[pct-l] machine screw traction use

[Len Glassner]

On 12/20/08, David Thibault <dthibaul07 at gmail.com> wrote:
> I'm intrigued by the idea of using machine screws instead of instep crampons
> on my hiking shoes but I have a question about using these on a thru
> hike.  If any thru hiker has used these maybe they could answer a few
> questions.  Are they screwed in and out for each patch of ice or are they
> just left in for days at a time during snow covered sections.If  they are
> left in, do they cause any discomfort or issues with hiking on non-snow
> sections?  If they aren't left in how much time is required putting them in
> and out?  I'm assuming that if they are left in and you are not walking on
> snow they wear pretty fast?  How long would they last?  Are the conditions
> on the PCT during typical NOBO thru hiking season such that these could
> sometimes be deemed an inappropriate substitute for crampons?

I put screws in my shoes this past year, with Steel-Eye's patient and
thoughtful email assistance.   (I had purchased Camp 6-point crampons,
but upon testing them before hiking, at Idyllwild, I found I couldn't
get them to stay on my shoes no matter how tightly attached) I bought
multiple pairs of shoes (Montrail Hardrock) ahead of time.  I drove
screws into two pair and then backed them out. I used a regular nut
driver.  I found I needed a fair amount of leverage to force them in,
and it took a while.  I was glad I did this ahead of time.

I sent screws and a nut driver to myself at Warner Springs and figured
on putting them in at roughly Paradise Cafe. They would have been in
place for the trip up to Idyllwild. (It would be far too
time-consuming to install/uninstall screws for each icy patch.)  A
fire closed the trail at this point, so I ended up not putting them in
until I left Idyllwild, heading for Fuller Ridge. Putting the screws
into prescrewed holes took maybe a 30 minutes. (The tread on the
Hardrock held up very very well, so there was no problem with not
having thick enough tread for reinstallation.) There was a very small
amount of iced-over snow past  Saddle Junction and the screws helped
in those little bits, I think.  But timing was such that by the time I
started over Fuller Ridge it was late enough in the day that the snow
had softened up, so the screws didn't help.

I didn't remove the screws until past Baden-Powell so they were in for
couple of hundred miles or so.  (Again, the timing was such going up
B-P that I didn't walk on much snow until the sun had softened it.)
None fell out.  I did wear them into towns and was concerned that I
would be leaving scratches in business' flooring, so I did slip my
shoes off sometimes.  But it seemed to me that they weren't as hard on
surfaces as I expected. I didn't find that they made my feet hurt
(anymore than they already did) when walking on hard non-trail
surfaces. When the time came to remove them, the screw heads were
intact enough to back them out with the driver.

I replaced my shoes at Kennedy Meadows in prep for the Sierra, and
reinstalled screws. For the next couple of hundred miles I walked on
plenty of snow but again it was usually soft. They may have been
helpful for some walking over streams on wet logs.  I had three or
four memorable experiences, standing on large, flat but slightly
tilted rocks, trying to figure out where the trail was, only to have
my feet slide out from under me.  Painful but thankfully no permanent
damage. I wondered whether the screws were acting as skates, or
whether the screws were preventing even more slips.  Dunno.

I can't remember right now where I removed the screws this time.  I
did have them in long enough for one to poke through right in the
upper middle.  The rocky Sierra was much tougher on the screws and by
the time I got this problem the head on the offender was too far gone
to grip with the driver. Ah, but the thru-hiker is ever resourceful,
and eventually it dawned on me that I could force the screw all the
way through the show with little damage, problem solved.

Based on these experiences, I'm not that inclined to use screws again.

Comparing my very short testing experience with crampons to the
screws, screws have nowhere near the bite that crampons have.  But an
important insight I got from the presentation on ice ax/crampons at
the KO was that crampons will let you walk yourself into places you
don't have the resources to handle.  Which is not to say that screws
are safer than crampons.  Just keep in mind your experience level, an
if it isn't there, extreme caution is warranted
crampons/screws/whatever. IMO, of course.

Here is a link that I got from Steel-Eye.

www.skyrunner.com/screwshoe.htm