I've worn canvas and leather mukluks snowshoeing, with Sorel liners inside. The bindings were painful through the soft footwear. Are Steger mukluks more padded around the foot area? Are they comfortable with snowshoes?

I've worn Steger Mukluks quite a bit snowshoeing and they are very comfortable. Make sure you size up 1-2 sizes and go with a wide or double wide if you want to go below 0F with them.

I am also a minimalist shoe / barefoot runner and love the feel and flexibility of the mukluk. My feet have gotten a little bigger as I've transitioned to minimalist shoes. I started with a pair of Yukons in size 12 (the canvas does not breath well), and the switched to the Quetico's in 13 wide, and now just got a pair of the Arctic's in 14 double wide. I am generally a 12.5-13 size narrow depending on the shoe manufacturer to give you an idea. I partner the mukluks with a pair of RBH VBL socks and they've work great!

They are definitely only for below freezing temps and dry. Unless you get the Camuk version as mentioned previously as they are waterproof.

For wet cold weather hiking and running, I've been using a merino wool liner sock, Sealskinz as a VBL sock, and Vivobarefoot Breatho Trails. If necessary, I have enough room to add another pair of socks over the VBL sock.

I read through the previous posts but havent found the 40 below light energy overboots mentioned. I havent used them but I remember seeing them on Steve Evan's website (suluk46 dot com). From reading over some reviews I've decided on the following for my set up:

-Liner sock
-Midweight Darn Tough Wool
-(shoe, in this case probably my brooks cascadia 7's)
-Light energy over boots

This seems pretty perfect to me, although the overboots are a bit pricey....

"I read through the previous posts but havent found the 40 below light energy overboots mentioned. I havent used them but I remember seeing them on Steve Evan's website (suluk46 dot com). From reading over some reviews I've decided on the following for my set up:

-Liner sock
-Midweight Darn Tough Wool
-(shoe, in this case probably my brooks cascadia 7's)
-Light energy over boots

This seems pretty perfect to me, although the overboots are a bit pricey...."

Yep, that's my system. Not Darn Tough but a midweight wool.Used with New Balance trailrunners. I'm very happy with it. Absolutely love the L.E. overboots.

Gortex trail running shoes are great for very cold conditions because they are warmer than normal trail shoes. But, you have to work around their tendency to trap moisture.

This is what works for me on six Arrowhead and Tuscobia winter ultras with temps from 30F to -30F.

1. coat your feet with anti-perspirant
2. change socks every 12 hours and reapply anti-perspirant
3. if you bivy at night, place a chemical heater in each shoe and plug the opening of the shoe with clothing. Shoes will be nice and warm in the morning.

For the Arrowhead, where conditions are likely to be below zero most of the time, I attach a felt overboot on the outside of the shoe. No chemical heaters are needed until the temps drop below -20F or else your feet burn up. Not too bad.