I buy hiking boot style winter boots, and make sure they're rated for real cold weather. For deeper snow (or more warmth) I put on fleece lined snow pants. (I hate long underwear, and snow pants means your clothes will be dry underneath.)
Get lace-up boots. Seriously. You need the mobility. Make sure they're not snug - you need that breathing room to keep warm. And there's no reason to go any higher than what I linked - if the weather is such that you wish you were wearing higher boots, you should really be wishing you were wearing better clothing.
These are my current winter boots: http://www.altrec.com/the-north-face/womens-snowkat-ii-snow-boot I don't actually like them, but only because they are too stiff for my physiology. My old pair (which have a hole in them) were Merrell brand boots that were very similar, and I loved them.
I haven't done much super-athletic in any of my boots, but I have gone for very long outdoor winter walks in them, as well as just standing around at the bus stop.
Yes, you want them to be warmly rated, but if you're planning on moving around while you're outside, they don't need to be rated to the actual lowest temperature it gets there (although it wouldn't hurt). My -25 boots are just fine for when it's -40. Some of them don't even have official ratings. If you're going with a good brand, you can worry less too. But definitely make sure you get ones that are supposed to be warm for your usual winter.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2010-11-11 09:25 pm (UTC)Get lace-up boots. Seriously. You need the mobility. Make sure they're not snug - you need that breathing room to keep warm. And there's no reason to go any higher than what I linked - if the weather is such that you wish you were wearing higher boots, you should really be wishing you were wearing better clothing.
These are my current winter boots: http://www.altrec.com/the-north-face/womens-snowkat-ii-snow-boot
I don't actually like them, but only because they are too stiff for my physiology. My old pair (which have a hole in them) were Merrell brand boots that were very similar, and I loved them.
I haven't done much super-athletic in any of my boots, but I have gone for very long outdoor winter walks in them, as well as just standing around at the bus stop.
Yes, you want them to be warmly rated, but if you're planning on moving around while you're outside, they don't need to be rated to the actual lowest temperature it gets there (although it wouldn't hurt). My -25 boots are just fine for when it's -40. Some of them don't even have official ratings. If you're going with a good brand, you can worry less too. But definitely make sure you get ones that are supposed to be warm for your usual winter.