I grew up fishing with my Grandpa. Back then fishing was a lot easier. We’d buy a pack of worms on the way up, my Grandpa would take out his two fishing rods, wipe off the fish guts that had been stuck on them since last year, toss both rods out about 100 yards apart and fall asleep in between them. So as I began fishing more and more, got a belly boat, some waders, a fly rod … my grandpa thought I was crazy. “What do you need all that fancy stuff for anyhow?”, he’d ask. My way of combating that was bargain bins. It was easy to say, “Grandpa, these boots cost me $8, they really aren’t fancy stuff at all.”
And so, with that in mind, when I was given a set of the new Korkers DarkHorse boots, I thought that it was silly that to even be trying on boots that were worth more than $10. After all, I’ve been known to just buy my son a pair of oversized shoes from Good-will and call those wading boots. But then I tried them on. Oh my goodness! They were way different than any pair of wading boots I’ve ever tried before. The comfort, the fit – it was awesome. As I was hiking to the river with my son, rubber soles; and while in the river with him, felt soles. That OmniTrax system is pretty awesome! The thing that surprised me the most though, was how walking back, they didn’t even feel like wading boots. I’m used to boots that after hiking a mile out of the river, and then sitting in the back of the Jeep on the drive home then need to be left outside for a day or two to dry off. Not with these. They were completely dry by the time I got back to our car (though I certainly can’t say the same for my son’s boots). It was actually a strange feeling the first few times I stepped up on the bank with them. It was really easy to feel the water being pushed out of the internal channels with every step, and the first few times I stepped out felt a little funny. I got used to it really quick, and it was great how well those channels worked at getting all the excess water out of the boots!
The other thing that was just amazing about these boots was the lacing system. They come with the BOA M2 lacing system, and it works even better than I expected. They are a little easier to put on than regular boots because the tongue opens up so wide when you release the laces, and they are a little easier to put on because I don’t have to mess with laces. But the best part about them is how easy they are to re-tighten. It seems like just about every time I jump in a river, 10 minutes later my boots feel a little loose. I’m sure with the water pressure, my feet finally get all the way inside the waders, and a little room opens up in the boots. While these boots weren’t an exception to that, it was great how easy it was to reach down and tighten them. I could do that one handed, and while still in the river. If for no other reason, that alone would make these boots worth it!
My grandpa doesn’t go up fishing with us too often anymore, and if he does come I won’t be wearing these boots around him at all. However, I also know that I won’t be wearing boots out of the bargain bin anymore!
Written by Jeff Oetter
I am a Colorado native that grew up going fishing every chance I could. Now I’m a pastor, as well as a life long student! If I’m not working or studying you can find me and my family heading up to the mountains in our Jeep.
We hope you enjoyed this amazing story from Jeff. What are some of your experiences with Korkers wading boots? Let us know in the comments! Thanks for reading!
