Hunter wellies have the best sole in the business: a super-sturdy lugged Vibram design offers great grip and traction and even stood up to an eight-mile walk on Boxing Day, which is far farther than I’ve managed in other wellies.
It also extends up the boot’s heel, giving you extra grip and thus confidence on hillsides and craggy landscapes while also acting as a kick-spur (making it easier to heave your boots off when you get home).
Coe favours Barbour (“If you want a good pair at a reasonable price, that you know is going to last you, they’re the ones to go for”) and the new heritage country-wear brand Holland Cooper, whose sherpa-lined Wellingtons are a popular urban-country hybrid option.
As country-dwellers and city workers, we’re interested in finding wellies that look good as well as feel good, and which can hack a sludgy country field but wouldn’t look out of place on Hampstead Heath.
The (slightly) cheaper Hunter Originals (£120, Hunter) are still enduringly popular, but my top choice are the technical Balmoral Wellingtons, which are unisex (UK 4-13).
