I have a pair of the NRS Storm Boots that Navy Seals wear and have used them on 4 or 5 Quetico trips. They are great for traction and support. They keep your feet pretty warm even though they are not waterproof. They are like wearing wetsuit booties with an external support webbing system and a durable, flexible sole. If you get them, get those quick lacing buttons that are available for snugging up boot laces. Then you can cut the laces off short and tuck the ends into the boots. Otherwise, the long laces will snag on everything when bushwhacking. Another suggestion: if you wear them without socks they stick to your feet with unbreakable suction making them really hard to get off when they are wet. Get a couple pairs of those real lightweight polypro liner socks from Wigwam. They are so thin they don't interfer with the boots skintight fit, but they allow a little air to enter the boot when you are trying to get them off at the end of a wetfooting day.

I also have the Chota Breathable Mukluks and have used them on three Quetico trips now. You are absolutly correct about the lack of support and poor traction, especially on slippery rocks and logs. They are warm and dry which is important to me since I go in mid-May every year when wet feet can be pretty miserable.

Not sure yet which ones I'll wear this year. 

I thought those older patagonia shoes work great also for traction.... and a bit thinner and lighter then the hiking boot style shoes.

So, here I am gearing up for my dream vacation--20 days solo in the Q and I find myself once more pondering the questions that started this thread.  My earlier contributions regarding the Chota mukluk are amended as such:
  While I still find them a decently comfortable boot when you add a good insole, I slipped badly (and was lucky) a couple of times this spring.  Upon examination of the sole, I found that there was significant wear after only two 9 day trips to the Q and one short fall trip in northern Wisconsin (no portages).  Granted, I'm a big guy, and with the addition of pack and canoe, that's a lot of weight bearing on those soft soles.  My coworker, however, is a small woman and her trekkers (same kind of sole) are very worn after just a few trips.  I think I'll be saving those for early/late season wear. 
I did a fair bit of looking around and came back to the NRS storm boot.  Ordered it, waited for it, eagerly tried it on only to have the stitching holding the neoprene inner bootie to the body of the boot rip on the first attempt to get the boot onto my foot.  The "fin tab" on the heel of the same boot was peeling off, as well.  I was disappointed, but tried walking around the neighborhood and wearing them for an evening.  They felt good.  I sent them back to NRS for an exchange and will be taking the replacements to a local cobbler (who is unfazed, thus far, with strange paddling gear requests) for some reinforcement.  They seem like a good boot, and I can't find anything that has a grippy sole anything like it, if not for some shoddy craftsmanship... (upon review, that's a really sad statement--calling it a good product except for the shoddy work--yikes, what have we come to?)
  ..so, I'll give it a try.  Along with my chaco sandals and a pair of soft nylon boat shoes (read, campslippers)  those will be my footwear for the trip.  I'll let you know how they hold up to nearly 2000 rods of double portage sometime after late September.
Cheers,
gp

During my misspent youth I was a surfer living on Long Island during the late fall and early spring a wet suit was mandatory, the trick we used to get into this second skin was to use a good shake of talc. When talc was not at hand or money was short (always) I would raid my mothers kitchen cabinets for corn starch, BTW corn starch is great for rashes.

flp

For wet footers, just got back from a one week trip in the French River Provincial Park with the boy scouts.  Used Teva Gamma Pro shoes.  If you have good ankles, these were very good shoes.  Tennis shoe height, good mesh, only stones ingested were from over the ankle area and they were very minimal, gripped wet rock very well.  Grade high B, don't know what an A grade would be for shoes.  They worked very well.