Warmth of Mammut Nordwand 6000 boots

I recently went to an 8-day climb in Alaska with my Mammut Nordwand 6000 boots. Our base camp was around 7100ft and the highest we went was around 9200ft. There were a few times when I felt my feet were cold. It wasn't freezing or numb kind of cold, but the slightly damp and cold feeling. All those times when my feet were cold, my body was cold as well. I didn't have cold feet when my body was warm. (I wasn't very used to the Alaska weather and was adjusting my layers.) I'm curious if someone has compared the Mammut Nordwand 6000 to other double boots like La Sportiva G2 and Scarpa Phantom 6000. I think it was probably my body and my feet would be as cold if I had La Sportiva or Scarpa, but I'd like to see if there's any experience of warmth comparison. FWIW, I replaced the stock insoles in the liners with SuperFeet Adapt Run Max insoles. I don't know if that makes a difference in warmth.

Interested to hear more feedback as I've been looking at getting a pair of these.

Yury wrote:

How tight were these boots?

I'm not sure what you refer to by tight. The boots have BOA laces and can be laced tighter or looser. Are you referring to the width? I think they are slightly less wide than Scarpa.

Tianming Chen wrote:

All those times when my feet were cold, my body was cold as well. 

This could be a valuable clue about what's going on. If you are struggling to keep your core warm, circulation to your feet will be compromised. 

Yury wrote:

Do they feel tight or loose?

They aren't loose or overly tight for me, but I think fit can be personal. My heels lock in very nicely, though it'd be nice if the forefoot part can tighten down a bit more.

All those times when my feet were cold, my body was cold as well. I didn't have cold feet when my body was warm.

Therein lies the issue. Not the boots. Your core was cold so the circulation to your exterminates, namely your feet was slowed. So your feet were cold. Want to keep your core warm wear a hat, stay hydrated, eat well. If your core is warm then your feet and hands will stand a better chance of being warm.

I have G2SM and I have the Nordwand 6000. I've used both in similarly cold conditions (down to about -4 F). I've never had an issue with either boot and have had a history of struggling with cold feet. I think that as others have pointed out, your body was cold therefore your feet got cold. It's a general relationship between the two in the mountains. 

The one thing that I can think of as a difference between the two boots though is that the liner for the Nordwand 6000 can be a little more stubborn to dry than the G2sm. If you weren't getting them totally dry at night, they may have been holding a little moisture and getting a little cold from that as well. 

NateC wrote:

I have G2SM and I have the Nordwand 6000. I've used both in similarly cold conditions (down to about -4 F). I've never had an issue with either boot and have had a history of struggling with cold feet. I think that as others have pointed out, your body was cold therefore your feet got cold. It's a general relationship between the two in the mountains. 

The one thing that I can think of as a difference between the two boots though is that the liner for the Nordwand 6000 can be a little more stubborn to dry than the G2sm. If you weren't getting them totally dry at night, they may have been holding a little moisture and getting a little cold from that as well. 

Thank you Nate! With your experience now I'm confident that it's my body/layering that I need to tune, rather than the boots.

For whatever its worth ....

I have the older generation Nordwand 2.1. since last fall, coming form the Sportiva Baruntse (the Baruntse where indestructible and super warm, but very heavy to modern standards and a bit tight in fit for me).  I have used the Baruntse extensively for ice climbing locally and for 5000/6000m expeditions in South America. The Baruntse have a 7mm close cell liner but also has some sort of "foamish" insulation in the shell itself - they are very warm boots.

The Nordwand 6000 is certainly more modern in its design, but i presume the material are quite similar to the 2.1, that is : non insulated "gaiter" (its just a layer of fabric and feels quite plasticky on the 2.1); non insulated shell (a layer or two of "synthetic leather"); a "classic" fabric+insulation liner.

Trough the years, on multiple double boots, I found that fabric+insulated liner always end up running a bit cold, i presume by being saturated with perspiration and are a nightmare to manage on multiple days climbs. As such I have always ended up replacing them by close cell liners, that ended up much warmer, better fitting and much lighter. i use Intuition in the old days and now have Palau liner made for my Mammut  (7mm thick, 130g vs 250g for the stock Mammut)  . The Palau liners (7mm thick) are almost identical to the ones in the Baruntse and the G2. The company is in France but easy to deal with and can customize pretty much anything. 

Other "hacks" are merino/winter type of insoles - I use the Sidas Winter Merino, and one thing that i find makes a big difference is the use of runners feet powder every morning to keep my feet somewhat dry.

All that said, Smartwool liner + Smartwool thin PHD + Powder + Sidas winter Insole + Palau 7mm liner + Nordwand 2.1 = way warm enough for -25C day of ice climbing. 

My experience at high altitude (6000m in Alaska and Yukon) is from a fair bit ago (2000 to 2006), but i used a similar set up + old school OR open cell Brook Ranger overboots that where just used on one very cold summit day = merino liner + merino thick + powder + wool insole + intuition close cell liner + plastic (Scarpa Inverno of Ski boot) + overboot.

Enjoy !