Mammut Kento Guide High GTX Review

The Mammut Kento Guide High GTX has features that will walk you into winter, too, with sturdy construction and a grippy sole.

The Mammut Kento Guide High GTX is at the far end of the 3-season boot spectrum, with features and construction that will take the wearer easily into the winter hills. The upper is nubuck leather overlaid by a high rubber rand with additional protection at the toe and heel. The ankle is high and well-padded, as is the tongue, which is gusseted almost to the ankle cuff.

The lacing runs almost to the toe through webbing loops and steel hooks, and is asymmetric at the forefoot, which is an uncommon feature but does conform very well to individual foot shape. The sole is stiff, with just enough flex at the toe for walking.

The Vibram rubber outsole is very grippy indeed across wet and dry terrain. The samples arrived too late for me to take them above the snowline, but they will be broken in perfectly for that test this coming winter. The heel has a counter to take a crampon heel clip, and the heel construction is solid enough that a crampon shouldn’t be felt while you wear them.

The Kento Guide is perhaps a throwback to boots we might have worn in the hills all year round in times past; but having destroyed lightweight boots on the Cuillin Ridge in a matter of days these should be an excellent choice for long days of scrambling. It feels like too much boot for most 3-season applications, but it is light for what it is, and it was comfier than I expected.