See, and I’m a “so my feet get a little wet, big deal” type. I wear flats without socks into the dead of winter. I won’t die if I have to climb over a small pile of snow and it touches my bare skin!
LL Bean boots are very "in " right now. I recall that they were back ordered last winter due to high demand.
My brother also never wore boots for his 3 years in law school in Boston, so am glad no one bought him any. He couldn’t wait to leave and get back to HI!
Yes, the LL Bean boots really last. I’m not sure where your son will be in Michigan, but my husband and son also have “Stabilicers Lite Duty Serious Traction Cleats” that are great when the ground is like a sheet of ice.
My S liked his Merrell waterproof hikers and wore them through his 4 years of college. But he is not fashionable.
If he’s at UM, the forcast is for a warmer less snowy winter. There was snow last weekend. The bean boots are great and if he’s preppy they are the thing to have. If not buy a pair of waterproof short boots and he will be fine. They even make waterproof running shoes now, look for gore-Tex.
Is this kid going to school on Antarctica? If not, he just needs something to wear when it is cold and snowy. I grew up in the Midwest, and lived in northern NH for 7 years before moving to CT. No one in my family has ever needed cleats to get around in the snow…ever. And we don’t own them. I have a pair of 40 year old Sorels that I only wear when I’m snow lowing the driveway. Will your college student be doing anything like that?
And if he wears sneakers all winter, like many college students do, make sure he has an extra pair, so they can dry out when they get wet.
And again I say…let the college kid pick out his own boots.
Really…they have snow plows and snow shovels, and snow blowers in Michigan. The kid will likely not be schlepping through many inches of snow. The walkways and roads will be cleared.
Cleats are for ice, not snow. In some locations, freezing rain is common. Last year there were several threads on UIUC’s reddit where people shared stories of broken kneecaps, tailbones, etc.
Having gone to school in Michigan, I can confidently say that the walks won’t always be plowed and that sneakers aren’t great in slush. Plus boots are great when playing in the snow.
Cleats? Seriously? It would never occur to me to buy cleats for ice unless I worked for the National Park Service on top of a mountain in Colorado. Goodness. It’s just snow. And a little ice. So you walk carefully. The end.
We live in upstate NY. I agree many people don’t wear boots. My kids walk home about 1/2 mile with no sidewalks from HS. DD has some fashionable boots, but DS would prefer to get wet. Some boys wear Timberlands, but I haven’t seen any duck boots here in 20 years. I would give him $ and see what he thinks he needs and what other kids are wearing. Heck, I can hardly get mine to wear coats, I gave up the boot battle long ago.
This is why I say you let the kid figure it out. You can buy him boots at Xmas. It’s just not a big deal.
You can show the kid the options and say “if you want these, I’ll buy them for you.”
Unless this is going to be your child’s only present, why worry about the surprise on Christmas morning factor? Ask if he would like the LL Bean boots and then order them if you get the go ahead. If you wait until Christmas (based on last year’s activity), he won’t get them in time for this winter season. They never left style for my family and my kids had them from high school/college on 10+ years ago.
Isn’t anyone worried about ordering boots online and them not fitting? Boots and shoes are something that I think you need to try on to make sure they fit properly.
Ask this question on the Michigan college forum. And find out if your kid would wear them.
Son at Wisconsin never wore boots. In fact, never wore them since middle school. There is a photo posted by UW of a huge snowball fight where some seemed to be in ordinary athletic shoes. Foot gear varies from school to school.
LL Bean Gore-tex boots are very good in the winter.
Although it doesn’t have the brand recognition, Schnee’s boots are good too.
I bought my daughter Sorels for her Massachusetts school. They are warm, waterproof, and have better traction than a regular shoe. Since there were multiple blizzards last winter in MA, it seemed like a good idea. We visited one school at the tail end of snow season, and lots of kids were wearing boots-not sneakers. There was a variety, not all Bean boots. I would go for comfort. I never found Bean boots to be comfortable so never got them myself.
My son has and likes these, though the Wisconsin weather has to be pretty bad before he will slip on a pair of boots.
Merrell boots are great, really waterproof, comfortable and warm. They have styles that look like boots and styles that look like an athletic shoe. I got a pair two years ago, live in Michigan, walk every day and through the past two extremely cold winters my feet have never gotten wet or cold in them. My son, at UM, got a pair last year after suffering through the first really cold polar vortex winter with only running shoes and he loves them.
My kids will usually wear sneakers and my D fashion boots, but when we have days when they have to go to school and it’s 0 or subzero they wear insulated boots (and warm coats), though hats are another story…
My D has to walk a lot on campus and I am more worried about slush and extreme cold/ice than just snow.
Recently she had to walk around all day in the rain and her shoes were soaked so she bought rain boots.
So I’m pretty sure she would wear warm boots.