When I received Judy's snowshoe mukluks I was already spoiled. I had two Alaskan Eskimo boots called kamiks and a pair of commercial Steger mukluks from Minnesota. Kamiks, with their hard, slippery walrus rawhide soles are inappropriate for snowshoeing. Stegers are good for wet sloppy weather because of their thin rubber sole. The are, however, very hard to use with the convenient Native bindings, i. e. strips of moosehide or lampwicking.

Judy's mukluks are the perfect footwear for cold weather snowshoeing! Period! The brain-tanned smoked moosehide bottoms breathe well leaving one's feet dry and warm. The soft soles permit foot movement, increasing circulation and feel and control over the snowshoes. The soft soles also prevent wear to the rawhide webbing. Finally, they are perfect with Native style bindings. The bindings grip the suede moccasins and don't slip off.

I first wore them after the Chicago blizzard of 2000. Inside I had shearing insoles, double-layered Canadian military duffle socks, and ragg wool socks. There was over 14 inches of new snow and it was -25F windchill. I walked for over an hour without a thought to my feet because they were warm and comfortable! I believe I could go to Antarctica in winter and dance a jig on the South Pole in these mukluks and still have warm feet!

Rich