La Sportiva Karakorum Mountaineering Boots - Men's

Comments about La Sportiva Karakorum Mountaineering Boots - Men's:

Sportiva Karakorum purchased Spring 2010, after long and careful shopping, for heavy-duty backpacking, scrambling, and moderate mountaineering. Used with Superfeet insoles, which worked well but I think Spenco closed-cell foam is softer and warmer. Most of this review written 10/2010, updated 1/5/2011.

I love the light weight, fit and comfort. What sold me on this boot is the rocker sole; gives a smooth fluid stride. I've never had a boot stiff enough for kicking steps in steep snow that gave me such a short break-in time; I've had none of the painful heel-pressure problems I've come to dread in a stiffer boot. Good for serious scrambling and moderate climbing, and very comfortable for working on your feet, good foot support. The boots are so comfortable that I'm reluctant to return them despite the following major issues:

I do not think this boot is suitable for wet places like the Washington Cascades. Admittedly, around here, a 'dry boot' is an oxymoron, but I have never experienced wetness like this even with worn-out Norwegian welt boots. Water cannot get out of them; the full rubber rand makes them like small bathtubs. No scuppers. The cloth liners and foam padding hold lots of water. When they're squelching wet from fording streams or walking wet brush, I can see standing water in the boots, turn them upside-down, and nothing comes out. You literally can't pour water out of these if the instructions were written on the sole. I sponge it out with my mittens or socks; it takes 2-3 repetitions.

On a 9-day trip in early September, wet weather for 7 days, mostly on-trail, my feet were constantly wet just from wet brush (with gaitors and rain pants). I had minor trench-foot numbness for a month afterwards. Not until day 8 of this trip, I developed an unusual skin rash all around my upper ankles which became quite painful [photo]. This day was steeper and often off-trail with several booted fords, so I'd tightened the uppers, and perhaps it was too much for my water-softened skin. Luckily, day 9 was easy. NOTE: I was very, very glad to have these boots at High Pass, a steep dangerous traverse with no ice axe.

The gimmicky lacing system is awkward and slow, offering no advantages over the traditional D-ring and hook system with a central locking hook. The fabric lace loops at the hinge make it very hard to disengage the locking D-rings, and they were half worn through by mid-September anyway, so I quit using them and found the boot notably more comfortable and much easier to put on/off. The locking D-ring severed the kernmantle on one of the laces in December, when it still looked brand-new. These laces are so slippery that a double knot can come undone unless it's very tight. I advise replacing them with a solid lace without kernmantle. The tight 3rd & 4th ring hooks may constrain your choice of replacement lacing, be prepared for that.
The double stitching at the top edge of the green leather at the inside ankle bulge was worn through by December, leaving over 1" of the seam wide-open on one boot. The leather itself shows almost no wear at this place.

Comments about La Sportiva Karakorum Mountaineering Boots - Men's:

I've never had a boot stiff enough for step-kicking in steep snow that was so comfortable or had such a short break-in period. It was the built-in rocker that sold me on this boot. The soles of my feet love this boot, with Superfeet insoles. I never had the heel-pressure problem I dread in a stiffer boot. Sure-footed on rock and snow. In dry weather, it's great.
This boot is unsuitable for the Washington Cascades, where there is little dry weather. I've never had a wetter boot. It's like a Wellington. The full rubber rand makes it a small bathtub. There are no scuppers to drain the water. Water gets in from snow, wet brush, fords, whatever, and cannot get out. The recommended waterproofing stuff lasts a few hours.
Worse, the cloth liner and foam rubber (?) padding make it a sponge. It holds a ton of water. I couldn't pour water out of this boot if the instructions were written on the soles. I'll see standing water in the boot, turn it upside down, and nothing comes out, it's all absorbed in the liner. I actually sponge water out of it with some other article, like a mitten. Standard procedure: wring out socks, put boots back on briefly, wring out socks again to get the water they've absorbed from the liners, repeat a 3rd time. I've tried to stand them upside-down in the tent overnight to drain.

