[at-l] Re: winter feet

[krk@speakeasy.org (Kenneth Knight)]

First the obligitory warning: it's best to do winter hiking with a buddy or=
 two especially when you are new to it. Winter hiking, even dayhikes, is a =
wholly different kind of beast from warmer weather hiking.

With that out of the way let's move on a bit. You say you want to get invol=
ved with snowshoeing and that is wonderful. Snowshoeing is a great thing to=
 do. You have a wealth of choices in snowshoes and my initial advice is tha=
t you try renting a pair from a store. You'll want to find a pair that is l=
arge enough to support your weight AND the weight of any gear you're carryi=
ng.  Manufacturers will generaly supply a recommended maximum load value fo=
r their shoes but you may want to take that with a grain of salt. The size =
of the shoe varies depending on the design of the shoe and the type of mate=
rials used to build the shoe. I personally like the NOrthern Lite <www.nort=
hernlites.com> Quick Silver 30 shoe. Northern Lites makes what are probably=
 the lightest snowshoes on the market. Light but strong. Don't discount the=
 weight of the snowshoes a lighter shoe will be easier to manage thana  hea=
vier one and that's especially valuable if you are wandering a long twistin=
g trail. However, shoes by Redfeather, Atlas, and Tubbs to name just a few =
are all good shoes.

You may or may not need crampons. Generally you won't. Unless you plan to w=
ander steep rocky mountain trails you really won't need them. Your snowshoe=
s will have enough grip. If you are going places that are rocky and steep c=
hances are you won't be using snowshoes anyway and then may well need cramp=
ons. But, that's a different story that I will leave for someone else.

As to shoes for snowshoes you actually don't need much. You want to keep yo=
ur feet warm and protected. I've floated back and forth on what I use but l=
ately I've worn NEOS Explorer (think that's the one, could be the Adventure=
)  overshoes <www.overshoe.com> as an outer shoe. Inside the NEOS I wear a =
sneaker like my New Balance 804. This combination is probably a bit heavier=
 than wearing a good all-leather hiking boot (which I've done before with h=
igh gaiters) but I prefer it especially when doing multi-day trips since I =
don't have to ever worry about my shoes freezing.

It's important to keep warm, but not sweaty, when out in the winter. When y=
ou're moving this isn't that hard. I wear a good baselayer such as Smartwoo=
l longjohn top, a soft shell jacket such as my Ibex Icefall, and if need be=
 a shell like a rain jacket to ward off heavy snow. A warm hat, decent glov=
es, and a neck warmer (I don't like balaclavs) complete the top layers. My =
legs usually just get a pair of pants like the MEC Ferrata <www.mec.ca> pan=
ts or Ibex Guide.  I've never found waterproof pants necessary but if I did=
 I'd probalby just slip on a pair of silnylon rain chaps. Sock are nice Sma=
rtwool socks. When I'm inactive I will toss on a down jacket and mittens to=
 keep myself warm.

This is all assuming fairly warm winter temperatures. Temeprature certainly=
 above 0*F, probably above 10*F during the day. As the temperatures drop I'=
ll make changes to what I'm wearin. The biggest change would be giving seri=
ous thought to using vapor barrier materials. But, this enters into a whole=
 other area of clothing that you probalby won't have to deal with.

  ** Ken **

On 11/16/02 at 1:37 PM, buchanan@gtcinternet.com (Susan Buchanan) wrote:

>What do I need??  I'd love to stay heading out all winter, and know that m=
y
>regular hiking boots aren't quite warm enough.  I'd like to do some
>snowshoeing (never done it before), and realize that I also need to be
>carrying crampons of some sort.

**  Kenneth Knight    Web Design, IT Consultant, Software Engineer  **
**       krk@speakeasy.org        http://www.speakeasy.org/~krk     **
**        Ultralight backpacker   http://www.speakeasy.org/~krk     **