Korkers Review

By Highlander

In mid-October 2008, I picked up a pair of Korkers Guide Wading boots.  I’ve use them 55 times on the water and have very pleased with their performance and versatility, so I thought I’d share my experiences and thoughts on the boots.

These boots have interchangeable soles, which makes them the most versatile boots I’ve ever owned.  Switching soles takes about 5 minutes and is relatively easy once you’ve done it a couple of times.  A small tool to help get the soles properly attached is supplied with the boots.  It does take a bit of strength and technique to get the soles well seated, but this is a necessary step, because if they were easy to put in, they might just as easily pop out when you don’t want them to.

My regular shoe size is a 9, so I followed the manufacturers’ recommendation and purchased a size 10 (one size larger than my shoe size).  I got the boots with three different soles; the trail lug sole, the Aquasteath sole and the felt sole.  I’ve used all three at least 3 times each.

I have wide flat feet and was told by a couple of people that Korkers had a narrow fit and I would likely find them uncomfortable.  Well nothing could be further from the truth.  These are the most comfortable wading boots I’ve ever owned.  There is plenty of room width wise and I’ve had no discomfort with them even after a long 10 hour day of walking and wading.  I think a large part of this has to do with the lacing system which evenly distributes the tension in the laces, instead of concentrating it at the ankle or on top of the arch.  You can feel the tension in the wires adjust as you take your first few steps after tightening the lacing system.  A quick retensioning (if necessary) and you’re ready to go.  I’d never come across the BOA lacing system before, although I understand it’s quite popular with snow boarders.  It makes putting on and taking off the boots very fast and easy.  No more fighting with laces or dipping the boots in water to soften the material  in order to get the boots on.  To put the boots on, you step into the boots, give the lace tensioning system a few turns and you’re good to go.  To take them off, pull the tensioning knob and all the tension in the laces is released.  Quick and easy!!!!

I’ve used the boots on 55 different occasions.  Different rivers I’ve used the boots on are:

Skagit (x8)
Elk (Kootenays) and tributaries (x9)
Harrison River/Lake and tributaries (x12)
Small Fraser tributaries and sloughs (x12)
other small “secret” creeks (x10)
Squamish(2X)
Seymour(1X)
Thompson(1X)

Of the three soles, I used the Aquastealth most, on 35 occasions.  For general wading, these soles are great and are very comfortable both walking into fishing locations as well as wading.  I used them on creeks/rivers I consider to be moderately slippery with no problems, but in very slick conditions they don’t provide the same level of grip as felt soles.  Even after 35 days of use, there is very little wear on the soles, even where I tend to scuff my heel as I walk. A big advantage with this sole compared to felts is when you use them on freezing days with a bit of snow on the ground.  Wet felts will pick up snow so you end up walking on inch thick layers of ice and snow on the bottom of your boots.  The Aquasteath soles don’t have this problem. I’ve used the hiking sole on 12 occasions.  To be honest, I’ve not yet figured out whether there is a great difference between these and the Aquastealth, but then I’ve not tried to use them in particularly slippery conditions, only where I’m hiking a significant distance to fish.  I could as easily have worn my hiking boots and not noticed any difference in terms of comfort, except perhaps for the weight.  The Korkers are nice and light. I’ve used the felt soles on eight occasions. I will say that you have to take a bit of care when using the Korkers felt soles.  Due to the construction of the boot, there is a hard plastic rim around the felt which helps hold the interchangeable soles in place.  You may not realize it, but some of the grip that conventional felts give you when walking over hard ground is due to deformation along the outside edge of the felt.  Because of the hard outer edge on the Korkers, you lose some of the grip along the outside of the boot which can cause you to slip if you are not aware of it.  For me it was an issue walking over larger slippery boulders (Thompson River – go figure) until I figured out what was going on.  Other than that, the felts have worked just like conventional felt soled wading boots.  In part because of this, I’m going to get a set of studded felt soles for use on the Thompson.  Thompson rocks are slippery enough as it is, but the good thing is buying a pair of interchangeable soles is much cheaper than buying a new pair of boots.

I’m sold on these boots and will not go back to conventional wading boots.