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Salomon Toundra Mid WP Winter Hiking Boot Review

The Salomon Toundra Mid WP is a warm winter hiking boot insulated with Aerogel, the same insulation used by NASA to protect its Mars probes.
The Salomon Toundra Mid WP is a warm winter hiking boot insulated with Aerogel, the same insulation used by NASA to protect its Mars probes.

Salomon Toundra Mid WP Winter Hiking Boot

Foot Protecton
Traction
Sensitivity
Warmth
Water Resistence
Sizing
Weight
Durability

Excellent

The Salomon Toundra Mid WP winter hiking boot is a lightweight boot that is perfect for hiking and snowshoeing in winter weather. Rated for -40 F, the Toundra Mid WP is insulated with Aerogel, an ultralight foam insulation that NASA developed to protect the Mars probes from extreme cold.

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The Salomon Toundra Mid WP winter hiking boot is a lightweight boot that is perfect for hiking and snowshoeing in winter weather. Rated for -40 F, the Toundra Mid WP is insulated with Aerogel, an ultralight foam insulation that NASA developed to protect the Mars probes from extreme cold. Considered the most efficient insulation available today (3 inches has an R-value of 30), Aerogel insulation is far less bulky than Thinsulate (widely used in winter boots) and doesn’t rely on thickness or loft, making it ideal for cold weather footwear and apparel applications.

The Aerogel insulation used in the Toundra Mid WP boots has the added benefit of being very lightweight, which is important when winter hiking with heavy crampons or snowshoes. Weighing just 1 pound 7 ounces (per boot), the Toundra Mid WP boots are so light that they feel like you’re wearing trail runners instead of a much winter boot, providing a noticeable reduction in the amount of fatigue experienced when hiking steeply uphill or breaking trail in snowshoes.

The Toundra boots are indeed quite warm when worn for cold weather hiking and snowshoeing, with a faux fur lining around the top of the boot for increased comfort. They fit slightly wide and about 1/2 size small, so size up and wear a slightly heavier sock to get a good fit. Your feet will also stay warmer and be more comfortable if you leave a little wiggle room for your toes, but that is true with any winter boot.

Rear heel notch is sized to hold a snowshoe strap.
Rear heel notch is sized to hold a snowshoe strap.

The waterproofing on the boots is very good and I have not experienced any leakage when snowshoeing or stomping through winter streams.  A gusseted tongue also provides extra protection against water ingress, providing 5 inches of clearance in standing water.

Additional features include a thick toe cap for additional toe protection and a heel notch on the back of the boot to hold your rear snowshoe strap, a great add-on to ensure a secure boot-to-snowshoe connection.

The Salomon Toundra Mid WP boot has low profile lugs to save weight.
The Salomon Toundra Mid WP boot has low profile lugs to save weight.

Sole traction is good even though the lugs of the boot aren’t exceptionally deep. The soles are not stiff, so you’ll definitely want to use a crampon with a flexible leaf-spring like the CAMP Stalker Universal Crampon, which fits these boots very well.

Comparable Winter Hiking Boots

Men'sWomen'sInsulation
Oboz 10" Bridger InsulatedOboz 9" Bridger Insulated400g
KEEN Revel IV High PolarKEEN Revel IV High Polar400g
The North Face Chilkat V 400The North Face Chilkat V 400400g
Salomon Toundra ProSalomon Toundra Pro400g
Oboz Bridger 8" InsulatedOboz Bridger 7" Insulated200g
KEEN Revel IV Mid PolarKEEN Revel IV Mid Polar200g
Columbia Bugaboot III Columbia Bugaboot III 200g
Merrell Thermo Chill WP BootsMerrell Thermo Chill WP Boots200g
La Sportiva Nepal Evo GTX (Unisex)La Sportiva Nepal Evo GTX (Unisex)GTX Duratherm
Scarpa Ribelle HD (Unisex)Scarpa Ribelle HD (Unisex)37.5 Tech.

Recommendation

I bought these winter boots on the recommendation of a peakbagging friend, who crowed about their waterproofness and lightweight. He was spot on with that advice and these Salomon Toundra Mid WP boots have become my winter hiking footwear of choice.

Double 1++ recommended!

Disclosure: The author bought these boots with his own funds and loves them! 

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2 comments

  1. Hi there! Read all your articles regarding traction. Just picked up the toundras and excited to use them. Among CAMP universal crampons (as mentioned above), hillsound pros, and the KTS which of them is the the best in your experience?

    I’ve been considering following you in getting a micro spikes in addition to one of the above.

    Thanks for your time!

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