Which booties for lightweight float tube hiking?

Josh

Josh

Dead in the water
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I know that some of you guys use neoprene booties over your wader feet as a lightweight option for flippers instead of hiking in wading boots or carrying both boots and hiking shoes.

Which booties do you like and how far past your normal shoe size do you have to upsize so that stockingfoot wader feet fit in there?
 
Have some old hodgeman booties I use at times. Sizing is a personal thing. At least one but maybe two sizes up. I’m a size 10.5 for most shoes. But a couple brands I go 10 and others I go 11 especially red wing. I have size 12 booties. I went with these years ago because they have the front zip/ rear strap for adjusting ankle pressure, but mainly I had a friend recommend them. Very durable and were about 30.00 bucks back then. Purchased at the old Eds Surplus in Lynnwood shortly before they closed.

IMG_0395.jpegIMG_0394.jpegIMG_0393.jpeg
 
Like everything else these days, prices are increasing and you may well find this boot cheaper at someplace other than Adamsbuilt but these boots are the real thing. In years past, I've hiked my float tube in a mile plus wearing these (anymore, a long hike and my waders are in the backpack and I change up lakeside), good stuff: https://adamsbuiltfishing.com/product/knott-creek-neoprene-booties/

One size up from my foot size.
 
Most of the time I use neoprene booties but they are a pain in the Butte Montana to remove after 8 hours of fishing. Not fun to walk in too.
Recently started using an old pair of Crocs. 1 size larger than normal shoe size fits over waders and slides in easily in Force fins. Crocs also provide a little better foot protection than neoprene booties.
 
Porter2 said:
Have some old hodgeman booties I use at times. Sizing is a personal thing. At least one but maybe two sizes up. I’m a size 10.5 for most shoes. But a couple brands I go 10 and others I go 11 especially red wing. I have size 12 booties. I went with these years ago because they have the front zip/ rear strap for adjusting ankle pressure, but mainly I had a friend recommend them. Very durable and were about 30.00 bucks back then. Purchased at the old Eds Surplus in Lynnwood shortly before they closed.

View attachment 190463View attachment 190464View attachment 190465
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I use these as well. For me, two sizes over my normal shoe size works so that my toes aren’t pinched in the waders.
 
I wear a size 11.5 street shoe. I bought a pair of 3XL Seasoft Ti Stealth neoprene boots online. They're built with a supportive midsole that provides good arch support, and deep lugs for use by military and commercial divers.

SEASOFT STEALTH™ 6 mm Booties – Seasoft Scuba

seasoftscuba.com seasoftscuba.com
Unfortunately they were too small to fit correctly over waders.
Then I got a pair of 4XL Seac Pro HD boots which are a similar build and are a comfortable yet supportive fit.

Seac Pro HD 6mm Boots with Side Zipper

Seac Pro HD 6mm Boots with Side Zipper The Pro HD 6mm Boot from Seac has an extremely impenetrable molded sole with excellent arch support which works with the heel air bubble to reduce stressMoulded sole Heel air bubble to reduce stress6mm double g
www.divers-supply.com www.divers-supply.com

SEAC Pro HD 6mm Neoprene Wetsuit Boots with Side Zipper Black https://a.co/d/0e8NI4jx

I understand that Seasoft is in Chehalis. You might be able to call them and ask if there are any local dealers that have any stock that's 3-4 sizes larger than your street shoe size to try on with waders

BTW, my 4XL Original Force Fins fit very nicely over the dive boots with waders.
 
I bought a pair of barely used regular black suede high top Vans for $25 off ebay. 😁 I bought 2 sizes big, probably could've gone 2.5. They work well for short hikes under 2 miles over my Patagonia waders. They are great for fins.

I was tired of looking at over-priced, uncomfortable neoprene booties and thought...what are tough comfortable shoes I could get for cheap?
Vans are some of the toughest I've ever had. I've had a couple basic canvas pairs that obtained nearly legend status among my friends. Haha!
One pair had been to Mexico at least 4 times, Hawaii twice, countless rafting trips where they were essentially my wet wading/camp shoes and 4 years of regular street wear before that. Some mtb rides in there too.
They finally met their demise on the carp flats a few years ago when a buddy forgot his wading boots. He wore them 3 days straight and they didn't break. I threw them away after that. RIP
I think they were 8 years old and only on their 2nd batch of laces.

We'll see how long these "new" ones last. And how many more conversations they start. 😁
 
Not cheap, but something like this might make sense if you plan to hike and wanted a firmer sole versus dive booties. You could also use them for wade fishing. They also make a saltwater version.
SF

korkers.com

STEALTH SNEAKER™

The first of its kind, Stealth Sneaker is as light as a sneaker, tough as a boot. The most agile fishing footwear on the market for when you need to sneak up on spooky fish. TRACTION // Proprietary Kling-On Rock™ outsole delivers lightweight, flexible performance with solid grip on dry and wet...
korkers.com korkers.com
 
Stonedfish said:
Not cheap, but something like this might make sense if you plan to hike and wanted a firmer sole versus dive booties. You could also use them for wade fishing. They also make a saltwater version.
SF

korkers.com

STEALTH SNEAKER™

The first of its kind, Stealth Sneaker is as light as a sneaker, tough as a boot. The most agile fishing footwear on the market for when you need to sneak up on spooky fish. TRACTION // Proprietary Kling-On Rock™ outsole delivers lightweight, flexible performance with solid grip on dry and wet...
korkers.com korkers.com
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That's a new product I haven't seen before.
I think you may have hit on one of the "Stealth Sneakers" very best use cases with float tubing and hiking. To be honest I really dislike zippers (or BOA) on shoes that I need support for hiking from. With laces I can tweak the fit to increase comfort and support. With zippers (and BOA) it is what it is when you try them on.

