I have an old pair of hip boots that I rarely use which are leaking and are probably at the end of their life. At some point, I will probably get another pair as they’re nice to have for smaller streams.

Most of the time I wear breathable stocking foot chest waders. Waders rarely last more than a year for me because I use them a lot. During the summer months on some streams, I wear wet wading pants because I don’t like to have my legs exposed on the stream. I bought a pair of snake gaiters recently which I use on streams where I think I might see a rattlesnake. My wading shoes are Korkers with convertible soles. I use studded felt soles almost exclusively.

 

My boots are also Korkers. Studded rubber bottoms but can be changed to felt bottoms if needed. Then I wear lightweight redington chest waders. Happy with both. As weather really warms up I have a pair of Simms wading shoes I wear with just shorts.

 

I use Frogg Togg breathable wading pants and boots. Never had a problem with them and they are reasonably priced and cool when its hot. The pants are going on 5 years with no problems and the boots are 3 years in. Picked up both for less than $150 on amazon. They do run a little snug. I'm 5'10'', 215 lbs with a slightly muscular build and I went with the XL. They fit me perfectly. Hope this helps. I also have a pair of Frogg Togg breathable chest waders. No problems with them either. The wading pants are much cooler overall and more comfortable for me with a hoodie to start the morning and then I can shed if the temps start to climb.

 

Thanks everyone. Looks like I’ll be getting a pair of Korkers wading boots. I was checking them out they come with 2 sets of bottoms, I’ll probably get the ones that come with the studded bottoms. Some of the streams I fish don’t allow felt bottoms. I was looking at some chest waders with the stocking feet. The frogg toggs look good and aren’t too expensive. Unless someone can recommend something better I think I’m gonna get the frogg togg chest waders and a good pair of korkers. Gonna have to buy 2 pairs of everything, as I’m getting my wife more and more into trout fishing. So happy she’s getting more into fishing !

 

Thanks everyone. Looks like I’ll be getting a pair of Korkers wading boots. I was checking them out they come with 2 sets of bottoms, I’ll probably get the ones that come with the studded bottoms. Some of the streams I fish don’t allow felt bottoms. I was looking at some chest waders with the stocking feet. The Frogg Toggs look good and aren’t too expensive. Unless someone can recommend something better I think I’m gonna get the Frogg Togg chest waders and a good pair of Korkers. Gonna have to buy 2 pairs of everything, as I’m getting my wife more and more into trout fishing. So happy she’s getting more into fishing!

In some states, like Maryland, felt is illegal, which is ridiculous. There are several types of soles available. There are rubber, which are only good for walking on land. They’re useless for wading. There’s felt, studded felt, studded rubber, wading bar, aluminum hex, Kling on Sticky sole, and a new one that’s customizable.

 

I have the Simms Guide Classic waders, they are my upgrade from the Simms Freestone waders. The Freestones are still in good shape I just wanted an upgrade as they were about 6-7 years old. I also have the Simms wading boots with the BOA system instead of laces. It makes it much easier to tighten your boots and not having to worry about the laces becoming loose. It is also great when steelhead and brown trout fishing in upstate NY when lacing up boots in the freezing cold makes it difficult. I do not use the Simms cleats, I use studs meant for dirt bikes on the ice. They are much cheaper than most studs, hold up better, and you get around 200 for about $25.

 

I ordered the Korkers Redside wading boots with Kling On and Studded Kling On bottoms. The waders I’m still looking. I’ve been looking at Simms but they’re a little more than I want to spend right now. They look great though.

What exactly is the reason for felt bottoms being illegal? Something about transferring bacteria or something similar ?

 

There are several states that have banned felt because of suspected transfer of invasive parasites like Didymo. Felt soles take longer to dry than rubber soles so if they’re not cleaned between outings, the parasites can be transferred between waterways. The parasites can also be transferred via boats.

I’m glad felt is still legal in PA. Studded felt provide superior traction to other bottoms except for the cleats. I used to sometimes wear full cleats but haven’t for a long time because they’re noisy on the stream bottom and hard on my feet.

 

I have simms g3 waders for going on 15 years now. I do a lot of fishing too. no complaints.

 

My current pair are Cabela's and they have performed as good as and in one case better than higher priced named brand waders I've had in the past.

 

I have the Cabela's dry-fit stocking foot chest waders.
I run them up and down the Salmon river for Salmon and Steelhead runs every year.
They wear great with the only negative thing is the chest pocket is not as good as some other brands and they have no hand warmer pockets.
I have a pair of Frogg Toggs and they have a nice chest pocket and hand warmer pockets.
The fit of my Frogg Toggs is not as good as the Cabela's which I bought a size in "Stout"...

 

I've used exclusively Cabelas stocking foot waders for the last 20 years or so. I'm currently on my 3rd pair, so you do the math. I'm of the mindset that all waders leak eventually. The Cabelas waders have held up well enough for me, and they fit me well enough, and are inexpensive enough that I see no need to change.

I recently bought my first pair of Korkers boots. I bought the set with a plain felt sole and a plain rubber sole, with the idea that I would wear the felt around local streams, and upgrade to one of their higher end studded rubber soles. I'm not a fan of un-studded rubber. I ordered a pair of the Omnitrax with the screw in carbide studs, and they were TERRIBLE. 30% of the studs fell out after only 3 outings. I will say, that I contacted Korkers customer service and they took pretty good care of me. I was able to trade in for a pair of their vibram rubber soles with embedded studs and I have been much more satisfied with those soles.

 

Glad the Cabela’s waders have worked for you. They haven’t for me. They’ve all leaked within a year.

 

Hi this off topic sorry...


Eight Point is you're reading this I like to hear back from you. for the love of me I can't figure out how to PM message you on this new format if you can PM me on Salmon River access points we talked about in 2019 I didn't fish last year... if you could please..

Thanks
Nice Rack

 

Thanks everyone I went with the korkers and frogg toggs. Can’t wait to break em in this week.

 

You know how many of those Korker interchangeable bottoms I have, and I never owned a pair....I found 4 last year.

 

Simms waders. I’m currently wearing G3 Guides but previously had a pair of G4 Pro’s. Only reason I got rid of the G4’s is I got fat and they were too tight. Still got $375 for them when I sold them on marketplace. Before those I had another pair of G4’s that lasted 12 years, gave them to a cousin. Most durable waders out there. Still weren’t leaking.
mad far as boots I wear Korkers. Love the interchangeable soles.