Great easy-clean walking boots?

Question

I haven't bought walking boots for years and recently wore out my old pair. I'm looking for a replacement and realised that the thing I hated most about all the old boots I've had was the cleaning. I really want boots I can wash under a tap or with a hose in about one minute.

Looking at manufacturer websites, (EG: Berghaus) I find lots of desirable features such as Goretex, grippy soles (EG: Vibram) and cushioning.

However, they all seem to be made of leather of some sort and presumably a quick swish under the tap will not cut it? Is there no synthetic washable material these days that beats leather hands down?

Answer 1

The only boots that I can think off, which are really easy to clean beneath a tap are rubber boots. These, however, are mostly not very suited for hiking: most of the available ones are made rather cheaply, provide neither good soles, nor good comfort or stability. And of course their breathability is essentially zero.

Unless you buys some very specifically made hiking rubber boots (they exist) I would not advise to go down this route.

IMHO caring for your hiking boots is just part of the deal... But then, I also don't invest a lot of time here. I maybe roughly clean my boots 1-2 times a year and give them some new coat of wax (I have leather boots), but that is it... Saving those couple of minutes per year wouldn't be worth it to me to forgo all the additional benefits of decent hiking boots.

But as a kind of frame challenge...

How dirty are your boots getting, or what kind of dirt are you trying to wash off? If my hiking boots get really muddy then I just rinse them off using a hose while wearing them - this mostly prevents water from entering through the top, and if I do it quickly the also don't get soaked (actually, if you have good properly-looked-after boots they can take quite a lot of rinsing without any water entering).

Answer 2

Most of the walking boots are difficult to clean. It associated with the fact that they have to have some quantity of recesses in the sole and along the boots for better clinginess. To be more easy-cleaning they could be leather but without suede. Or you can try paratrooper shoes they will be easy-cleaning but I suppose they won't live for so long as a leather one.