Columbia Drainmaker III water shoe review

[theonecanoe]

I recently got myself a pair of Columbia Drainmaker III water shoes. I'll be using these this summer as my new river shoes. The great thing about these shoes is the 'drain ports' built into the sole which allows water to drain away as you step back into the canoe resulting in a much drier boat. I've put together a short video review of these great shoes. please have a look:

Cheers
Wayne

 

[red langford]

Great video. I've been looking for a new pair of water shoes and have been very disappointed with my keens. A few questions, are the laces elasticized? How is the traction on dry rock? My keens are almost slicker on the dry rock than wet rock. Did you pay for the shoes or were they provided to you at no charge to do a review?

 

[Alan Gage]

Red,

Another one to look into is the Abyss boot, now being made by New Balance. I've been using a pair this year and so far so good. They got their first real test a couple weeks ago going 9 miles upstream and wading and lining through quite a few small sets of rapids. Drain well, good foot protection, and so far I've had excellent traction on wet rocks. No muddy trails yet so that is still to be determined, as is longevity. So far I'm happy though. Amazon had select sizes heavily discounted at $50 this winter and I don't know if that offer is still there or not.

EDIT: I just checked and at least for us in the US they still have them marked down but the sizes are more limited. Good news is free returns so you can order multiple sizes and return what doesn't fit for free. I normally wear 11 1/2 and ordered sizes 11 and 12. The 11's were almost a perfect fit but I worried about wet swollen feet and thick socks so I went size 12's, which seem slightly too large but still fit well.

Alan

 

[Philtrum]

Nice video review!
I have an old pair of Adidas with mesh uppers and drains in the bottoms. They've been great but I've worn them out and of course Adidas doesn't make them any more.
I have to disagree with Alan about the Abyss boot. Yes, it drains, but that's its only good point. Well, maybe foot protection. But it comes at the cost of an overly flexible upper that provides just about as much ankle support as a flip-flop. Plus the arch is positioned too far forward, which makes walking painful after only a short distance.
Anyway, the Drainmaker looks like it would be a good try.

 

[Alan Gage]

I have to disagree with Alan about the Abyss boot. Yes, it drains, but that's its only good point. Well, maybe foot protection. But it comes at the cost of an overly flexible upper that provides just about as much ankle support as a flip-flop. Plus the arch is positioned too far forward, which makes walking painful after only a short distance.

I agree the supplied inserts aren't real comfortable. Not much arch support and they're quite stiff so the drainage holes have sharp edges that can wear on wet feet when wearing thin socks. But to their credit I found them more comfortable than I expected on the few occasions I've worn them all day long, at least with thick socks. At the end of the day my feet felt fine. Before my big trip I'll be replacing the insoles with something more comfortable and cutting some holes in them for drainage.

As for ankle support I can't comment much. I've never felt much of a need for ankle support and prefer low cut shoes. They feel good to me but they're not as stiff as a heavy hiking boot, which to me is a good thing. I went with the 8" high version simply because I wanted it in tan rather than black so that perhaps that makes a difference. Biggest benefit I see to the high boot is ankle protection from rocks when wading rapids. Didn't realize how much this could come into play until I spent a day stumbling over hidden rocks in the river.

Alan

 

[theonecanoe]

Red Langford wrote: "Great video. I've been looking for a new pair of water shoes and have been very disappointed with my keens. A few questions, are the laces elasticized? How is the traction on dry rock? My keens are almost slicker on the dry rock than wet rock. Did you pay for the shoes or were they provided to you at no charge to do a review?"

Red, The laces are not elasticized. They are regular tie-up laces but I do believe Columbia makes this same model with those single pull "speed laces". The traction seems fine on dry rock, however on one stretch of river where the rocks were very rounded and covered with thick and slippery algae these treads did not hold well, but in all other instances they've been good. Always better than the old 'beater' running shoes I used to wear in the water. I've only had them just over a month so I'll still have to check them out on varied terrain and test their long-term durability. The big advantage for me is the quick draining these shoes provide. The shoes were provided to me by Columbia for testing and reviewing.

Wayne

 

[madmike]

Check out shoes made by Astral Buoyancy. Order a size up.

 

[Odyssey]

I like these shoes. They're very grippy on dry rock, but they do slip on wet rock. I've yet to find anything that can handle improved footing on greasy logs and slimy rock. The fine mesh uppers are good at keeping your feet free of sticks and stones and the worst of the mud. The laces stay well tied, which is useful when wading through knee deep mud. The shoes also drain freakishly fast, and dry quickly. Veerrryy comfortable. I have a hard time not wearing them as every day casual shoes at home.