Finished Fish River in the New Boots, and not a single blister, nothing at all.
I was meticulous with the foot care, always dry always one pair of thick long socks and one pair fo ankle socks, I tried ankle socks inside as well as outside the thick socks, didn’t notice any difference.
For me the AR Gaiters kept out the dust and sand admirably and we obviously swam 3x a day
Lots to say about the boots, I didn’t let them get wet at all, and we only used the river shoes once - what a waste of weight, I could have walked 100m up/downstream at the 50km mark and not had to go through the deep section.
My concern is the exposed felt lining getting wet and pulling moisture into the boots.
The grip was spectacular didn’t slip once on the crossings, lots of float on the sand (They’re wide) and they gave great protection from the jagged rocks and scree slopes.
They’re heavy at just under 1kg a boot, but were incredibly supportive, several supported places with the ankles that would have rolled in shoes, but not a think at all.
If Im gushing I am a bit, the only down side being that they’re 100gm lighter than my British Army issue Winter boots, which are waterproof(er) goretex lined and quite a bit higher and more supportive, so for what the Razorbacks are, they’re a heavy built boot, and thats the quality.
If I could criticise, Id say they could have more underfoot cushioning in the insole, which Ill look into, but to clap 70+ FishRiver Canyon Kilometres after owning them only 7 days (including the drive up) They’re amazing
Also worth noting is that they’re very similar to the Strassbergers From Clanwilliam which as a Kaapie, I should prefer, but I dont!