I just finished a 9-day trip in normal Cascade September weather. Fortunately, it was not too cold. I had sloshing wet feet for most of this time: rain, wet brush, fords. Spectacular immersion foot. There was some heel friction and pressure trouble, albeit less than I'd expected. Moleskin would've helped, but it was too wet to stick. Day 5, I developed some Achilles tendonitis, not low down near the heel but higher up, due to pressure from the high boot. Ibuprofen helped. Loosening the upper helped. Not until Day 8, oddly and luckily, I suddenly developed painful red sores and rash all around the tops of the boots; this was a dry day but there were several fords without time for the tedious boot-wringout procedure. It was rougher terrain and I had to tighten the uppers a bit, and it was too much for my water-softened skin. I have never experienced or heard about anything like this.

The laces are slippery and come untied, esp. when wet. You have to double-knot them, tightly, and even a tight double knot can come undone.

The lacing system is ridiculously cumbersome, a gimmicky system that offers no advantages over the traditional simple hooks with one central locking hook. Very awkward to remove: you must take off your mittens, untie the double knots, then dig out the laces with your bare cold fingers to unlock the D-ring. I can take my old boots off 4 times in the time it takes to remove these.

Bottom line: while the fit, shaping, light weight, and rocker sole of these boots seem a significant advance over my old Norwegian-welt boots, the following features are significant downgrades: cloth liners instead of leather, absorbent padding, complicated cutting with lots of stitching instead of single-piece full-gusset uppers, gimmicky lacing system that's hard to remove, and mostly, full rubber rand that does not allow drainage.

Comments about La Sportiva Karakorum Mountaineering Boots - Men's:

I bought these boots to climb the Washington Volcanoes. I have taken them on many 14,000 foot peaks in Colorado. I just used them on Orizaba, the 3rd highest peak in North America. They are the most comfy boots I have ever owned. Never a blister. BUT!!! Unfortunately they don't hold up in wet snow. I was told by an REI employee that Italian Perriwanger leather out-performs Goretex. This turned out to be false. I have taken very good care of these boots and every time I wear them in snow, the water gets in. I'm going to return them.

Comments about La Sportiva Karakorum Mountaineering Boots - Men's:

I purchased this boot at REI after trying several La Sportiva models via the internet. (I've had a pair of Makalus for 11 years but my foot is now too big for them.) Not all La Sportivas fit alike!! At least with my feet.... :-)

I wore the Karakorams for about five days prior to my trip for maybe a total of 5 hours, street walking only. Headed out to the Hoover wilderness/Toiyabe NP on Sep 18 with a 40+ pound pack. 5.5 miles to camp and 2400 ft elevation gain--Horse creek trail. Lots of rock and some very steep loose rock. The boots kept me sure footed at all times! I had to loosen my right boot once as my feet began to swell about 2.5 hrs in. After establishing camp I was astounded to find NO blisters!!!

Walked out with <40lbs on Sep 20, again no blisters!! EXTREMELY pleased. A successful summit of the Matterhorn on Sep 19 using my La Sportiva Cirque Pros rounded off the trip!!!

I won't leave home without them the next 10 years!!!

Comments about La Sportiva Karakorum Mountaineering Boots - Men's:

I like these boots.

I bought these boots for a winter hike up Mt. Madison in NH this past February and to replace my general-purpose, Norwegian welt, heavy duty backpacking boots. I thought that the rocker sole (and user comments on multiple sites) would make these useable for three (fall, winter, spring) and maybe four seasons (also summer). So far, I can only comment on fall and winter use...I'll have to update after this summer.

These boots give you a good feeling of support and stability, but you don't feel like Frankenstein clomping around with concrete blocks on your feet. They have a nice narrowish outer profile (but not a narrow fit), which is good for getting your toe into tight places. They were comfortable to wear in the office during breaking and on a short hike up a rocky hill outside of Boston in the fall (Blue Hills).

