Entering the market in the 1960's the Sorel Caribou is the classic workhorse Pac Boot. It's a perfect compadre for shoveling snow or stacking firewood around the house, hence why it's Top Pick for Winter Chores. It features an 11-inch shaft with a removable 9-mm felt liner that provides ample warmth in the double negative digits. The leather upper provides unbeatable water and snow protection, while the construct is easy to pull on and off at the door. It's very heavy with a less than precise fit. They are big and bulky, and you might feel like you are floating in boots, but they are classic! Wear it in the coldest weather or when mother nature truly pukes with all its glory. Given its high durability factor, it's a nice choice for chores around the house.
Sorel Caribou - Women's Review
Compare prices at 3 resellers Pros: Warm, great weather protection, removable liner, super thick outsole
Cons: Sloppy and clunky fit, heavy, not very stylish
Manufacturer: Sorel
Our Verdict
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Sorel Caribou - Women's | |||||
| Awards |  |  | | | |
| Price | $108.55 at Amazon Compare at 3 sellers | $185.00 at Backcountry Compare at 2 sellers | $109.00 at Amazon | $109.96 at Backcountry Compare at 3 sellers | $249.95 at Amazon |
Overall Score  |
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| Star Rating | |||||
| Pros | Warm, great weather protection, removable liner, super thick outsole | Comfortable, great traction, waterproof, warm, not bad looking | Warm, wider-forefoot, waterproof, fantastic traction, stability and support | Cute, versatile, relatively warm, decent traction | Super cozy liner, completely waterproof, cute style options, comfortable, warm. |
| Cons | Sloppy and clunky fit, heavy, not very stylish | Short in the back | Aggressive and techy look, not cozy, less arch support | Not super water-resistant | Expensive. |
| Bottom Line | A perfect option for winter chores in cold weather. | The most comfortable winter boot we tested, and it has burly traction, making it perfect for winter backcountry adventures. | A great winter hiker, perfect for slippery trails and long days. | A versatile and cute winter boot for all purposes. | The epitome of comfort and warmth, wrapped in a cute winter boot. |
| Rating Categories | Sorel Caribou - Women's | Oboz Bridger 7" Insulated Wa... | Bugaboot Plus IV Omni-Heat | Shellista II Mid | UGG Adirondack III |
| Warmth (25%) | |||||
| Weather Protection (25%) | |||||
| Comfort & Fit (20%) | |||||
| Traction (20%) | |||||
| Ease Of Use (10%) | |||||
| Specs | Sorel Caribou -... | Oboz Bridger 7"... | Bugaboot Plus IV... | Shellista II Mid | UGG Adirondack III |
| Maximum puddle depth before major leaking | 10 inches | 6 inches | 6 inches | 6.75 inches | 8 inches |
| Width Options | Regular | Regular | Regular | Regular | Regular |
| Measured Weight (ounces, one boot, size nine) | 2 lb. 1.35 ounces | 1 lb. 3.5 oz (size 7) | 1 lb. 3.75 oz (size 7) | 1 lb. 5.90 ounces | 1 lb. 5 ounces |
| Fit Details | True to size | True to size | True to size | True to size | True to size |
| Measured Shaft Height (from bottom of sole to top of shaft) | 11 inches | 7 inches | 7.5 inches | 11 inches | 10 inches |
| Lining/Insulation | 9mm recycled felt inner boot with Sherpa Pile snow cuff | 200 gram 3M™ Thinsulate™ insulation | Omni-Heat reflective lining | 200g PrimaLoft Silver Insulation Eco | UGGpure wool |
| Removable Liner? | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Footbed | 2.5mm bonded felt frost plug | O FIT Insole™ Thermal | Techlite EVA | Injection-molded waterproof TPR shell | EVA |
| Upper Material | Waterproof nubuck leather | Waterproof nubuck leather | Leather, nylon | Waterproof, BLC-compliant nubuck leather upper, knit collar | Waterproof suede and leather |
| Toe Box | Rubber | Molded rubber | Rubber | Rubber | Rubber |
| Outsole | Vulcanized rubber | Granite Peak winterized rubber | Michelin winter compound rubber | Winter Grip rubber outsole with IcePick temperature-sensitive lugs. | Molded Spider Rubber |
| Company-claimed cold-weather rating | -40 | n/a | -25 | n/a | -32 |
| Animal products used? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sizes Available | 5 - 12 | 6 - 11 | 5 - 12 | 5 - 11 | 5 - 12 |
Our Analysis and Test Results
The Sorel Caribou is our Top Pick for Winter Chores because of its burly construction and beefy nature. It is extremely warm and protective, but it lacks a precise fit. Use it to shovel the driveway or walk around town, but don't consider it as a winter hiking boot.
