Photo by Muffy Aldrich
The Modern Guide to The Thing Before Preppy

Thursday, March 16, 2023

Camp Mocs

 

Camp Mocs for Women and Men

Camp Mocs, short for Camp Moccasins, are a classic casual slip-on shoe for men and women.  Flattering and easier than boat shoes, they are perfect for business casual when new and for everyday wear when older.   They were invented by Leon L. Bean, and L.L. Bean first introduced these shoes in 1936.

With white soles, they can be worn on boat decks.   A red sole is a fine alternative for autumn.  They can be worn with or without socks.     

Women's Version

Horizontal lacing around the throat makes it easy to tailor the fit while preserving the ease of a slip-on.

Women's Version

 

This lifelong family friend seemingly wore almost nothing but... (In the photos below spanning five decades.)




...Except when he wore boat shoes.
(And to further digress, in this last picture, he was answering my questions about his Bowdoin benefactor mentions and sharing old fraternity photographs, including these...)







And final diversion, his father's car.
Okay, this is absolutely, positively the last diversion: he (baby) with my mother and her cousins.  


Photo Credits:  Muffy Aldrich, Family, and Friends

43 comments:

  1. What make are the white soled ones in the main photo please?

    ReplyDelete
  2. I wear Bean camp Mocs most of my waking hours outside the house.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I would too if they were more comfortable. Maybe they need about 10 more years of abuse to make them that way, as in photo #2 above. If so, it'll be a race to see who gets done first, me or the mocs.

      Down-thread there's a comment about asking Quoddy (I don't have those, but maybe I should) to add padded heel and arch support. THAT might well deal with my chief argument against the Beanmocs.

      Meanwhile, it's Clark's Portlands day in day out. I have 3 pair that I wear in succession, and this too will be a race to see who falls apart first.

      Delete
  3. I do not have Quoddy camp mocs, but I do have their Maliseets. My son has Rancourt camp mocs, and since we are the same shoe size I have had the opportunity to try them. I find the Quoddy chromexcel more flexible and out of the box comfortable and the Rancourts a little more nicely finished. I do not think there is a bad choice to be made between them.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Owning both, here is how I would compare them: if walking around the house and for short distances outside, Quoddy is appropriate. If walking any greater distance, the much better support of Rancourt causes me to reach for Rancourt every time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I would concur. I decided to purchase a pair of Quoddy's, and while they look great, I was surprised at how tight they are. It's taken much longer to stretch them out than I anticipated, but I guess that's because of the good-quality leather. I'm hoping that over the next season they will stretch out, because they do look good. But, they are/were not as comfortable as I anticipated.

      Delete
  5. I was quite stunned by how much I loved my Quoddys. And they're beautiful, too.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I recently spoke with a sales person at Quoddy and she suggested that i add a note to my order “padded heel and arch support” - needless to say, my new shoes are perfect and I can wear them in the city for hours with no pain. I’m not sure if Rancourt can add this extra service or not. I would order again from Quoddy without question.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good to know. I love to walk so I put some mileage on my shoes. Unfortunately I have high arches. The simpler interior finishing of the Quoddy has always scared me off and toward Rancourt. I have no complaints with the latter, but always nice to have options.

      Delete
  7. My Quoddy canoe Mocs are my most favorite shoes ever!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I just unpacked a new pair of Quoddy canoe shoes last night, and they're still very nicely done. The quality (and smell!) of the leather is outstanding, but the interior finishing with glove leather lining really makes them stand out.

      I also have a pair of Rancourt's ranger mocs, and while the Rancourts are nice, the interior finishing isn't on the same level as Quoddy.

      Delete
  8. Does anyone use mink oil/polish to preserve their mocs for longer wear (I'm military so there is an element of that in why I do)? I always see people with polished/new camp mocs and in the very few pics of well-worn camp mocs, they seem worn in a way that they weren't well cared for.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I use Obenauf's leather preservative (not the oil), and of all my boots, I think it works best on boat shoes. I've never used mink oil, nor any of the other boot dressings.

      Delete
    2. I should add that a little goes a long ways. Too much will attract dirt and grit. It keeps the shoes from looking dried out.

      Delete
    3. We use Pecards Leather Dressing. They’re out of Green Bay Wisc. Russell Moccasins recommends them. Check out the Russell Oneida moc. Merci.

      Delete
    4. It keeps the shoes from actually drying out. You’re right. A little goes a long way. Best to apply and let dry.

      Delete
  9. I’ve found the Rancourt Gilman Camp-Mocs in Dark Brown Buckaroo are closest to the Bean ones I used to wear at boarding school in the 80s. Once they’re broken in, they’re great!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Based on your recommendation I ordered a pair of these and they happened to be in stock. I've received them already. Marvelous shoe! Actually nicer in the proverbial flesh than in the photographs online. Thank you.

      Delete
  10. Our Bean and Quoddy are time proven winners! Thank you so much!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I'm sorry to say I've given up on Quoddy. Their shoes are beautiful but their fit and sizing are all over the place. To the poster above who is "surprised at how tight they are" and hoping they will stretch out: I wish you luck. Quoddy's moccasins tend to have a short vamp and very tight toe box. In my experience (again, with their moccasins, not lace-up shoes), they run at least a half-size small and one width too narrow. That said, a couple of times I've adjusted my order accordingly and then, Murphy's Law, received a pair that was true to size...and, theoretically, not returnable because they were made to order. I would suggest ordering them from a place like O'Connell's, where they are stocked and you can easily try different sizing options. That way you also avoid the customer service issues that have plagued Quoddy for quite some time (extraordinary wait times, unreturned emails, lost orders, etc.).

