New-School Snow Boot: Light, packable (bootie ‘slipper’ inside)

By Chelsey Magness

Where is it written that winter boots have to be heavy, boring, unpackable toboggans for your feet? That’s a question Teva poses to introduce its new Jordanelle Boots, which are, as you may expect, none of those things above.

I got a pair to test out this winter and have since put them through the paces in the snow and on mountains around my home in Bend, Ore.

The Jordanelles are warm, waterproof, and comfortable. They are light weight and packable for storing away in a backpack or suitcase when you travel.

My favorite feature? The liners can be removed and used as ultra-warm slippers for lounging around a fireplace indoors on those chilly winter nights and days.

Overall, the Jordanelles are a nice general redesign of the workaday winter boot. They have a nylon shank for some stiffness and support. But these are not for climbing high peaks. Mountaineering crampons are a no-go.

Sticky “spider rubber” on the sole adds grip. Warmth comes from 3M Thinsulate insulation. In my test, which so far has only included days down to about 25 degrees F, the boots are very warm.

(Another GearJunkie tester wore the women’s Jordanelles extensively this month in temperatures down to 10 degrees F. She said the boots were “not cold” when she was hiking in those temps.)

They are nimble enough to run in — the sole and profile mimics a trail-running shoe. I would go snowshoeing in them casually, though they wouldn’t be my first choice for anything too serious. (I would rather snowshoe in low-top Gore-Tex hiking boots that are stiffer and more precise than the Jordanelles.)

This month, I have been wearing the boots up to the ski mountain, around town after it snows, and I even did an unplanned hike up to the top of a large butte outside of Bend. The Jordenelles were comfortable and surprisingly supportive in all scenarios.

At 11 inches high, you don’t often need gaiters with these boots. The uppers are soft and flexible, but the boots lace up and fit tight.

When I return home after an adventure I take off the boots’ outer shells and walk around the house in the inner “slipper” booties. Super nice.

The Jordanelle Boots cost $170. For that price, when compared to a pair of Sorels I own, I find the Teva boots to be both a bit warmer as well as more versatile.

Who should buy these boots? I see people who are going on ski vacations or to their winter cabins as candidates. The boots pack down easily when needed, and they are warm, fun, and good-looking.

They are great for kicking around in the snow, going sledding with kids, snow-machining, and for jaunts into the winter woods as the snow piles deep.

—Chelsey Magness is a member of Team GearJunkie and the YogaSlackers.