Mammut

Nordwand 6000 High Mountaineering Boot

Not durable. Wanted to love it

Familiarity:

I've put it through the wringer

Size Bought:

42.5

Height:

5' 9"

Weight:

165

I bought these for an expedition to the high Andes and Puna de Atacama. They fit my feet very well. No toe bang. No heel lift. I climbed 4 peaks above 6000m in them. One of the zippers broke on the first mountain. It just ripped off in my hand as I attempted to unzip. For the rest of the trip, I had to tie the gater closed with string. Snow and rocks inevitably got in. If you look at the zippers relative to La Sportiva or Scarpa, you can just see that they're cheep. I didn't notice before buying. They're warm, but not super warm. One morning at 3am in high wind at 6000m, I had to get into my sleeping bag and bivy sack to get feeling back in my toes. The rest of me was toasty. If the boots are cold, they are nearly impossible to put on with the inner boot already on your foot. This is a major draw back. One morning at midnight at 5500m, my partner was booted up and ready to leave for the summit push a full 20 minutes ahead of me as I hopped up and down trying to shove my inner booted foot into the outer boot like some kind of alpine Tigger. My hands were stiff cold and torn by the end of the operation. My partner's La Sportivas had slipped on like a dream. Despite the effort, this was also the morning that I was forced into my sleeping bag later. A related problem is the rubbish tightening mechanism. The reason the boot is hard to put on with the inner boot already on is because of how stiff it is. This is also the reason that the tightening mechanism doesn't work. For the boot to tighten or loosen, large nylon plates have to slide past each other. You might think--as I did-- that this would get smoother with time. Nope, it got worse. Even small amounts of dust caused the plates to lock up relative to each other. As my expedition progressed, it became impossible to tighten the lower boa on either boot, leaving my foot sliding around. This was not an issue with the boa mechanism. It was an issue with the design of what aspect of the boot is tightened by the boa--the aforementioned large flat plates. The dumb discontinuous sole is also a stupid design. Yeah, if you walk on flat ground, there's no need for the mid section of the sole, so it's a weight save to get rid of it. But I used these boots on highly rugged terrain. By the end of my expedition, serious holes were developing in the mid foot sole of both boots. I spoke with a rental agent in Mendoza who outfits thousands of climbers for Aconcagua each year. He looked at my boots post trip and laughed. He said he wouldn't feel comfortable renting them to a client. He said La Sportivas and Scarpas can handle around 20 times up Aconcagua. I didn't climb Acon, but I climbed four of its neighbors on similar terrain and these boots were already done for.

Very warm boots for climbing the Mexican volcanoes

I used these to climb two volcanoes in Central Mexico. They kept my feet very warm and were very comfortable. They also were fairly easy to get on and off.

Difficult to put on.

Familiarity:

I've used it several times

These boots are very light. 39 ounces per boot in size 45.5 Euro (about 11.5 US) That is about 10 ounces lighter than a comparably sized Sportiva Spantik. They are comfortable to walk in, and are warm enough to keep my feet cozy in sub-zero (f) temperatures. Climbing performance is very good for a warm, double boot. The dual boa system snugs them down well, so you get minimal heel lift when front-pointing. However. They are incredibly difficult to put on and take off. They don't open enough to get your foot in the boot. At home, in a warm basement, sitting on a couch, they take a lot of effort and struggle to get them on your feet. I've tried putting my foot in the liner first, then inserting liner and foot in the shell. I've tried putting the liner in the boot first, and putting my foot into the liner while it's in the boot. It is unbelievably difficult. There is no way I could get these on my feet if I were in a tent, in the cold. Mammut has a video on Youtube of a person putting these boots on. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/uqYUfh99dXI It looks easy in the video. But if you look closely, you will notice that the person is putting the boots on without the inner liners. Just sliding his foot into the shell wearing only a sock. I really want to like these boots. However, the process of putting them on and taking them off is so unpleasant and difficult that I will pretty much always use a different pair of boots. I'd rather climb with my clunkier, heavier Spantiks than struggle with these Mammuts.