These boots were great out of the box. I sized up about 1/2 size, because I wear orthotics and needed the extra space. I wear about an 11 and I ended up buying a size 45.5. I have a medium to wide foot, and they fit fine. The insoles are flimsy and need replacing, but that's probably true for many if not most boots. They did not really need a significant break-in time. I liked the lacing system, which locks down the lower portion of the foot to allow for more customized lacing. But, I did see other comments from people who did not appreciate the lacing system.

The boots can accept hybrid crampons, but I used Petzl strap-ons with no problems.

During an eight-hour day on the trail with about a 20 pound pack, the boots worked as expected. They provided all the support I needed and more. Post holing and kick stepping were fine. I liked the back heel cutout when coming down steep trails, as it made my stride more natural. We were mainly in deep snow, but walking on hard ground in town was a breeze. Good traction in loose powder and hard-pack snow without crampons.

Temps were about five degrees F most of the day, and my feet stayed warm with REI brand expedition weight wool socks and Smartwool wool liners. There was about a foot and a half of new snow, so I wore gaiters, which probably provided a little extra warmth.

The outer leather and rubber seem to resist abrasion from rock pretty good. I did not notice any problems related to durability or quality, but that's left to be seen.

Regarding the waterproof comments that others have made here, I can't really comment, since this was winter. I suspect that the comments about grit and soupy water getting into the boots might have to do with needing to use gaiters. I also suspect that these boots might be wetter in summer due to sweating, since these are pretty heavy boots.

I'll have to see what summer hiking looks like. I suspect it might be a bit warm, but it's a trade-off for the burliness and support.

Overall, I like these boots. They are definitely not a replacement for something like la Sportiva Nepal or a hard shell boot...but this boot seems like it will offer a balance between rock, ice, and snow for three-season and maybe four-season hiking/backpacking.

Comments about La Sportiva Karakorum Mountaineering Boots - Men's:

Purchased these boots looking for something that offered a little more support than a hightop hiker. The boot has not let me down. Purchased insoles which really made the fit better. Spent a lot of time walking around to break these in prior to my first climb. Hiked 6 14er's with them so far and they offer great ankle support, grip, and durability. I am really happy with these boots.

Comments about La Sportiva Karakorum Mountaineering Boots - Men's:

I have used La Sportiva shoes for hiking, mountaineering, scrambling, backpacking, and casual use over the past 8 years with outstanding success and performance; however, I replaced my summer mountaineering boots with the Karakorums last year and they have not held up to normal use. Very disappointing! The steel lace eyelets didn't last a year before falling out on the trail and one of the cloth eyelets tore recently,

A very comfortable shoe with excellent gripping rubber - it just seems they are being made more cheaply now. This is the second consecutive pair of LaSportiva shoes that I have had problems with - I won't be buying this brand again.

Comments about La Sportiva Karakorum Mountaineering Boots - Men's:

Boots seem great, but are too narrow in the toe box. Returned them after wearing at home for 1 hour, and didn't wear them outside of the house. Wish they made wider size, then I would recommend them.

Comments about La Sportiva Karakorum Mountaineering Boots - Men's:

Wow! I bought these back in Nov. 2009 and have only worn these at work on concrete for 3-5 hours at a time for maybe 6-8 times until last week. Last week (June 2010), my buddy and I did a warm up hike to Mono Pass for an 8 mile hike including 2-3 miles of snow/ice. Boots felt good. Two days later, we took on Mt. Whitney in a day. 3am-10pm, 19 hrs and about 19 miles. Lots of snow and ice. Crampons, stream crossings, etc.. These boots are awesome. NO blisters, hotspots or anything. They were rock solid with my 12 pt crampons on the "chute" going up to trail crest. My buddy had some broke in Trango GTX's and had 4 exposed blisters by the end of the day......Glad I went with the heavier alternative! Only downfall was the interior got a bit damp, but my mistake to not treat these with some waterproofing prior to the hike

Comments about La Sportiva Karakorum Mountaineering Boots - Men's:

These boots offer support and comfort right out of the box . Im on my third pair in 4 years of heavy use and abuse . I use this boot to climb power poles daily and work off trail .