TEVA Hurricane Daybreaker Mid Boot Review

A stiff, waterproof, fast-closing hiking boot.

I love how protective Teva’s Hurricane Daybreaker Mid hiking boot feels when I’m traversing the distance from my car to the ski resort, tottering down the stairways from the far reaches of the upper parking lot w/ my ski gear bag on my back and my ski bag balanced on my right shoulder. Deep piles of ice and snow and wicked, half-frozen steps not quite shoveled? No worries!

Stability

Several of my cold weather, insulated, winter pack boots are so bulky that I struggle with feeling unsure when I’m driving if I am putting my foot on clutch, gas, or brake. Then I feel like I’m marching in marshmallows when hiking down through the parking lots or strapping into a pair of snowshoes. In contrast, the Teva Hurricane Daybreaker Mid hiking boot features a stiff, accurate Spider Rubber outsole that sticks where it’s placed and gives a much more accurate, performance-oriented feel. 

The 25/26 winter season out West started spectacularly slow, but the December holidays brought the long awaited storms to the Sierra with +100 mph winds and 3-10 feet of snow. A Christmas Eve snowstorm left 36″ of snow, most of it seemingly piled on my car and plowed up in an ice dam behind it. I was pretty happy that the 40 minutes of hard shoveling I spent clearing the top, sides, and back of my car were spent in the warm, waterproof Hurricane Daybreaker Mid boots. My feet stayed dry and comfortable, despite the saturated, wet snow.

I have also worn the Hurricane Daybreaker Mid boots on a few early morning snowshoe trips in the meadow below Mt. Rose with similar results: dry feet.

Fit

I generally wear an 11.5/45.5 sized running shoe. For long distance hiking or climbing in cold temperatures, where I might wear a liner sock and a thicker, insulated sock to protect my feet, I might go up a half size to get a little more toe room. I found the Hurricane Daybreaker Mid hiking boots fit comfortably in a size 11 with my thin alpine ski boot socks. However, if I was going to wear them in temperatures colder than the Sierra or muster out for a long day hike, then I’d probably choose a size 12 to accommodate thicker socks with more padding. 

Bottom Line

The most notable feature for me: the stiff sole is with only a modicum of flex at the ball of the foot and little twist torsionally. The walking feel is dense and protective rather than cushioned, and the suede leather reinforcement and toe cap add to that protective feel without adding bulk. I like that close, accurate fit when I’m moving over ice and snow. While the waterproof membrane did a fine job of keeping my feet dry after hours in the snow, after several days of wearing the Hurricane Daybreaker Mid hiking boots I added some Nikwax waterproofing to the suede trim to help keep them from soaking up water on the outside of the boots from the saturated early season snowpack.

I also liked the quick-pull lacing, heel pull tab, and the gusseted tongue which all combined to make pulling the boots on and off easy while also keeping snow and water from leaking in around the tongue.

The Hurricane Daybreaker Mid hiking boots have become my go-to footwear when I’m heading up to the mountains this winter. I’ve easily added sole spike for hiking over ice and some waterproof gaiters for deep snow.

Details

Men’s sizes: 7-14 in Phantom/ Bison, Black, Breen/ Slate Black, Douglas Fir. $150

Women’s sizes: 5-11 in Deep Mahogany/ Rose Smoke, Honey Brown/ Sage, and Desert Taupe. $150

Buy Product