REVIEW: Korkers Redside Wading Boots

Introduction

With a huge range of Wading boots on the market these days from numerous different brands, it is definitely a tough decision narrowing down exactly which model of boot to spend your hard earned cash on, and then hope they will do exactly what you want in the river and on also dry land. We have given the Korkers Redside boots a good run and reckon we have found a great budget conscious boot that ticks all the boxes for a great wading boot.

The Redside is Korkers budget boot, being the cheapest boot in their 5 model wading boot lineup. While being the cheapest boot in their range it still has some of the better features that the korkers boots are known for.

Features

• Omnitrax interchangeable sole system
• Internal drainage ports
• Kling-on sticky rubber soles
• Hydrophobic materials

The Redside boot features Korkers Omintrax interchangeable sole system, which is a pretty amazing system that allows you to change the soles on your boots to suit your conditions, with up to 6 different soles to chose from.

With our boots we have been using 2 of these, the kling-on rubber sole and the plain felt sole.

Felt sole – “Compressed felt for traction performance under water, on slimy rocks, wet wood, etc.”

Kling on Rubber sole – “Kling-On high friction rubber is designed to excel in and out of water. This spongy rubber provides added durability and reduced water absorption. Perfect for scrambling trails, rock hopping, and wading in wet conditions.”

The boots are suprisingly lightweight compared to what I was used to, and at just 1.15kg per pair they are nice and light on your feet and give much less leg fatigue throughout the day.
The hydrophobic material used also helps with the weight issue, as when the redside boots are wet, they have absorbed minimal amount of water which normally can add to the weight of a wading boot tremendously.

Wadeability

As stated earlier the integrated midsole drainage ports and use of hydrophobic material help drain water quickly when wading and also keep the boots as light as possible. Its amazing how much easier it is to wade with light boots, leaving your legs less fatigued and able to last longer on the river.
90% of the time we use the felt sole on my wading boots, as this definitely gives the best grip and traction on the loose freestone rivers that we mainly frequent.

Fit and performance

With a huge range of sizes available, you are guaranteed to get the exact size you need for maximum comfort. The boots do stretch slightly over time, so its best to err on the smaller size if you are concerned.
The Redside boots are comfy to wear both wet and dry, fit well and the lace synch system works well giving a nice snug fit.
Using these boots as a hiking boot to get to your fishing destination is also plausible now, with the Omnitrax system we use our rubber soles on the trail, carry our felt soles in our pack and then change over on the water. As wader socks are quite thick it pays to wear a few pairs of socks if wearing the boots without waders, to keep that nice snug fit while hiking.

Final Thoughts

At around $180 we think the Korkers Redside boot is great value for money, giving you a boot with an amazing interchangeable sole system, plus plenty of other innovative features normally only found on more expensive boots. Well made and extremely light, there is not much else I would want in a wading boot.
Definitely worth a good look if in the market for some new wading boots.

Where to buy

Distributed by mayfly tackle in Australia, Korkers wading boot distributors and stores can be found here.