I have been using the Columbia aquatooth shoe with wool socks for years and think they are great, but...... They have no ankle support. I tried the Chota's and they didn't fit right and they didn't drain fast enough for me. To get some ankle support for my next trip I might try the NB OTB Abyss II

Loose Moose - if you buy the Abyss II boots, I recommend coating the exposed threads on the rubber toe and heel protectors with epoxy.  they seem to be the weak point in the design, though it may be cheaper materials since the original company sold out to NB ?

I've got 211 portages (36 miles worth) on my original pair of Abyss boots I bought from OTB in 2007.  The only wear is on those exposed threads - I took the time to epoxy them this summer after my Q trip, and cemented the rubber heel protector on at the tips, where they were coming away from the shoe - nothing functionally wrong but fixed and good for at least a few more years I figure.

I've tried many different portage boots - the worst was the Chota Q Trekker, which started to fall apart on the second day.  I know people who swear by tehm, but they have boots they bought years ago when the quality was apparently better.  Have treid wading (fishing) boots too.  None of the boots have lasted as long as or performed as well as those original Abyss boots, so I still recomend them.  I have a second pair I bought to use when the originals die, but they are tstill in the original box.

No matter what you buy nowadays, it seems that you have a 1 in 3 chance of getting a failure.  That's just the way it is with everything being made in China. But doing a bit of preventive maintenance on exposed threads, and maybe even running a light bead of epoxy to areas where two materials join should help prolong any boots.  I had to do that with a pair of Kamik boots I used hunting - the glued on soles were coming away from the boots, both of them - that will be a tes for the epoxy fix, for sure.

Are LL Bean boots too old school ?

I'm looking at the New Balance 220 Abyss II 8" OTB Tactical Water Boot.   It's advertised as an 8" boot but the only difference compared to the 6" boot that others crow about is an additional lacing strap.  It would seem to function as a 6" boot by not using that top strap.

Does anyone have these boots?  Are they any different (other than height) in function or fit from the shorter model?

Thanks,
Dave

"Who made the older Abyss OTB boots that have the reliability problems?"

not sure, but I think it was the first group put out by NB

The original company was OTB Footwear, LLC formed to produce boots for the military - supposedly, the Abyss and Odhin were designed for the Navy Seals ("Over The Beach" - hence, the name).   All of the reviews were very positive for the first several years.  I bought my first pair direct from them (and still use them).  Then in 2010, they apparantly sold the rights to produce to ? New Balance? I guess - at that time, OTB was bacisally selling thier remaining inventory - first pair I bought was $115 + Shipping;  the pair I bought via the 2010 close out was $69 + - somewhere about that time, the reviews started to go downhill - either at the end of the OTB production, or the beginning of the NB production.