproof & warm boot. I ordered the Gortex & sent them back as too stiff inside. The shearling was a soft & cozy fit & I LOVE all my shearling Bean slippers. These boots, however, do not have a gussetted tongue in the boot like all the others....thus, snow deeper than 3" is always getting in the boots at the edges of the tongue & laces & your feet are wet & cold quickly. A very disappointing winter boot for the expensive price. Poorly thought out when the original design was perfect.
ProsDurable, Great Value, Comfortable, Performing as Expected
These boots are coming in handy after my area got 2 feet of snow in the last blizzard. My feet stay warm and dry even as I hop through snow drifts. My only complaint is that the soles aren't great for ice. I wish they had better treads. They're fairly roomy--I usually take a 6.5. I ordered the 6 and they fit well, even with my pants tucked in.
