Owner Review of Ahnu Coburn boots

Hi there.  Attached is the draft of my first owner review.  There are pictures to go with it, but I figured I would attach them a little later in the editing process.  The review was started back late March, right before I started hiking the PCT (at the beginning of May).  Ray edited the first version and was ever so patient with me.  I'm one of those folks who only read instructions when forced to do so.  Anyway, the review has much more added to it as I was able to test these boots with four months of constant hiking.  I had trouble with the HTML requirement back in March.  Please let me know if the review comes across in HTML and any formatting problems there are in addition to the regular edits.  Thanks for your patience.
Ken Haleaka Bearbait 15aka Granny Gear (PCT trial name)
Here 'tis


December 12, 2015Owner Review: AHNU Coburn Boots
 TESTER INFORMATION
NAME:                Kenneth HaleEMAIL:               [email protected]:                  66LOCATION:       Grass Valley, California, USAGENDER:          MHEIGHT:            5' 8" (1.73 m)WEIGHT:           160 lb (72.60 kg)
Ever so brief Bio:      March 1st, 2015
I started backpacking at eleven years of age using a canvas pack filled with tin cans full of food.  Times have certainly changed.


Owner Review:     Ahnu Coburn Boots by Ken Hale
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Manufacturer:                          Ahnu Coburn ankle boots
Year of Manufacture:          2014
Manufacturer's Website:         www.ahnu.com
MSRP: US$                         $164.00
Listed Weight:                          Not Listed
Measured Weight:                   17 oz (482 g) each boot (new).  15.5 oz (439 g) per boot after hiking 1,200 miles 
Other details:                       Ankle height, good support, dark olive in color, solid lug sole
 Short Term Conditions:         
 Summer, fall, winter, and spring in the high Sierra.  Trail height varied from 3,000 ft (914 m) to about 9,000 ft (2743 m).  Weather varied from warm to hot summer days down to 28 degrees F (-2.2 degrees C) in sun, rain and snow.  Trails were typical high Sierra trails (if such a thing exists).  Portions were quite steep and rocky.  Other areas of each trail climbed then fell, and some were almost flat with little rubble.
Short Term Trails used:                
 Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), Grouse Ridge Trail, Pioneer Trail, South Yuba Trail, Glacier Lake Trail, Loney Meadow/Rock Lakes/Penner Trail, and various trails at Lake Tahoe, California, USA.
Total distances covered short term:     
 165 miles (203 km) in 14 days of hiking in the Sierra Nevada Mountains


General Observations:
 I bought these boots after trying to use White's Smoke Jumper boots as my trekking foot wear.  The White's are heavy firefighting boots.While I love my White's for firefighting, they do not work for hiking in the backcountry, at least for me.  The White's are too heavy and make my legs tired on long hikes.  This actually led to a pretty severe hamstring injury, so I was pretty much forced to look for an alternative.  I was in a local mountaineering equipment store when I saw an interesting pair of boots on the rack.  When I picked one boot up off the display, I could hardly believe how little it weighed compared to the Smoke Jumpers (5 lbs 6 oz, or 2.44 kg for the White's compared to 2 lbs 2 oz  or 0.964 kg for the Ahnu's).  The Coburn's felt good on my feet from the first moment I put them on in the store.


Short term field observations:
 I tried my new boots out the day after purchase on a Lake Tahoe segment of the PCT.  I kept the hike somewhat short due to the unknowns associated with placing new boots on my feet, i.e. tightness, inflexibility, blisters created by unforgiving uppers, etc.  My first hike was about 12 miles (19.3 km) or 6 miles (9.65km) in, 6 miles out.  The boots did not need breaking in!  I was amazed.  With all the boots I've owned, and that is a great many pair, I have never had boots that did not require breaking in.  The boots were comfortable, had good ankle support which I need due to a couple of old sports and firefighting injuries, and had a firm but comfortable sole.  The boots did not "roll" when I stepped on round rocks in the trail.  This has been a problem for me when I used running shoes for trekking. My left ankle rolls over with great ease.  This usually leaves me with an injury that makes hiking difficult and painful.  In any case, my ankles need some support, so these boots are a good fit for me.  The boots worked very well on the first outing. Subsequent to this hike, I used these boots on an additional 153 miles (246  km) of Sierra Nevada trails, as noted above, before embarking on the Pacific Crest Trail.  The boots are light, give very good support, and do not make my feet tired.  They are also waterproof, as much as any lace up boot ever is.  My feet stayed dry in wet, snowy weather and in damp, boggy areas.


