As lockdown restrictions started lifting and we started to venture further afield for our longed for woodland and mountain walks, my daughter told us that she felt her walking boots were feeling a bit snug.
After measuring her feet at home, with a foot measuring guide I bought many years ago, I found that her feet had indeed grown, one and a half sizes to be precise, since the last time she wore her Gelert walking boots back in February. Her feet just don’t seem to stop growing at the moment.
The upshot of this was that I had to purchase a new pair of Regatta walking boots for her!
Unfortunately, my 12 year old daughter has very long yet narrow feet, which causes a lot of problems when trying to find the perfect shoe to fit. She has long surpassed children sized shoes and even some ladies shoes, as she is an adult size 9 (42).
Therefore, when it comes to footwear, purchases like walking boots, football boots and trainers we tend to look at men’s footwear for her.
Due to our recent reluctance about visiting shops unless absolutely essential because of Covid-19, we checked out various online shops and were luckily enough to find these Regatta Mens Kota II walking boots in briar grey and lime green, which she really liked.
The boots arrived within a few days and were well packaged, and upon opening were clearly a very sturdy pair of walking boots – just what we needed.
They cost around £90 on Regatta, so they weren’t cheap, especially as my daughter’s feet might still be growing. That said, they are a men’s walking boot, so I knew that I’d have to pay that little bit extra for the size, as well as wanting a pair of boots that are durable and well made.
Although the walking boots are quite basic in colour being mainly black and grey, my daughter was enthused with the luminous green on the ankle, side stripes and laces, saying they gave the boot a more feminine feel.
However, even before she tried them on, she did say that they felt a lot heavier than her last pair, which is expected as they are men’s boots not ladies.
She excitedly tried them on and the first thing we noticed was the width of the boot was a lot wider than usual. Consequently, we got her to pop on a pair of thermal socks instead of her usual thin socks and the width fit was better. The length of the boot was perfect, with some room to grow – although I am hoping her feet won’t grow again for several months.
My daughter said that the boots were very comfortable especially the soft padding around the ankle area, which made her foot feel more secure.
Her first outing with the boots was an easy flat woodland/riverside walk as we wanted to ease her into the new boots. As you can see from the photos, she thoroughly enjoyed wearing them.
Even during the first walk in her new boots my daughter didn’t complain once about sore feet.
They were extremely comfortable, kept her feet warm and dry and although they are heavier than her old boots she walked in them perfectly. I initially thought she might have to stomp around in them, but thankfully she didn’t.
Not surprisingly, due to the Isotex technology this boot material keeps her feet warm and dry whilst remaining cool. Put this together with the Lava XL, which is a mineral based odour control technology, they help keep the boots (and her feet) fresher for longer. Thankfully, that should mean no more sweaty feet even with her thermal socks on!
One other advantage of these high tech Regatta boots that we noticed, was the protective hydropel surface helped to repel the water, as we walked through the wet grass.
We’ve since been out on other local walks and were pleased that my daughter’s Kota walking boots, once again kept her feet warm, dry and most importantly comfortable throughout the walk.
If your feet are smaller than my daughter’s (like mine are!), Regatta stock similar pairs of Kota II walking boots for ladies, which range from sizes UK 3 to 8 and are available in different coloured stripes and inners.
On the other hand if you are looking for new walking boots for your children, you will be lucky enough to find the exact same boot, but called Regatta Kota black lime punch. These are available in junior sizes from UK 9 to 2.5.
Thus far, I have to say that my daughter has been very impressed with her new boots, which makes me happy and appreciate that it was certainly money well spent.
Unfortunately, due to her foot growth spurt, I’ve had to buy my daughter a new pair of trainers for her return to school, but that’s a blog post for another day!