I was thinking about purchasing the Arc Teryx Alpha SL pant. I noticed the zippered leg opening was not a full side zip, but only from a little below the knee down. My question is whether when wearing light to medium weight hiking boots you can take the pants on or off without removing your boots?

I can pull size 10.5 to 11 running shoes through with ease. My boots take a bit of finesse and time, but it can be done.

I just bought these pants after reading the review on here. The answer is yes- I tried putting these on & taking them off with sneakers on. Then (just to make sure I covered every base for other readers here) I did it again with sandals, and again with my heavy-duty hiking boots. Result- I had no issues putting on & removing the Large size pants over my size 11 heavy leather boots. I am 6' tall, 180 lbs, with a 30" inseam, and 35" waist, and these pants fit me beautifully. My only complaint with the pants so far is the lack of pockets. This is offset though by the fact that these pants roll up to the size of a burrito, and only weigh 9 ounces.

I don't believe you would be able to. The zipper does come up to just below the knee and it is pretty narrow from there up to the crotch. I don't think that you would want to run a wet boot through there. I wear what are technically trail running shoes and I don't think I could put my foot through without damaging the pants (the paclite is pretty tough but I imagine you could tear it pretty easily with a shoe). It seems that the main advantage of the zipper is for venting.