Irish Setter Vaprtrek Boot Review

Ready for a super technical review of an amazing piece of outdoor footwear?

Ok, here it goes.  About that super technical part, maybe not.

Aside of being a fishing nut, I do love to spend time watching my dogs work a pheasant field and chasing turkeys in spring.  It seems like I have zero luck over the past 5 or so years with hunting boots.  Failing seams, failing water barriers, you name it.  Wet feet equals a terrible outdoor experience.   I'm hell on outdoor gear.

So when I was given an opportunity to field test a pair of Irish Setter Vaprtek boots, the answer was pretty obvious.

Here are the top four reasons why these boots past my large human test and are making my time afield a lot more enjoyable in the foot department

1.  Weight

These are the lightest boots I have ever worn.  Period.    According to the web site, these kicks are 40% lighter than the average hunting boot.   This really was apparent on my most recent pheasant hunt where we put in a lot of miles in a day.  I can distinctly remember what my old boots felt like at the end of the day (cement blocks) and these don't fit into that category at all.

2.  Agressive Tread

The channeled scablands of Eastern Washington where we chase ditch parrots is a crazy piece of ground, and I really enjoyed the grip these boots gave.  Kudos to the designers on this one.

3.   Molded Footbed

Back to the super technical review.  I wear molded insoles due to extremely flat feet, and these boots have a rock solid molded foot bed (dont know if that's the right term) that keep my foot in place and so far have kept blisters on the bottom of my foot away.

4.   Quick Break In

Normally it takes weeks to get a pair of hunting boots to break in.  2 hunts and these were dialed in.
That my friends, is awesome

One thing to consider...

While the break in period was drastically reduced compared to other boots that I have had, I did make the mistake of going too far on the first hunt and I did end up with some pretty serious blisters. When I first put them on they felt so incredible that they felt already broken in and ready to go.

They fit great but with a boot like this that is going to last for several seasons, you still need to break them in properly.  After my initial hunt and when the my heals had recovered, I wore them for a bit every night for a week and the next experience was drastically different.

I can really see these boots doing really well for anyone in the outdoors, but especially guys and gals who really value a lightweight and sturdy boot.   Bowhunters, Upland Bird Hunting and long distance hikers will absolutely love them

My last question...

I dont know what it's going to be like in the severe cold  and really deep snow.  We havent' had these conditions yet and when glassing and sitting for long periods of time when deer hunting  you often are subject to really cold feet.    So that question remains....

There's a pile of technology that have gone into these boots and you should check into these four items that Irish Setter hangs their hat on

CUSHIN  ULTRA DRY  SCENT BAN  ARMATEC

See, I promised super technical.

All in all, these outdoor kicks are worth every penny of their price tag.  In the market, give them a test drive and hopefully they work for you like they have worked for me