    I think the Rancourt Gilmans are great. I find that the Quoddys have a more flexible leather and attractive finish, while the Rancourts have a bit more structure to them and so hold their shape much better over time. Depends what you prefer.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Too tight, too narrow — that's my experience with the Bean mocs with the boat-shoe sole. Plus the toe box is, as with your Quoddys, narrower than I find comfortable.

      Bottom line for me is that if I'm not in a position to try them on in a store with a variey of sizes/widths in stock, I'm not ordering them. And that principle holds for all shoes I buy now.

      C'est la vie.

      Delete
    2. Sadly, I also find that true of Quoddy. The leather is superb, but having to order them from overseas...well, first of all, one is redirected to the European Quoddy site, which has a very limited selection, and then I found that the sizing was a bit off and a bit on the snug side, despite my having ordered a slightly larger size. I hardly ever use them, as a result and they're not cheap. I ended up ordering a pair of Dubarry's boat shoes (which are true boat shoes, I hasten to add), and am very happy with them. I hadn't known about Rancourt's and will try them at some point.

      Delete
  12. My puppy recently chewed on my last pair of LL Bean camp mocs. So sad as LL Bean no longer makes them for women. Not quite as nice as Quoddy but more affordable.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am in the same boat!

      Delete
    2. i know this is quite old, but in case someone else lands here. Gogle a US mens to US women's shoe size converter. With things beeing made overseas, even US brands, it is smarter of late to try to find the brand specific one. This particular style shoe does tend to run similarly across genders, as do a class Weejun style loafer, if you wear a B or M (medium) width. Also, if you haven't had your foot measured since Jr. High or High School, get your butt over to you nearest full service shoe department. I am a stickler about my shoe size, unless the brand suggest movement up or down, if it doesn't fit, it doesn't fit (paid my college loans off selling shoes)

      Delete
  13. Beautiful although I'm okay with my Sperrys.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I've worn Bean, Quoddy, and Sperry models over the years and became tired of Sperry and Quoddy's inconsistent level of quality. Needing a narrow slip-last with good arch support, I am quite satisfied with Eastland for my camp mocs. Eastland also offers a choice of imported or made in the USA with fair prices.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ah, thank you for reminding me of Eastland! Might have to give them a try this summer.

      Delete
  15. I have an old pair from LL Bean that my dad bought me in '88. They need resoling. I wonder if where to go.

    ReplyDelete
  16. That shot of the well-worn camp mocs with faded jeans really takes me back to summer camp in the 70s and early 80s. The uniform for so many of college-aged counselors (all young men at that time) was a green camp t-shirt, jeans, and similar footwear.(sans socks) except in the hottest weather, when shorts naturally replaced the jeans.. Many happy memories. Camp Conrad Weiser is now a very, very different place in the 2020s from what I gather. The past is indeed a foreign country.

    Kind Regards,

    Heinz-Ulrich

    ReplyDelete
  17. The last photo of your friend's room interior is what I call perfection.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Oak Street Bootmakers are made in USA (completely, not the minimum required to say that) and make my favorite Camp Moc. Compare.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Fascinating photograph of the Bowdoin frat crew ‘57. But for center photograph - bottom row, there is absolutely no diversity whatsoever!

    ReplyDelete
  20. I bought a new pair of Bean camp mocs last year after many years without them, and they're my default casual weekend shoe. Love them.

    ReplyDelete
  21. I actually thought that was me in the second photo for a second and was wondering how you got it....

    ReplyDelete
  22. I replaced an ancient pair of bluchers with a new pair from LL Bean about a year ago. They're pretty good and reasonably priced, so I assume their camp mocs are too. For a shoes that's likely to get mistreated, I wasn't inclined to spend more on what I believe would be better quality and perhaps more comfortable from Rancourt or Quoddy.

    For boat shoes, Sperry's gold cup shoes with tan latex soles have been fabulous for me. The leather is quite a bit more supple/robust than regular Sperry boat shoes, and the soles have the same siped pattern & grip, plus they feel more cushioned than Sperry's traditional white soles.

    ReplyDelete
  23. How are they easier than boat shoes?

    ReplyDelete
  24. Can someone explain to someone the far side of the Atlantic what the difference between Camp Mocs and Boat (or as we call them here, “Deck”) shoes actually is please? I don’t think I’ve ever seen camp
    Mocs for sale here and even the choice of boat-shoes these days is limited these days. Historically I’d have plumped for Dubarry as being the best but now they’ve moved production away from Ireland, I think Paraboot are probably the best available in Europe.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi. The main difference is that a boat (deck) shoe has open lacing: the leather flaps formed by the quarter are tied together with laces. A camp moc, by contrast, is a loafer: the vamp (front) and quarter (back) don't overlap. That is, the laces don't pull together flaps of leather as they do on most shoes; they just cinch the loafer to the foot. Traditionally, the two shoes also have different soles: boat shoes have white, siped soles for walking on decks, while camp mocs have dark pebbled soles for walking on the ground. (Although, as these photos shoe, camp mocs with white soles can be found; as can boat shoes with dark soles.) The two shoes look the same at first glance because both have brown uppers and 360-degree lacing. I'm happy to discuss further if this is not clear.

      Delete
  25. I like the blue pair you are wearing while on the rocks. Who made those? I wear LL Bean Camp Mocs every day. In these modern times Bean shops this shoe out and it is terrible but I love the look. The sole splits in the center and the Water Buffalo leather is dismal .I will have to likely go custom due to my needing an E width. I love the lengthier leather vamp on the old Bean version. Which company should I try? Roger Russell

    ReplyDelete
  26. Check out Marstrand boat shoes! It's a classic over here in Sweden.

    ReplyDelete

Comments are moderated.