Atomic's high performance alpine boot with some touring ability.

This year, Scarpa upgraded the Maestrale and made it bad ass. The flex is notably stiffer, but the boot didn’t gain any significant weight. It can hold its own in bounds, but it really shines in the backcountry.

The Vulcan is a fully capable AT boot that can tour and ski any and all backcountry conditions. The price is no joke, but the Vulcan is a boot that has more everyday-user appeal than Dynafit’s popular TLT 5 but can still charge with the best.

The Lange XT 130 can drive any ski at the resort, but will have no problem bootpacking or skinning just outside the gates. The flex might not be quite 130, but it’s the consistency that shines more than the stiffness. Long tours? Not it’s forte.

The 2/8 is Dalbello’s new workhorse has virtues best realized charging around a resort and nearby sidecoutry, though the lack of tech fittings puts it at a distinct disadvantage as a backcountry boot.

The Garmont Cosmos is a very comfortable alpine touring boot, with welcoming fit and a forgiving on-snow feel. It’s ideal for longer backcountry days and more technical ski mountaineering objectives, though it lags in power.

The Skr!!m is a fully functioning AT boot that is best suited for chasing powder deep in the backcountry. The modest stiffness is similar to the Cosmos, with which it shares the highly lauded and comparable day-long comfort.

The Cochise Pro Light is a hybrid of Freeride and touring DNA. The overlap cuff design provides a consistent, predictable flex, and the interchangeable tech soles and AFD give it versatility and sole longevity.

Jeff Burke is putting the best backcountry boots to the test again, this time with a complete review of the Garmont Radium.

The Salomon Quest is built for downhill performance in-bounds, with the ability to hike for those secret stashes. Jeff Burke tries a little bit of both.

After a few days testing the Scarpa Hurricane Pro on the high slopes of Chile's Valle Nevado, Jeff Burke is crystal clear on what he thinks about this boot.

Jeff Burke is back, testing the resiliency of Black Diamond's long-lasting Quadrant AT boot.

Light, stiff, and just a little pricier than anything else on the boot rack. Jeff Burke breaks down the uphill and the downhill features of Dynafit's groundbreaking TLT5 Performance boot.

Jeff Burke spent more than a month testing the Scarpa Maestrale in the Teton Range of Wyoming. Here is what he thinks of the performance--and price--of the backcountry ski boot.