Scarpa Cumbre

I've used these for mostly for Scottish winter stuff, mixed and ice as well as walking. Also in Norway for icefalls.

Boot is really really nice and stinks of quality. The flex ankle makes Scottish walk ins a doddle. Very very comfortable boot and is starting to rival the Nepal Extreme in popularly here in the UK.

However the asymmetric sole, designed for a better dexterity, makes getting a good crampon fit hard in the bigger sizes, the crampon sits off centre because of the sole. I put in 'banana bars' to adjust this, fine for general mountaineering but the front points are too angled inwards for ice I find. As I said this is only a prob with bigger sizes.

Also Scarpa are quite a narrow fit so I went a size bigger than normal. The heel is quite wide at the heel which has proved a problem on steeper stuff. I've just replaced them with a pair of Raichle 90 deg EXP which are a much better fit for my feet.

Overall these have been great for the past 4 years but the fit has been ok for easier stuff but the movement in the heel has become annoying on the steeper ice. Emmm, excuses.

If they fit your feet these will be brilliant. Generally.