Re: Down Booties - recommendations?

Hey Folks!

Hope everyone is having a blast outdoors!
The misses complained about cold feet the last trip...ok maybe the last 3 trips...soo I was considering getting her a pair of down booties. Not really planning on using them outside the tent so the Western Mountaineering flash one was one I was considering. The FF booties with the removable outer shell looks tempting as you could use it as a camp shoe too but not sure if it's worth the extra $30. Anyone have any thoughts/experience with these down booties?

Thanks!
Kevin

I have a couple pair of down booties, including the Western Mountaineering, but I have been mostly using a third pair made by Forty Below. That pair is a fiberfill insulation and may not be quite as warm in perfect conditions, but they have a lacing system that keeps the booties on my feet. I find that the down booties typically slip or slide off too easily. I have the standard footbed in mine...but the sheepskin footbed...hmmm...might have to go for that!

Chick-on made a great call here first of our little group. He, his wife, mrcondron and now Basilbop and I all have and use the FF booties.

I actually haven't used the outers yet! I take the booties off for bathroom breaks and stuff my feet into my boots. The downies go back on when I get back.

Basilbop and I had down booties from REI with integrated foam insoles. Didn't like sleeping with them.

Basilbop and I had down socks from Sierra designs, but I didn't like not having my ankles covered.

I had a pair of synthetic hot socks from Integral designs, and probably liked and used those the most until the FF booties.

I tuck the tops under the elastic in the ankle of my down pants and they stay in place and no drafts!!

Bearproof's option sounds great too!

Edit: WM booties didn't exist when we started using down booties. And we ended up with FF. I have a lot of WM gear and love their quality, so not saying anything negative about them. Just don't have any experience with them.



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 01/30/2017 07:32AM by JustKeepWalking.

Get the FF. No question.. imo...

Having a "down sock"... that you can take out of a foam outer shell...
is far superior to a foam footbed. They are GREAT for having on
inside your sleeping bag.

As JKW stated... we normally don't even take the foam outer dealie...

Have fun (and stay warm)

---

Just an update, I decided to go for the Feathered Friends booties and WOW! The workmanship is impeccable! Thanks for all the input folks! Look forward to using them next week in Utah!

-Kevin

This is a great idea, glad I saw this thread, SO has cold-feet syndrome (not fear, actual cold feet) and down booties could be a great addition, even during shoulder seasons.

From what I've read above, it seems the clear preference is to have only the down bootie/sock - without any foam footbed/liner - for sleeping. That makes sense.

But there is also input on how great the liner is - but it seems like no one actually uses that, just the down bootie/sock. JKW puts on boots for bathroom breaks. chick-on says they don't generally even bring the foam outer dealie.

I just realized that WM has a shop nearby in San Jose. If they have just the down bootie things, I may try that out. The only downside (no pun intended) I can see is that if the temps are chilly during dinner/evening/stargazing, having something to keep the booties clean when walking around on the dirt (but preferably granite). That makes sense to me too - but it's more to carry, and those with real experience with this gear don't do that.

Thoughts? Anyone have the outer "shell" and actually use it?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/19/2017 04:15PM by ags.

The SO used the feathered friends last weekend and loved the shell. She threw em on right away when we got to camp. Keeping the shell on for staying outside with hot choco + stargazing was awesome according to her. Should be noted that she doesn't like to move around alot after camp is set up so her feet gets cold quickly...easy fix...but she doesn't want to lol. For the non-snowy trips, we will most likely leave the shell in the car.

-Kevin

@KevinD that makes sense. Glad you enjoyed the FF. I will ask if WM offers a shell also (since they are "local". Is the bootie, without the liner, durable such that it would be reasonable to wear without liner on granite or other dry surfaces?

OK, so now I understand. I went to the WM site to order their down booties, and only then realized that they (only) offer booties that have the integral outsole permanently attached. For some reason I got it in my head that they were of the "liner only" style. This is why I couldn't understand the recommendations above, if the liners were never (rarely) used with the FF booties. Having a bootie-only, for sleeping, is a must. Having an outer layer is something that may be nice, but as others have stated, may not ever be used.

So I'm ordering the FF booties also. The higher cost is less an issue than the difference in weight: the WM Flash is 3oz/pair, the FF is 9oz. But bringing something that weighs 1oz, and is never used, is much worse than 9oz of warmth and comfort...

Now I just have to wait for the desired size/color to become available.

Hmm they should be available unless they ran out of the liner material? They have the products in a semi-finished state and add the down when ordered so it takes a few days to ship

I ended up calling them directly. Booties in correct size and color will ship on Monday.

Quote
ags
I ended up calling them directly. Booties in correct size and color will ship on Monday.

Awesome! The significant other will love em!

BUT be warned...after I got my SO a pair...she just...didn't....stop.....talking....Its like the cold contained her but when she got warm, this never before seen energy was unleashed at camp! All in all, it was nice lol



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/25/2017 11:37PM by KevinD.