Freney XTs
Hey Shadowcat - In case you haven't found a new boot yet:
Having tried on many other brands (no one sells the full range of Vasques in the Boston area, so didn't try their wide boots), I just recently bought a pair of the Freney XTs. The front of my foot is wide and the Salomon Super9s I'd been wearing for a couple of years were making my toes cramp - no fun. Ever other boot I tried (about 7 different ones including the Koflach Degres everyone loves - all were too tight in the forefoot). The Freneys are nice and roomy - a little too much so in the heel, but after two wearings, am getting the fit dialed in. Wore them last weekend for the first time right out of the box on a VERY wet bushwhack. The leaked quickly, as I heard/suspected they would - I didn't have time to seal the many seams before this hike, but since have... conditions were dry yesterday, so didn't get to test the waterproofness again. They did dry out relatively quickly - my friend's leathers were still wet five days later. The bushwhack gave the boots a good twist, turn, multi-position test and they were great. Had them on for 7+ hours. Yesterday used crampons with them up Amoonosuc Ravine and over Monroe and Eisenhower and they were fine - the ankles are very flexible - have a hard time believing ice climbers would find that satisfactory, but for our hiking conditions, stiff enough, yet very comfy. We hiked out via Edmunds, so had a couple of miles to walk on paved road, and my feet were feeling fine by the time we got back to the car. Temps yesterday above treeline were high teens, low wind, so they haven't had the full-on cold test, but they seem plenty warm so far (I'm a freakishly warm person, though, so not the best of gauges). Haven't given them the overnight test yet either, but I was happy with the Salomons after 3 days/2 nights at +/-0 degrees, so expect they'll be OK (for me), especially since I can get a fluffier sock in these.
The inside fabric eyelets at the ankle have been biting a bit - put some padding under the eyelet which helped some yesterday. This a.m. I cut a plastic piece and stuck that underneath. Since the ankle fabric is space age silver, the duct tape securing it blends right in.
Anyway, so far so good. Hope they last given the hefty price tag, but beats paying a podiatrist.
Sue