Anchorage – October 12, 2026 -- Alaska Gear Company (AKGC) has released the Ankle Deck Boot VBX, a $199 (plus tax) ankle-height boot that the company says is the first deck boot built with sealed vapor barrier insulation. It is available now at AKGC's Anchorage and Fairbanks stores and on the company's website.
The boot is rated to an average of -45°F in lab testing
The boot uses AKGC's proprietary Vapor Barrier X (VBX) technology, the same insulation system found in the company's Bunny Boots. A rubber outer shell seals out water and snow, while a wool insulation layer holds in heat. The -45°F figure is an average ArCLO rating based on lab testing, and AKGC calls it the warmest and most capable ankle deck boot available.
Unlike the deep-winter VBX MAX Bunny Boot, this is a lower-profile, three-season boot for fall, winter, and spring. AKGC pitches it at dock workers and anyone who needs wet-cold protection on the job, and also as a daily driver for cold, wet days around town.
Wet insulation loses heat, which is the problem VBX targets
AKGC grounds the design in military history. During the World War II campaign to retake Attu in Alaska's Aleutian Islands, Allied forces lost more soldiers to cold injury than to combat wounds. The sealed insulated boot the U.S. Army developed in the years afterward is credited with virtually eliminating frostbite and trench foot among troops in wet-cold conditions.
The principle is that insulation loses much of its ability to hold heat once it gets wet. Feet can turn dangerously cold at temperatures as mild as 50°F.
A fleece lining and siped outsole handle comfort and traction
Inside, the boot has a fleece lining for everyday comfort. The non-marking outsole is made of cold-resistant rubber, and its sipes channel water away from the sole to keep footing sure on wet ground.
Henry Richenstein, AKGC's Footwear Category Manager, described the boot as an answer to "an authentic problem" in the Alaskan community that no other brand was solving. He said it lets coastal customers face colder temperatures than they could before.
New Bunny Boot colors arrive alongside the deck boot
AKGC is also growing its winter line. The new NEO Bunny Boot arrives later this fall in Shale Black and Alpine Green. The Bunny Boot LITE adds Polar Purple and Brooks Brown, and the Bunny Boot MAX adds Alpine Green.
Buyers can pair Bunny Boots with colored, waxed reflective laces and gaiters for deep snow. Ice spikes for icy conditions work with both the Bunny Boots and the Ankle Deck Boot VBX.