Women's Winter Boots

Blue says:

After trying several Baffin boot styles and finding them hopelessly too bulky in fit and also heavy, I tried the Kamik Lausanne. Be forewarned: while this boot looks larger and clunky, it truly does run one full size too small in length on the inside. I have always worn exactly a size 7 in boots and running shoes, so this was a shock. I have normal width feet and heels, medium athletic calves, and normal size ankles. I tried a size 7 in the Kamik Lausanne and they literally pressed on the ends of my toes while I could have placed a hand on top of my foot due to all the space. The size 8 fit in length, but once again, there was too much space on top of my foot and also on either side of my heel. This is a shorter boot in height, only about 7-8″ up your ankle, but the fabric upper is kind of stiff (though not as stiff as leather). So, when you tighten the laces, the boot becomes uncomfortably tight on your calf, while the ankle is still loose. This also presses a poorly placed and very rough/stiff “Kamik” label sewn into the lining directly into the skin on your calf, even through thick socks. You could cut out this label, but why should you have to? Tightening the laces on the upper also does not reduce the extra room on the top of the foot or the sides of the heel, so your feet still move around a bit. Even with a proper fit for length, three pairs of socks, and the laces uncomfortably tight on my calves, my feet still had a lot of extra space above them and moved inside the boot. If you can tolerate this roominess and your feet moving around inside the boot, the extra space would be great for keeping your feet warm.

As a finer point, this boot has a nice waterproof lower, but the top of this rubber part is very stiff on the back of your Achilles tendon. It kind of cuts into you if you try to bend your ankle instead of walking like you’re in ski boots. While the Lausanne is light (1 ¼ lbs per boot, about 3 times that of a running shoe), it would not be considered cushy on the feet. It’s not hard as a rock, but more rubbery than soft inside. I contacted Kamik and tried to locate boot liners either intended to fit the Lausanne or that would work with the Lausanne to improve the fit and lack of cushion. Kamik says this boot doesn’t come with a removable liner (i.e. so you can’t buy an extra or replacement), and no generic boot liner that I could find elsewhere would fit properly inside this boot (due to height and calf bulk). You can only buy a Kamik women’s boot liner for the following boots: Comforter, Zurich, Greenbay4, and K3. While Kamik is a Canadian company, Lausanne boots are like most things: Made in China. Since there aren’t really many reviews on these boots, I can’t say for sure at this point if all Lausanne boots fit this poorly or if this is a manufacturing inconsistency. I am trying the Women’s Kamik Beaconhill next as it is supposed to fit more closely to the foot and to be softer.
Rating: 3 / 5