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Leather or Textile Walking and Hiking Boots
Q. I can't decide on whether to buy textile or leather boots. Any opinions on which is generally regarded as better?
Eamonn McGuinness, Bedford
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A. I imagine that everyone will have their own ideas on this subject, and that every idea will be different, but before we can offer a suggestion we need to consider what kind of surface the boots will be used on. Will it be bare, sharp, rock; will it be rough trails; or will it be muddy moorland?
On bare rock, leather will offer greater strength and a stiffer ankle support than a fabric boot; for muddy moorland, a leather boot can be kept waterproof more easily than can a fabric one. The downside is that a leather boot will probably be heavier than a fabric one, and leather needs (and deserves!) frequent care and cleaning to keep it in good condition.
For rough trail walking, a fabric boot will be lighter, will be easier to wash if it gets muddy, and will require less maintenance. I would recommend that a fabric boot should have a sealed gusset around the tongue; if the tongue is loose, then there is no chance at all of making the boot waterproof.
These are, of course, generalisations; no doubt various manufactureres will claim that their fabric boots can out-perform leather ones, and vice-versa!
There are also many boots and trail shoes on the market that are hybrids of leather and fabric, and a first-time buyer would probably be best advised to chose such a boot.
My own current pair of boots, which are the most comfortable and efficient that I have ever had, came from Famous Army Stores five years ago for a mere £40. Hardly top-of-the-range, but I love them!
They are substantially leather, with fabric side panels and a cushioned fabric tongue and gusset. I treat them to Nikwax Fabric and Leather proofing whenever they have been in water/mud, and they have never yet let let in water from the outside.
I only possess the one pair of boots, and so they have to do the full range of surfaces - Snowdon, Kinder Scout, and the Samaria Gorge.
They have been faultless, and I would certainly buy another hybrid boot when replacement becomes necessary.
Ron Linton, Cheadle Hulme
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