Performance Comparison
Warmth
Among the warmest boots tested, this Sorel features a 9-mm felt removable liner in addition to a super bomber outer that locks in warmth. The shaft height is about 11 inches with a sherpa-pile snow cuff that keeps warmth inside. With a removable liner, this double boot system provides more warmth than most single-layer systems. The liners are easy to take out and dry if they get soaked. According to Sorel, this boot keeps feet warm to -40 degrees. While we can't verify these temperatures, this is a believable claim due to the boot's thick liner and soles.
Not many contenders proved to be as warm as the Caribou. The Caribou is so toasty, so thick, and so insulated it is hard to imagine anything else keeping us as warm when temperatures dipped as low as -20 degrees.
Weather Protection
Equipped with a bomber nubuck leather upper and a removable liner, the Caribou offers bullet-proof weather protection. In our cold water and puddle tests, we learned it keeps feet dry to roughly ten inches. There is absolutely no leakage throughout the boot when properly laced up, and the material did not saturate or become less protective at any point during testing. These factors make it a great choice during the worst and coldest weather.
Comfort & Fit
Scoring low in this metric, this boot is not comfortable or well-fitted. It is extremely voluminous throughout the footbed and shaft of the boot, making it feel like you're wearing a pair of heavy clown shoes. The interior of the liner is soft to the touch, and it's removable for better drying capabilities. Weighing over 2 lbs per boot, our testers were not psyched to be wearing it throughout the day, and we found ourselves tripping over our feet on some occasions.
The footbed has little to no support, the heel is large and not fitted, and the shaft of the boot can't tighten down very far. This boot earns the lowest score of any in our selection for comfort & fit. Because of this performance, we only recommend for winter chores around the house or the odd errand around town. It's not ideal for all-day wear at work or while hiking technical winter trails.
Ease of Use
Our testers found the Caribou easy to slip on for a quick excursion outside. The laces are a quick one-pull system that doesn't bunch or bind. The leather outer holds its structure well, so you don't have to make too many adjustments. It also features a handy pull-on tab on the back.
The liners are removable and getting them in and out can be a bit of a hassle, but you only need to do that if they are really soaked. Other than that, it's a pretty straightforward construct. And, since we couldn't get a precision fit anyway, we often left ours loosely tied for super easy in-and-out.
Traction
Utilizing a vulcanized rubber composite, the Caribou features a unique outsole not seen in any other models tested. The lugs are long ball-like shapes, resembling the outsole of a strange-looking cleat. We found this boot to grab most surfaces well. We trudged over snow and ice, sand and dirt, and it proved to grip nicely on all surfaces. During our snowy hill tests, it grabbed the slope better than any of the Sorels tested.
All other Sorels in this review feature a lug-less design with a wave-outsole that doesn't provide the best traction over most slippery surfaces. So it's not too surprising that it performed better than these competitors.
Value
This super burly boot comes with a hefty price tag. While perusing reviews online, we learned that for many, this boot has been a go-to mainstay that has lasted for years. However, recently, there've been reports of lugs wearing and breaking off after about a year of use.
While we didn't test this pair for a year or longer, these reports do concern us. That said, we didn't have any durability issues during our testing period, and in our experience, it's proven to be fairly durable. Aside from that, we would say this is worth the money for a super warm and protective Pac Boot.
Conclusion
This Top Pick for Winter Chores is a workhorse Pac Boot that can really take on the elements. Classic in natural, it provides ample warmth and weather protection through the coldest days of winter. Use it to collect firewood or shovel the driveway, but leave it at home for long hikes in the wilderness.
— Amber King