I have been using these boots for roughly two years now, and it is time for a review. But before I start with the description an my personal experiences, I want to tell you what I expect from a wading shoe. Everyone uses his boots a little differently and everyone might have different priorities. The following review therefore reflects my personal experiences.

previous boots and experiences

If you are wearing street boots size 14 (US size), your choice of wading boots is rather limited. My first wading boots were some model by Guideline, and after these I bought Simms Freestones. With a price tag of something around 200€ (roughly 210$), this was the maximum of what I wanted to pay… the boots were okay, but I wasn’t perfectly happy.

As a matter of fact, I am fishing a great variety of waters in a great variety of landscapes. Exploring is a major part of the fishing experience for me, and exploring usually goes hand in hand with hiking long distances. Sometimes the hike along the water becomes a climb rather, and the wading boots I previously had, weren’t really made for that. They all held up two years or so, and then the materials became brittle, the lining and the neoprene was torn and abraded, the sole came lose and the lace hooks broke.

To catch beautiful fish, you sometimes have to hike far and in difficult terrain. A good pair of wading boots is mandatory!

The upper material of the Simms boots (some sort of synthetic leather probably) had become brittle relatively quickly, which not only made it break it several spots but it made the shoe very uncomfortable as well. And it is a pity if the pain in your feet outweigh the joy of the fishing adventure.

After I had repaired the shoe several times, it was time for a new pair. Through my experiences my mindset had changed a bit regarding the price I was willing to pay: If the shoe was well repairable and more sustainably made, I was prepared to pay more than before.  The “Patagonia/Danner foot tractor” drew my attention. I liked the concept and the style of those boots, but the price was too heavy for a quick decision, so I kept searching for alternatives.

handmade Italian wading boots

At some point I stumbled upon the brand “Andrew”, which manufactures a wading boot in Italy, and which is being distributed by “1000flies.com”. It wasn’t love at first sight, in fact the design did not really appeal to me. But handmade wading boots from Europe in this price range were hard to beat! On the website it said, that these shoes could be repaired and resoled, and so I finally decided to give it a try and order a pair of “CREEK” boots, as the description seemed to fit my kind of fishing ideally.

Andrew DARK CREEK (an orange variant is also available). Source: 1000flies.com

When the package arrived some days later, I was absolutely overwhelmed by the quality of the boots. It looked a bit chunky and heavy on the first glance, almost like a snowboard boot, but I would soon think otherwise…

experiences

After fishing these boots for two years in many different locations, I can definitely say that they are far from chunky and heavy. On the contrary I hardly feel them or think about them. Never have my feet tired before my arms or head, and even after hours of hiking in and along a stream, they never felt uncomfortable. I fished them in the river Mörrum in Sweden while fishing for salmon and seatrout, I waded the Soca in Slovenia and the rivers and creeks of Southern Germany. I wore it in the summer sun and walked through ice and snow in winter. I climbed mountain streams in Switzerland and the slopes of the Black Forest. Those boots never disappointed me. And if you have to change spots, even driving a car is no problem with these boots, there is enough of feel in them.

Here are some recent pictures of my boots after two years of heavy use:

The numerous tiny spikes in the sole are doing their job perfectly on even the most slippery rocks. But being small, you don’t feel them when you are walking on pavement or flat rock surfaces.

The rubber soles by Vibram are relatively hard, so that they stand up long against abrasion. After two years of heavy use, the abrasion is visible, but still not so strong that they would need to be replaced. The spikes are all still intact.

The eyelets for the shoelaces are made of metal and have a “ball bearing” to reduce friction and wear. It works perfectly, and only now did I finally have to replace the laces.  

The upper material looks still fine, no cuts or holes, everything is in great condition, and therefore far beyond the state in which the Simms and Guideline boots were after the same time.

The only tiny negative thing I have noticed, is that they dry a little slower that the Guideline and Simms boots I have owned. That is just my impression though, I have not measured it.

repair and service

Since I am preparing for a long trip this year, I was considering to have the boots resoled, just to make sure everything was in perfect order. I wrote a mail to “1000flies.com” and asked what the procedure was? They replied that it usually took 3-4 weeks until the boots were back with me and the cost was 80-100€, mostly depending on the number of spikes they needed to replace. All spikes that were intact, would be reused on the new sole.

So I sent the boots to the indicated address, and although 100€ is considerable money, this is only one third the price of new boots! This does not only make sense economically, but ecologically as well!

Soon after I had sent the boots to them, I received a mail that the package had arrived. The explained very kindly, that they had checked the boots with the shoemaker, and that they thought it a pity to resole the boots in this state already. They asked if I insisted on resoling or if I might want to wear them one or two more years until they were worn more heavily.

I was absolutely stunned! They could have made some money with the repair, but they recommended to keep using the boots without resoling! What a great company!

conclusion

All thumbs up, I can absolutely recommend this wading boot! It is comfortable, versatile and of superior quality. The boots are made in Europe and the service is the icing on the cake. At this price the boots are unbeatable!