Joey from United States, CA Public Profile

Background and disclosures on what I am using these for:
Dayhikes carrying a 3 or 5 year old with supplies and/or on mild/cold weather backpacking trips. 35-55 lbs total
Since discovering Sole cork insoles, I put them in every shoe/boot I use to support my high arches, so I can't speak to the stock Hanwag insoles.
Liner socks + merino wool socks no matter the weather helps substantially with blister control.
Had to be resoleable.

I was searching for my next decade boot. Living in CA now, having a waterproof boot isn't as imperative as it was in my time in the PNWet, but it is still needed for year round, "whole-lot-of-not-carin' " hiking/backing like I enjoy doing even if it is raining. After 12 years with my Asolo's the sole started flapping around due to the classic foam midsole deterioration problem they are known to have in their design.

(Quick plug for the Asolos - The uppers were still great and I did look into resoling, but over the years my arches seemed to flatten, so I was getting toe hammer more regularly and needed a larger size anyway. They found a new home in my family will hopefully be resoled and last another decade there.)

Back to the Hanwags...

Support - Solid ankle support, comfortable materials in both the sole but also the interior of the boot which is like a memory foam comforter for my whole foot/ankle! The tread is more aggressive and with the boots shank/tread isolating your foot from feeling every rock on the trail, you won't need to worry ab

After calling all the outdoor stores in the Sacramento area to find out that no one carried mountaineering boots, I ordered this boot along with 3 others, the Nepal Evo GTX, the regular Mont Blanc, and a pair of Kaylands. The Kaylands were much too small and I didn't get a chance to even wear them. The regular Mont Blancs were initially my favorite from a foot comfort in the boot perspective, but after wearing them up and down stairs for some time, it became clear that the tongue was much too stiff and would likely cause issues on my shin down the road. The Nepal Evo's fit differently, but work for me and were the finalists with the Pro's. Here is what I would add from an in-house test...

Scarpas - much more nimble feeling, sockfit was immediately noticeable, more forward leaning angle "stance" while wearing them, way more room in the footbox, easy to adjust upper and lower boot lace tension. My concerns - much less insulation than Nepals, less "burlier" feeling, the tongue on the scarpas seems like a place where moisture/ice/snow could stick to, but with that said, the tongue is also really nice for distributing tension evenly.

Nepals - heavier, burlier, still comfortable, less insole such that I could almost feel "seams" under the insole, in particular under my heel. I like how the tongue goes all the way up to the top of the boot and also the velcro pad under the tongue for dialing in fit.

I am a 10.5 in a dress shoe and a 10.5-11 in running/hiking shoes. I ordered 45.5