by Myth » Tue Jun 03, 2014 11:07 am
My feet are wide across the toes, and I have terribly skinny little ankles.
My desert off-roading and boulder hopping gets done in a pair of Keen Alamosa mid-level boots - not WP. ( They don't make 'em anymore, though! I bought up a couple extra from places that still stock them. )
I like the sturdy soles with rock plates for foot protection, and I love the top two eyelets - the hooks. I tighten the lower one across the top of my foot so my feet won't slip forward when butt scooting down a boulder and can then keep the rest of the lacing as loose as I like. The newer boots only have the very top eyelet as a hook, which is silly.
I second the thought to go try on a wide variety and see which fits you best. I love Keens - I slip them on and they fit like I'm barefoot. Perfect fit for my feet. I also have some Moab Ventilators - they feel great, breathe something wonderful, too - but they are a lot looser around the ankle, which is a problem with my little toothpick ankles. I mostly wear them in town.
I've tried Montrails and Brooks Cascadia and in my case neither made it home with me. I couldn't get a comfortable fit around ... my ankles, of course! By the time my tootsies have wriggle room and my freakishly long second toe doesn't hit the front, my little ankles are swimming, and those bones on the sides of the ankle are getting bumped by the shoe folding back in. I've always had that problem with shoes, actually - my ankle bumps or even the back of my heel gets irritated by a lot of shoes. Mid-level boots solve that issue for me since the footwear ends above the problem spots - nothing to bump and rub them.
So basically - since people have widely varied feet, you have to find a brand that fits you well - it might not be the very lightest, sadly, but you need something that fits your particular hooves well!