Move over Uggs. There is a way better winter boot option in town. Probably one of the most undervalued and underappreciated of the winter stock footwear variety, mukluks (alternately known as kamiks) are the ideal freezing temperature tramping companion.

Here is the brief history: Traditionally made of reindeer or seal skin, and worn by aboriginal Arctic peoples including the Inuits and Yupiks, they are a soft boot which weighs little and whose soles are barely audible while walking. The reason for this is simple: it allowed hunters to move quietly.  They may be adorned with pom poms or beads and lined with rabbit, fox, raccoon fur or sheep’s wool. Muk luks and similar spin offs have been worn in Alaska, Northern Canada and Greenland for years, centuries even. These shoes were designed for air flow, therefore leaving the foot resistant to frostbite should water get in.

Here’s the reason to wear them: When wearing muk luks, it feels as though one is walking on air. They are the softest, most pliant boots. They are more comfortable than slippers. Muk luks will last a long time, gathering you spend the money and buy the best quality. Don’t cheap out, get the real deal even though you may be dishing out some serious dough. There are some great Canadian manufacturers. They will get you noticed, they are incredibly sexy and playful. Kate Moss wears them all the time, so there’s that. And best of all, they’ll keep your tootsies snuggly and warm in the bone chilling winter months!

“Even in our day, science suspects beyond the Polar seas, at the very circle of the Arctic Pole, the existence of a sea which never freezes and a continent which is ever green.”
-Helena Blavatsky

Attribution to Backpage, Tecumseh, Daily Mail UK, The Fashion Foot