The temperature dipped to -4 degrees Fahrenheit last night and an inch of snow covered the ground this morning. That was in Colorado Springs, but in the mountains above town, including 14,115-foot Pikes Peak, our local skyscraper, a lot more snow fell yesterday.
If you're going to hike or climb in the mountains in winter, it's a good idea to carry a set of traction aids or spikes to attach to the bottoms of your boots on icy trails. The ice cleats are especially useful in places with regular freeze-thaw cycles, with snow turning to ice after melting. They'll keep you from slip sliding away or falling on your rump and they're ideal for trekking to an ice climb, hiking up snow-covered trails, and when wearing crampons would be overkill. The cleats are also great for city sidewalks in places like Minneapolis, Bismark, and Edmonton.
These traction devices, made by a variety of outdoor companies including Yaktrax, Kathoola, and Icetrekkers, make an ideal Christmas gift. If you don't have a pair or are looking for a gift for the climber in your life, then put it on the Santa list--after all, Mr. Claus wears them on those slick rooftops!
Buy traction spikes for boots and sneakers:
Kahtoola Lots of ice cleats for every boot. I recommend the Microspikes as the best ice traction system.
Yaktrax Choose from a wide variety of traction cleats with good prices.
STABIlicers Ice cleats for shoes and boots to keep you stable.
Photograph above: Susan Paul uses ice cleats to climb Colorado mountains in winter. Photograph courtesy Doug Hatfield.
Comments
A great present idea for your hiking/treking friend or of course, yourself. You cant beat a good bit of traction on ice and snow!
Mount Everest The British Story
I am a huge fan of the Spiky Ice Cleats http://www.spiky.com You can barely notice that your wearing them and the tungston spikes grip the ice like a snow tire. I am an avid winter runner and I swear by them.
Spikys! Yeap all the way. They were the original and they still are an amazing product. My mom used to get them for our whole family for Christmas. You have to make sure to get the originals. I really don’t mind spending a few bucks more to get a product thats going to give me a full season at least.
Those things are good, they cleats are made of Widia Steal which is stronger then tungsten. Thats why they last so long compared to other similar products.