Crispi Hunter GTX Review; Alaskan Tested, Alaska Tough

Below is a follow up on Jerry’s initial impressions with the Crispi Hunting GTX Boots. Jerry is a valued contributor to Remote Pursuits. These boots met his expectations and are on our list of approved footwear for your next mountain hunt.

Crispi Hunter GTX Boots Review, Part II.
By Jerry H.

In June I wrote about my initial thoughts on the Crispi Hunting GTX boots after going on a spring bear hunt. I was impressed with the boots but needed to put them to the real test before finalizing my thought. In late August I went on a 8 Day sheep hunt, followed by a 9 day moose/caribou hunt in mid September. These hunts, combined with my spring bear, allowed me to test the boots in just about every type of terrain Alaska has to offer. I racked up some serious miles and these hunts fully tested the quality, comfort, and capability of these boots.

Guide Boots in Sheep Country

My buddy Matt and I were flown in and dropped off for our sheep hunt and immediately started hiking straight up the mountain. We spent most of the week trying to find a Dall ram to shoot. We trudged through shale (loose & hard packed), big rock boulder gardens, small rock fields, creek crossings, and over the top of glaciers covered with scree and ice. Despite our best efforts, and what we thought was a good draw tag (any ram tag), we were unable to pull the trigger on a ram. We went after a band of 8 rams but were unable to get in shooting range, and we were disappointed in their size (none were full curl).

Hunting Buds

After 8 days in the Crispi Hunting GTX boots I was more than pleased with their performance. I had no blisters and found the boots very comfortable. Traction was exceptional, even on wet rocks, and the ankle bone support system worked phenomenal. It was especially noticeable when side-hilling on loose rock. Another key point to note is that my feet stayed dry during multiple creek crossing.

After the sheep hunt I came home, cleaned up my gear, double checked my gear and headed out to chase moose and caribou with my buddies Berke and Mike. Shrugging off the defeat of the sheep hunt, I was able to shoot a nice bull moose and a small bull caribou. The caribou involved a 2 mile stalk, and 3 of us packed the caribou back in one trip. It was a hard hike back with over 100 lbs on our backs. The terrain required us to push uphill through brush, swamp and fir trees, all without hiking poles. At points we sunk almost knee deep in the swamp.

The day after getting the caribou we called in a nice bull moose and I ended up shooting it. We spent a large portion of that day getting the moose cut and hung up at camp. Two days later we did another stalk on a few caribou. Mike ended up shooting a really nice bull caribou about a mile from camp. Fortunately, we were able to get the wheelers down to the bull and got it back to camp and hung up. The last morning we put a stalk on a brown bear hoping Berke would notch his first brown bear tag, but were unable to get a shot on it.

Through all of this the Crispi boots performed flawlessly. Feet stayed dry through the swamp, mud, and wet brush. I really appreciated how stable and supportive the boots were with a hundred pounds+ on my back. To be honest I just flat out enjoyed putting the Crispi boots on every morning. I felt as if they were made specifically for my feet. Without a doubt these boots are of the highest quality, and can do anything I would ask for in a boot. I recommend them to anyone looking for a high quality hunting boot that can do anything from climbing mountains for sheep, to busting brush and swamp for moose, caribou or any other kind of animal you are going after. For more details on the boot itself see my first article I wrote.