Long term field observations:
    Trails hiked:
 Pacific Crest Trail
    Distance hiked in the Coburn boots:
 1,200 mile (approximately) or about 1930 km
    General Information
 These boots were used for continual hiking between the beginning of May through October. I began hiking the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) onMay 4th, 2015 using only the Ahnu Coburn boots for my footwear.  My aim was to complete Mexico to Canada, an aim that altered (shortened) as I proceeded north.  In any case, I hiked in the boots for over 1,200 miles during 127 days of trekking (including zero days,illnesses, and equipment repairs). Hiking distances varied from a high of 25 miles in one day to a low of about 10 miles.  My hike north on the PCT began at Big Bear Lake about 250 miles north of Campo (border with Mexico) as I had little desire to cross the desert.  As it turned out, I ended up hiking across the Mojave anyway.  I suppose I should have studied the maps of California a little closer, even though I was born here.
    Topography: 
 Terrain varied from the flat of the Mojave plain to the 11,000 to 13,000 foot passes of the High Sierra.  The trail varied as well.  It was sometimes little but large, fractured scree which is difficult to hike upon; sometimes (rarely) it was a soft, smooth path of sand. The trail on the north side of Glen, Pinchot, Mather, and Muir Passes was packed, wet snow (in steep terrain, this is the worst material to hike in that I have experienced due to postholing). The PCT through the Sierra is a pretty rugged place to hike.     Weather:
  Starting in southern California in May, I thought that the weather would be favorable, i.e. warm and pleasant.  It snowed three times while I crossed the San Gabriels above Los Angeles, and snowed again at Rae Lakes just north of Glen Pass in the high Sierra.  For those of you not familiar with the Sierra, June and July are months where thunder storms are common.  In 2015, rain and lightning were an almost daily occurance above 10,000 feet (the PCT is mostly above 10,000 feet for close to 150 miles between Forester Pass and Donahue Pass).  Long and short; snowy or wet weather was more frequent than sunny, dry weather until the middle of August.
    Performance of the Coburn boots: 
 The Coburn boots (very similar to current Ahnu ankle boots) performed well under a variety of conditions as indicated above.  They were used in snow, rain, and heat with regard to weather, and in just about every kind of terrain with the exception of tropical jungle.  The boots were comfortable throughout except for days three through six when I got pretty severe blisters on the balls of both feet.  Even though I thought I was prepared for hiking seven days a week, my feet obviously were not ready for that level of stress, so I attribute the blisters to my feet, not the Ahnu boots which proved themselves subsequent to the blisters healing.  Weight is a huge consideration when hiking long distance and these boots came in at just over 17 oz (482 g) per foot when I first put them on.  This weight had been reduces to about 15.5 oz (439 g) by the time I quit this year by wearing the soles off the bottom of the boots. The weight of each boot was never a noticable factor to me.  Ankle support, which I need due to several old injuries, is adequate in the Coburn's.  The PCT is very rough in places and I rolled both ankles periodically.  The Coburn's kept these incidents from becoming hike ending injuries, in my opinion, especially since I have had serious injuries from rolled ankles while running or hiking in low top shoes. I had to hike many miles in the Coburns before my feet started to protest.  There was a good degree of comfort even when hiking distances in excess of twenty miles.  On particularly rough stretches of PCT, my feet did get tired, but they were never very sore at the end of a day of trekking.
    Likes:
 The light weight and descent ankle support have made the Coburn's some of my favorite footwear.  They proved themselves to me over very rugged terrain for the 1,200 miles that I hiked this spring/summer/fall.  The soles are showing distinct signs of wear now, but the distance already travelled indicates the boot's overall durability.  While I am probably going to replace them before next hiking season, they still have some life left in them (see photo).  
    Dislikes:
 They are waterproof (actually water resistant).  As I mentioned above, I hiked through snow, rain, and heat.  The waterproofness of the Coburn's was sometimes an asset.  Mainly, this same waterproofness was the only major issue I had with the Coburn's.  My feet sweat, I guess a lot, though the only person I can adequately compare myself to is my wife who hiked with me. She hiked in trail runners and her feet were relatively dry at the end of each day.  I would pull my feet out of the Coburn's after a long day's hike and both would be damp to wet.  After about two to three weeks of this process, the aroma that came off each foot was anything but pleasant.  After several months of hiking, I had to place the boots well away from the tent at night to avoid the smell.




Parting Shots:
 I like these boots a great deal, even if they make my feet stink.  They are light weight and still have descent ankle support, which I need.  They have been pretty rugged, and have good durability as indicated by the distances both boots have been used in rough terrain.  Hiking in them long distances has been a pleasure, at least until I take them off, but that single drawback can be dealt with.  I strongly recommend this product, though I do wish my Coburn's were not waterproof.  Oh well.    Ken Hale [email protected]        bearbait15-/[email protected]