Well, i think i bought the wrong boots

Hello all, it seems i have fallen into the same trap as many others, i bought the wrong boots as my first pair of ice boots. i bought la sportiva evo nepals, and i'm finding with thick socks on, theyre just not wide enough. i get odd pains in the sides of my feet, and my feet get cold because i think circulation isn't going well when the boots are on.

I tried both the nepals and the scarpa phantoms on a ways back, and couldn't tell much of a difference in width between the 2, but then again i don't believe i had thick socks on.

Anyway, i'm looking into getting something new, i know scarpas are wider but i just wanted to hear from other users who've made similar mistakes to what i've done, and what replacement made them the happiest. I am liking the look of those new scarpa tech mountains ( scarpa.com/phantom-tech ).

-Alex

After a similar situation, I ended up getting the lowa gtx experts:

lowaboots.com/mens/mountain…

ive used them for try tooling, ice and mixed climbing and have been impressed with them. i went on the bigger side due to past experiences of poor circulation and was worried they would move around too much on my feet but with the center lace lock down, theyve been great.

Have you tried just wearing thin socks? I have had boots that only fit well with thin socks, think ski socks. You'd think they would not be as warm because of the thinner socks, but because of the better fit and circulation, they were actually warmer. Just something to try before you change boots altogether. Of course nothing beats a good fit to begin with.

1. A good skiing shop may be able to help with insoles or even re-forming the boot.

2. Well-fitting boots can, as you know, make you happy or miserable in the backcountry. Suck it up and get different ones if you have to.

My older Nepal Evos will hurt my feet if I lace them too tight - I know this within 15 mins on a cold day as circulation is cut off. And it doesn't take too much for this to happen.

I lace tight at toe, just snug across top of foot and then tight once at the gusset. All good to go!

Already mentioned - try Superfeet. My store has just about all colors in demo sizes. Also, is the tongue padding / volume adding section removed?

Per above comment, my Lowa Weisshorns GTX have a moveable tongue that took a couple placements to find nirvana. It attaches by Velcro to the outer tongue and can be raised, lowered or moved to either side.

I noticed immediately that I wouldn't be able to use the heavy wool socks and liner, so I tried the Icebreaker asym hikers and smart wool liners. That still seemed like too much in the boot, so now I am just wearing the asym merino socks. The bottom of my foot would pinch at the widest point, and was noticeably cutting off circ.

After breaking them in a bit and learning how to lace them, things became comfortable. If you already wore them outside and cannot return them, try going for a few dayhikes in them.

I too would suggest that you wear a thinner sock until you really get the boots broken in and packed out a bit. Then try a thicker sock and see how it goes. That said one of the things I do when I get a new pair of shoes is wear them around the house a bunch. House worn shoes can be exchanged easily. And if you are worried about marks on the floor visit yer local hospital and ask for a couple of pairs of surgical booties.

I often buy boots large and add a good insole to take up some of the extra room and then adjust the sockage as needed.

Thank you for the advice guys! i'm gonna go climb some ice tomorrow and i'll try the thinner sock and see how it goes. but i can see for the future i'm gonna need wider boots. the lowa sound interesting, i guess i'll have to just try a bunch on and see what works, now that i kinda know what i'm looking for, having some experience climbing ice this time.

Thinner socks and an appropriate lacing system are key here. Thin is better. Socks: thinner = less heat and moisture, meaning warmer.
With lacing - lace the lower part loose, and only tighten the upper grommets. You will preserve circulation and stay warmer.
My favorite socks for ice are the darn tough full cushion boot sock. Alpine start just recommended some Lorpens that are $60, thealpinestart.com/2015/12/…

but that is steep.

luke: i have a pair of those socks, i found em for $32 and they are AMAZING. i'll admit a little weird at first but once you get used to them theyre great. thats the sock i really have issues with wearing with my evos.

The lorpens?
Wide foot sounds like the problem then.

If you find you really do need a wider boot, I would also recommend checking out some Salewas. I have a pair of the Pro Guide boots which came in a wide last, and they are awesome. Not every store sells them to try on, but they can be easily found online.

I own the Salewa Pro Guided boots in the "insulated" (wide) fit and like them a lot. My feet are a constant source of trouble but as long as I take the time to lace the boots up well, my feet and warm and happy all day.

I got into a pair of Zamberlan Eiger 4000, last years model. They are incredible. I have been a La Sportiva boot user for years but found the same issues as the OP. Zamberlan just came out with the Eiger 4000 GTX RR boot which is very similar to the boot I am using but lighter. These boots hold my smaller heel in tight without pain but have a bit wider toe box than the Sportiva's making them much warmer and more comfortable for me and my ever expanding fore foot. Good luck.

I think it is worth repeating that good insoles are key. A high end, well fit insole supports your foot so it doesn't splay outward, narrowing the foots profile. Standard practice with ski boot fitting, definitely worth investigating before up and buying a new pair of boots.

I've got really wide forefeet as well as bunions on both feet (both inside and outside - 4 total!) and went through lots of boots trying to find a pair that works. Ultimately I ended up with Scarpa Rebel Ultras, but to be honest they're still far too narrow in front. But I made them work - here's how.

I got a boot stretcher from these guys ( footfitter.com/p/101-002/fo…), and stretched the hell out of the boots. Unfortunately, the Rebel Ultras are fully synthetic, so they stretch,but then over the course of a day or so they return to the original width. Super comfortable in the morning, but terrible by the time we pull into the driveway. I'd highly recommend trying them on your Evos before giving up hope. Those are leather boots, and they'll take a stretch way better than synthetics. Just use a hair dryer to soften up the rand and glue, and I think you'll be super happy with the result.

One caveat - the stretcher I linked to is pretty low quality. The screw mechanism it uses to drive open the wooden half-lasts stripped out in the first season I had them (with daily use every weekend). They sent me a replacement under warranty, but that one stripped out within a week, too. And now they won't send me another (don't blame them - I'm abusing this thing!). I've managed to jam the last wide open and can force it into the boots that way, so I'm managing. So don't expect great quality, but I think they're the best thing going anyway.

Hope this helps - let me know if I can explain anything better!