Under Armour Clackamas Snow Boots (Womens)

 I stumbled upon these during a quick trip to Farm and Home to find some winter gloves for hubby.  I've been a big fan of UA running shoes for a few years (I'm now on my 3rd version of the Assert), and I saw that they had both a 7.5 and an 8, and that they were on spring clearance.  When I finally opened the box, I was totally awestruck by the colors and the super aggressive tread lugs on the bottom, so I just HAD to try them on!

They do run about a 1/2 size small, so I ended up getting the size 8 pair, and gave them their first workout 2 days later.

We had planned to do some snowshoeing on the North Country Trail to rack up some miles for our 100 mile challenge, but this has been a really crappy snow year so we ended up just hiking instead.  I was a little concerned about doing a 3-5 mile hike my first time in them, but the only issue I had was a small rub blister on my left heel and a pair of supportive foam arch supports took care of that issue for all future hikes.  The deep sole lugs gave me plenty of grip on slippery snow-covered hills, the soles are thick enough to smooth over rough terrain and forest litter, and the 200 gram Thinsulate kept my feet toasty the whole time without over heating.  It was so nice to not have to worry about stepping in deeper pockets of snow and getting wet legs and feet!!  On our second hike, I ended up getting into a few muddy spots, but the mud on the uppers wiped right off as soon as it was dry and crumbly.

So far, I'm super happy with these and am excited to give them a real test if/when we ever get a true snow storm.  I also haven't gotten to try them with my snowshoes yet, but I expect them to be fantastic for shoeing.  I have, however, worn them to work a few times and like that leaving the quick lace hooks out of the lace pattern makes them suitable for "around town" wear and casual-to-work-shoe-changes.

Features that rock:  Super aggressive sole lugs; fully waterproof lowers; reasonably good footbeds; great ankle support; 2 sets of quick lace hooks; 12.5" height; sleek enough leg wrap to put pants inside or out; sexy colors and styling.

Features that suck:  The laces are just a tiny bit short for full lacing with pant legs inside the boots; the soles are a bit stiff for the first 5 or so miles.

Things to note:

• The Clackamas may not be the greatest choice for women with wider heels or high insteps.
• Sizing seems to run at least 1/2 size small and they appear to not have a lot of "packing out" material.
• The insulation is only 200 gram Thinsulate, so they are best for active uses like hiking and snowshoeing rather than sports like snowmobiling or ice fishing.

I will continue to update my review as I get more time with them in varying conditions.