Raichle Mt Envy GTX - Quick Look

Raichle Mount Envy GTX - Quick Look

Price: £160

Weight: 1884 grammes (pair size 44)

Features: Mountain boot with Nubuck leather and fabric uppers, Gore-Tex waterproof / breathable liner, Vibram Mulaz sole unit with climbing zone, Memo-Foan padding in tongue and ankle areas, full rand and motion control system, B1 crampon graded. Also available in women's version.

When Swiss brand Raichle announced the Mount Envy GTX earlier this year, they touted it as a lightweight via ferrata boot which could also be used for scrambling and UK winter hill walking. At the time they said the boots weighed around 1600 grammes per pair, but on our scales they came in at almost 1900 grammes, so not so lightweight.

With that in mind, we'd tend to see them more as a light-ish winter mountain boot with the ability to take C1 crampons that you could also use for scrambling.

There's nothing massively radical about the Mount Envy, but Raichle has included some interesting touches. Inside the boot there's Memo-Foam padding in the tongue and ankle areas. Memory foam moulds to the exact shape of your foot giving closely shapped support and comfort, though it can be a little warm.

Other touches include Raichle's Motion Control heel system, a massively buttressed heel area that should keep your foot stable and pointing in the right direction.

Finally the Vibram Mulaz sole unit - above - is relatively thin to save weight, but incorporates a blocked out toe 'Climbing Zone' toe area madde from grippier rubber for climbing use and also a pronounced rocker - a curve to the sole - designed to make walking a more natural process despite the stiffness of the sole unit.

As with Scarpa's Mirage GTX which we recently reviewed, we haven't had the chance to use the Mount Envy with crampons yet, though we're pretty sure it'd work well enough thanks to the stiff sole unit.

Initially we were slightly disappointed by the weight, around 280 grammes more than Raichle claims, however, get beyond that and there's an extremely comfortable winter mountain boot lurking in the Raichle box.

We've used boots with memory foam before and it does give a very comfortable and supportive fit, light years away from traditional four-season leather boots, in the ankle and tongue areas despite the stiffness of the boot.

Once on they have a confident robust feel that's not overly clumpy. It helps that there's quite a pronounced rocker to the sole unit, so walking has a natural feel to it that you don't always get with crampon-compatible boots. As with any four-season boots, you need to check that your heel doesn't lift too much. Our's did a little, but that's a fit issue rather than a flaw.

One thing you don't get with these boots is a lot of cushioning underfoot on harder ground, despite an additional pad on the base of the footbed supplied. Not an issue on snow or when scrambling, but possibly more so on extended rocky walking trips.

Otherwise the boot feels great in a robust, stable way. There's a whopping great protective rand to deal with abrasion damage and the Motion Control paraphanalia does seem to translate to a sorted, stable heel unit. Lacing and tensioning works fine as well.

The Gore-Tex liner keeps the wet out quite effectively and in winter conditions, breathing shouldn't be an issue. Finally we've used the Mulaz sole unit before and it's a decent all-round tread with the secret weapon of a sticky toe area which comes in handy on scrambles and via ferrata.

Quick Verdict

As with all boots, fit is crucial but if the medium-volume Raichle last suits your foot shape, the Mount Envy is a comfortable and effective light-ish winter boot that should cope just fine with general crampon work.

The padded upper is very comfortable and the rockered sole makes for a natural roll to the walking action, the only real downside is the relatively sparse underfoot cushioning.

It's a well-made boot albeit with a not inconsiderable price tag and while we were a little disappointed by the discrepancy between claimed and actual weight, we wouldn't let that put you off if you're after a good quality, comfortable winter mountain walking and scrambling boot.

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