After much deliberation I went for the black Merrell Winterbelles, and I'm not sorry! They are really comfy and very snug. Great grippy treads and nice and high in the leg (mid calf length, and I have long calves). The only drawback is that it is not easy to get your foot in the bottom as the zip stops quite high (to keep them waterproof). If wearing thick socks or you have stiff ankles this might be a problem unless you fully undo the laces (defeating the object of the zip). But I did manage to get them on wearing ski socks!