Warm, lightweight and comfortable

After dealing with frozen feet and numb toes for a couple of winters in the Canadian Rockies, in a pair of old Nepal Evo that I bought when I started climbing, I decided to get the Nordwand 6000 High ice climbing boots. I used them last winter and found them very comfortable right away, whether I was walking or climbing. They're lightweight and the gaiters keep my feet dry and warm. These boots are super warm, maybe even too warm for a mild winter like the last one. I like how easy it is to put them on and take them off with the Boa system. I hope the cables last a long time. They fit well overall, but folks with narrow heels might find them a tiny bit loose there, but you can fix that by really tightening the cables. Also, if you have wide feet, consider going half a size up – I usually wear a size 9 but got a 9.5 based on other reviews, and it was the right call. Overall, I am very happy with these boots.

Zipper catches, had to cut it twice

Familiarity:

I've used it once or twice and have initial impressions

I don’t even own these boots but my buddy does and he brought them out to climb today for the first time. I won’t speak to their climbing abilities but the zipper caught 2x times leading to a ton of faff. literally had to cut the stuck material w/ a knife then use a v-thread tool to hook it out. After removing stuckage, we got on our climb and he wasn’t impressed w/ that either. Screw these boots

Very warm, overall quality is suspect.

Initially, I was very happy with the boot. Primary use is ice climbing, secondary is for very cold days at work. After less than 20 total hours climbing in the boots, some of the heat-reflective film from the soles started peeling off. I don't think this will affect the overall warmth of the boot too much but it certainly is concerning. I wear a size 11 and have a wide forefoot with a narrow heel, the fit is true to size.

I live in the Canadian Rockies where winters can be harsh. Those boots are amazingly light and so warm. Would highly recommend.

Exaclty what i wanted

These boots are enought warm for canadian winter. I was scared to froze my toes while ice climbing but they keep me warm. No issue so far with the clip system and the boa are a big plus for me. they feel a little bit smaller then my actual foot size, i would recommend going .5 bigger (for the US foot system) then your normal size.

Great Boot, Questionable Quality

I've had the boot for multiple seasons and really enjoy them overall. Whether its a 3 hr hike to the base of the climb or climbing technical WI5, I find the boot to be incredibly comfortable and warm. The BOA system, which I am always questioning its durability, has thus far been pretty great. It takes me 30 seconds to unzip the boot and tighten and be ready for climbing vs 5 min compared to my laced colleagues. My main complaint with this boot is the quality of the pull handles/straps of the outer boot and inner sock. They are not reinforced and will tear off quite easy if pulled on too hard. I have found using a shoe horn makes putting the boots on very easy and mitigates this poor design. The other complaint I have is the main boot insole becomes delaminated from the boot rather easy. I have had it happen twice and no matter what glue/adhesive I use to repair it has been unsuccessful. Mammut was easy to contact for replacement inserts but its still an inconvenience to bring to a cobbler for them to glue back in place properly and the layers of the insole delaminate quickly under the moisture and friction of general use. Both of these issue do not effect performance but is otherwise upsetting on a rather expensive boot. The boots do feel large on your feet at first but climb well. Fit is 1/2 size larger than shoe size but BOA system mitigates that.

Looks great, but liners don't dry overnight

Took this on my first mountaineering trip up Mount. Whitney. Super comfortable. Lots of room in the toe box. Very warm until the second day. I was unable to dry out the inner liner at night. I tried everything three nights in a row. Unable to get it. Dry. Toes were slightly cold putting into damp boot. The outer gator is certainly waterproof, but it also traps in humidity from your sweaty feet. I tried venting the boots during the day. I tried taking out the liners. I tried taking out the sole from the liner putting. I tried putting the liner and the soles in my sleeping bag with me at night. Nothing worked to get the liners completely dry.