The only boots I’ve ever worn during my 70 years of Minnesota whitetail hunting (4 pair) were pac boots, beginning with a hand-me-down pair from L. L. Bean at age 10. Leather uppers annually smeared with mink oil kept my feet dry but lots of homemade woolen socks with red toes and heels found under Christmas trees back then were needed to keep my feet from freezing during our late November hunts. My last two pair came with insulating liners, but the combination was awfully heavy. At age 80, that heaviness was a common complaint at the end of each day in deer camp. A few days ago I decided to see if I could find some new lighter boots at a reasonable price. I discovered a whole new world of exceptional winter hunting boots in one big outfitter’s store. It took more than an hour to try on boots there. Besides being a bargain, the waterproof boots lined with 2000 gram Thinsulate™ I finally settled on weigh a mere one pound each. That is absolutely amazing. This November, this old man is going to feel like a teen-ager again while hiking up and down the boulder strewn, spruce and pine covered hills where a certain big buck lives.