Upland boots must tackle wide-ranging terrain from the occasional treks through water to jagged rocks, slippery mud, briars, and miles upon miles of all of it for hours at a time. What you want from a top-notch upland boot is a seemingly impossible duality — the comfort of an athletic shoe combined with a tank-like indestructibility and traction.

In July of 2014, it seemed as though commercial fishermen, conservationists, Alaska's native peoples, recreational anglers, and more had, after years of relentless advocacy, prevailed in their fight to protect the Bristol Bay region of Alaska from large-scale, open-pit mining.