The "Kling-On" sole name in the product description raises my eyebrows, hackles, and perks up my ears. Even Korkers admits they are "for use on land, in boats, and in less demanding wading conditions". (That's marketing speak for stay out of moving water deeper than your shin or you will die). "Felt or studs are recommended for more demanding wading conditions."

I used to think I could use Kling-On + studs in "easy conditions" but I met my match with them in a moderately fast upper-calf deep run with a small boulder substrate over the summer. I guess my definition of "easy" has to change as I age. And time to try felt (with studs).
 
Brian said:
That's a new product I haven't seen before.
I think you may have hit on one of the "Stealth Sneakers" very best use cases with float tubing and hiking. To be honest I really dislike zippers (or BOA) on shoes that I need support for hiking from. With laces I can tweak the fit to increase comfort and support. With zippers (and BOA) it is what it is when you try them on.

The "Kling-On" sole name in the product description raises my eyebrows, hackles, and perks up my ears. Even Korkers admits they are "for use on land, in boats, and in less demanding wading conditions". (That's marketing speak for stay out of moving water deeper than your shin or you will die). "Felt or studs are recommended for more demanding wading conditions."

I used to think I could use Kling-On + studs in "easy conditions" but I met my match with them in a moderately fast upper-calf deep run with a small boulder substrate over the summer. I guess my definition of "easy" has to change as I age. And time to try felt (with studs).
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The problem I've had with lace-up style boots for float tubing is they don't fit into my Force Fins. These "might" and are intriguing.
 
I've used oversized water sandals over my waders. good tread and not very expensive
 
adamcu280 said:
These are ok. Easy on/off with the zipper. Sole isn’t as sticky and not as much ankle support as my Patagonia River Salt boots but they’re light and durable so far. I went up one size.
https://www.nrs.com/nrs-workboot-wetshoes/pzvp
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That looks like a very nice option. Side zippers on lace up boots decrease hiking support though. But the Korkers Stealth Sneakers doesn't have the Achilles fin strap keeper that the Workboot has. The Workboot doesn't appear to have the *drainage holes that the Korkers has but for float tubing with waders it doesn't matter as much. It makes for a confusing choice. I don't think I would like to do much wading in either of them.

If I tried on the Workboot with waders and could determine that despite the zippers, the laces are functional for tweaking fit and support, AND the midsole arch support is as good as the Seasoft or Seac dive boots to prevent painful arch cramps from hiking and finning, I would probably go with the NRS over the others.

Aa a quick diversion...I have to admit the *drainage on my River Ops boots AND the neoprene wet wading socks with the wet wading conversion insole work very well. I didn't realize how nice complete boot drainage was for wet wading until I used them all together as a system.
 
Buzzy said:
The problem I've had with lace-up style boots for float tubing is they don't fit into my Force Fins. These "might" and are intriguing.
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Again my street shoe size is 11.5. My 4X Original Force Fins have a perfect, comfortable and supportive fit over my 4X (14-15) dive boots with waders and wool hiking socks. It was an expensive and sometimes painful journey to get there. The 4X FFs do not fit correctly over size 13 River Ops boots.

However the size 13 ROs have a perfect, comfortable fit over waders and wool socks on my size 11.5 feet. It was a much longer, less expensive, but still sometimes painful journey to get there during many years of following Korkers sizing recommendation with waders to use street shoe size or to go up to the next whole size (12) for half street shoe sizes.
 
Josh said:
I know that some of you guys use neoprene booties over your wader feet as a lightweight option for flippers instead of hiking in wading boots or carrying both boots and hiking shoes.

Which booties do you like and how far past your normal shoe size do you have to upsize so that stockingfoot wader feet fit in there?
Click to expand...
I wear the NRS Titanium dive boots. They have a substantial sole for walking and go on easy. My shoe size is 10.5 and I bought size 12 for a good fit over neoprene booties. Good beach fishing footwear as well.
 
5 Weight said:
Good beach fishing footwear as well.
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Boy, there's a nearby steep gradient S Sound beach with a coarse gravel to small cobble substrate I like to fish that is super slippery. My saltwater boots are leather Cabelas branded (Chota STL OEM) with rubber soles. They came with screw-in studs that were quickly lost and very expensive to replace. Kold Kutter AMA 8-18 x 3/8 motorcycle ice studs work very well. They get lost too but at least they are cheap. I wouldn't fish that beach without the studs.
 
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