[pct-l] Crampons YES; YakTrax NO

[Steven.Setzer at Colorado.EDU (Steve Setzer)]

Just to clarify, I'm just looking for something that will allow me to
train for the PCT in the mountains around Boulder.  These are designated
trails and are not even close to a mountaineering adventure. However, they
can be fairly steep and rugged/rocky.  The problem is that we get snow,
the trails get packed down and turn to ice, and the steep, shaded
portions of the trail become too slippery to negotiate. There is no danger
of falling off a cliff, but it does hurt to fall down and you could get a
non-fatal injury.  Trust me when I say one would look very silly in full
crampons, mountaineering boots, and an ice axe.  Plus the crampon points
would grind against rock, get stuck in cracks, and cause you to trip.
People do climb these mountains with no traction, but I see them slip and
fall on their butts every 20 feet.

So if I come up with something that's lightweight and works well, it may
be worth taking for the PCT.  It sounds like no thru-hikers bother with
crampons but it also sounds like there are some fairly sketchy and
slippery places where it would help to have some extra traction in
addition to the ice axe.  My guess is that its not worth the bother for a
thru hiker starting at the usual time but if it weighs 2 oz then why not?

In-step crampons don't work very well because they're uncomfortable to
walk in. I checked out the skyrunner.com/screwshoe site and that's what I
did to my shoes.  Hopefully they work well!

Steve



On Mon, 16 Feb 2004, Bob Bankhead wrote:

 > If you don't need crampons, don't carry them. If you might need them,
 carry the real thing, and an ice axe because once you do fall, your
 crampons can become your worst enemy if they touch the slope and bite in
 while you're sliding. You might get by going cheap - it depends on your
 skill level, luck, and the conditions you meet. If you're feeling lucky,
 put screws in your shoes or use in-step crampons - REI sells a tiny
 4-pointer that hurt my feet when I walked in them and left me feeling
 very unsteady rocking in them. Your results may vary.