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Ok, I just received my Spring 2008 Orvis Catalog and saw these in there. They're hip waders with extra large feet and legs that you slip right over top of your regular boots or shoes. Does anybody have any experience with these or a similar product? They look like the ideal thing to pack when you have a significant hike between you and the car.
Gutbomb, personally, after owning and trying hipsters, from boot foot felts to stocking foot syles, it never failed that if I was standing in my DRIVEWAY at home I'd somehow find "a hole" that was deep enough to allow water over the tops!
To me, "Hip boots are wet feet waiting to happen".
Also, if these "slip over your existing boots/shoes", I wonder about their rigidity and support for long hiking!?
The just looked to me like something that would work well lashed to the bottom of my daypack. I don't really like hiking in waders. I sweat too much.
I've got a pair of hip boots that I were more than my waders....I've only filled them twice....once when I was late, I crossed the river in a section that was a little deeper than anticipated....the second when I slipped and went down (I think I would have got water in my waders that day as well).
I like them but it depends on conditions and water type.
gutbomb:
I have no experience with Neos but they look OK to me for limited use but I guess my only reservation would be the bottoms. All rubber bottoms of ANY type have limited effectiveness in my experience. I wouldn't expect the footing to be ideal especially in a slip on configuration. Rubber has the advantage of not soaking up water but even plain Aquastealh can be NASTY on slippery rocks. They also aren't cheap.
I don't know your exact application, weight requirements or price limit but if the hiking isn't extremely rugged; at the price point for the Neos you could get a pair of Korker's Konvertables which come with a hiking sole. If you spend some extra $$$ for a pair of stocking foot hippers and with ONE additional sole option for the Korkers like the studded rubber or studded felt you'd be set for various stream bottoms for about $200.
JMHO
As far as hippers go; I wear hippers 95% of the time I wear waders since I don't wade deep when it's really cold and from late April until late October I'm wet wading. I break out the chest/waist highs about 5 times a year and hate every minute of it.
;)