I've had various brands of hiking boots over the years, and these are as good as the more expensive brands. There's lots of reinforcement in all the right places (heel and toe). So far, they seem to be a good winter boot for the snow and rain, and very cold weather we've been having this winter. My only negative mirrors another reviewer: it is waterproof only to about 4.5 inches of water depth (I measured the tongue opening to the bottom of the sole) due to the way the tongue is constructed. They probably could have improved the tongue and gotten another inch of depth without impacting the ease of pulling on the boot. But, overall, I think it is an excellent boot and worth every penny.