Rocky’s Ranger Series Boots Review

A hard day in the field is a hard day indeed, and the worst of those days can be compounded dramatically when you’re footwear is less than adequate. I have seen many highly anticipated outdoor excursions reduced to pain and discomfort by the selection of the wrong boot for the environment. Equally so, it has been written and repeated by many before me that a key to any successful day afield , as it pertains to footwear that is, rests in having broken in the product well before the longs days need was upon you. It bears repeating that slowly breaking in any boot is the most valuable piece of advice available after the cash register spits out the receipt, but it all starts with a good selection in the first place.

Orange is not a color that I am wild about. Not only am I not wild about it I could pretty much do without it as a part of the color spectrum all together, but orange was the color of a reputed quality pair of boots I was admiring some gazillion outdoor foot miles ago in a sports shops clearance area. The sales associate relayed the story to me that these particular pair of boots, made by Rocky, were reduced to the “get-em out of here” section of the store because of an apparent bad dye lot on the leather. The boots were supposed to be brown, as even the description on the box had indicated, but even in the best of lighting they looked a dark shade of orange. The model of the boot was the Ranger series by Rocky. They actually fell in the category of work boot, but the design and weight seemed to have a Rocky Mountain trail boot written all over them.

Once I was able to get past the color of the boot (less than half price can get you past color I have found) and actually put them on, they sang of comfort, lightweight and durability. The feel of having the material in contact with every part of the foot and ankle, yet not feeling tight, sealed the deal on the sale. I too preach the word of not having a tight fitting boot that robs the circulation from the foot and contributes to cold feet, so this appropriate amount of pressure and just the right boot height to deliver the additional ankle support I was seeking met the criteria all the way around. The contact was there with the material, but not in a compromising/compressing way.

Spending as much time as I routinely did in the mountains at that period in my life, 70% being confined to trails, I had always been a fan of the traditional hiking boot design that came just to the ankle joint or slightly above. It was the 30% of the time off trail that was in some of the toughest and most inhospitable terrain that kept me wishing on occasion for better ankle support with a higher boot. The encounter of unexpected snow or times when a modest snowfall had occurred, the ankle high was a bit lacking as well, so the trade over to the 6” boot was a practical yet internally struggled decision.

Years later, and a conservative estimate of over 1,000 foot miles of hard and rugged terrain, hiking, guiding hunters, fishing trips and even a little actual traditional work, the sole of that orange pair of Ranger boots finally separated, but still held on till the end of a tough trip guiding. I had actually taken only minimal ridicule over the years about the color and that was largely from folks whom I had pointed the fact out to and of course my wife who had to hear me grumble about ‘orange ass boots’ while I laced them. She often said “if you hate that color so much, get some new boots” to which I would only respond with a penetrating glare and an estimate of her level of sanity. So much was she aware of how I felt about the performance of the Rock Ranger that when I sent her a link in an email where I had found a new pair of the 6” series, she never hesitated for a moment in replying with approval to buy. When something works this well, you stick with it.

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