Snowshoeing

Hi everyone!

Well, after Christmas, we are all geared up to play in our new home - the land of the ice and snow.....UTAH. I got some snowshoes for my hubby (MSR's) for Christmas, and my sister gave me REI gift money for Christmas to put towards snowshoes. YAY! Anyhow, just got mine yesterday....Went with the Tubbs Sojourn (Yeah, the MSR's are WAY nice, but I just felt there was no way I needed to spend more than twice the money.) I had been reading this thread a little bit and I was concerned about crampon quality, but we won't be doing any hardcore back-country stuff. And thankfully there was a guy there who really seemed to know what he was talking about and said that if we're planning on doing 3-5 days of snowshoeing a week then it's worth the extra money, but otherwise these would serve me well. SO....I hope I made the right choice. Next weekend we are going to try our hand at it. We will have company in from out of town who have never snowshoed either. Our choices of terrain are: groomed trails at the Olympic cross-country skiing venue (which we would have to pay for. We hear there nice, but PAYING just to WALK somewhere? We're not sure about that), romping around the hills around our house that are mostly snowed over mountain bike trails, or heading into American Fork Canyon for some hiking trials (which would be ungroomed, but we've hiked some of those in the summer so we know the area a little.) There's a fair amount of elevation increase on those. My husband will have our three year old daughter in the hiking backpack. I made sure I got the snowshoes with really good crampons and traction for him to avoid worrying about slippage. Advice on where to start for first timers? And do you typically wear your snowpants when snowshoeing? I will be wearing my Merrell Winterlude 6 boots, but do not have gators yet. Would snow pants help a little more with keeping dry or will they be too hot? Hope these aren't silly questions. Thanks for any tips!

Since you have a child, it makes sense to go on flatter terrain..certainly any trail amongst snow-draped trees would be a magic like thing for a child (and it still is for this adult :)). Also you would be protected from alot of wind whipping around vs. a huge open flat field.

I don't wear snowpants when we've snowshoed in the mountains here in British Columbia. I just wear water repellant pants that I use for cycling over long underwear and tights. But gaiters are very helpful to keep you dry when kicking up the snow from the upswing of snowshoes at the back of your feet as you walk..in particularily powdery deep snow. I've noticed being a shorter person in deep snow, for some reason, the snow just swings higher behind me... For adult, if you know how you would dress for xcountry skiing, that would be an helpful guide plus gaiters for snowshoeing could be useful starting point.

Sounds like any child at that age would benefit from at least snowpants...wouldn't want to stop him from making a snow angel lying down in the snow, before/after snowshoeing. :)

This would be in temperatures that we've done at 10 degrees F below freezing as the lowest we've done, in the coastal and interior mountains here.

We have snowshoed in some quieter areas...going into Revelstoke National Park in the Rockies...is ...very quiet...hardly anyone there between Christmas and New Years. So one should have some warm layers if something should happen..which can in mountain areas with sudden weather changes and one is out for a 15 kms. snowshoeing up the mountainsides in that park.

But everyone is different here.

Went for my second snow shoe of the season today at Flag Hill conservation area in Boxborough/Stow. We weren't the first out on the trail, because there were ski tracks, but definitely the second. There was about 5-6 inches of powder that felt a lot deeper for some reason. We had a surprise at the beginning; a new trail was cut that went up the side of the hill at the beginning and then met back with the original trail about 1/2 of a mile up. So a good warm up because after just a little bit of flat then you start up the hill, which is about a 350 foot climb in about a mile or less before you loop around and come back down. I love snow shoeing in fresh snow! When we got to the bottom of the hill, we continued just a bit on the flat trail and then turned around. My guess is we did about 3 miles, maybe a little bit more. We were out for about an hour. Did see the x country skier who made the tracks; she was flying on terrain that is definitely not groomed...
Then we headed for the coffee place to have mocha lattes.

Hi Robyn!
We went snowshoeing today too!
DH got to use his new snowshoes for the very first time, and the first time we've ever gone shoeing together. :p We went on a snowshoe hike with a small group from the Land Conservancy here, on protected land. There may be photos up later this week from them, but I did take a couple of cute pix this morning in our backyard while DH was trying out the shoes.
The second picture was when he pretended to be Frankenstein. :D
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3393/...3629f5bd78.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3323/...ed376267af.jpg

Excellent pictures, Lisa! I didn't take any yesterday. On the way home from the coffee place, my tooth started hurting. It went away, but now it's feeling weird again. I am going to try and ignore this, since I am going to get my butt out of the door and go x country skiing this morning. I have an appointment for a cleaning later this week anyway, so it will wait until then.
The weather looks brutal for the rest of the week. A high of 10 F on Friday :eek:, the night I have to go into Boston for theatre.

Up til this past week I had shoed only 5 times. Terrain wasn't anything to write home about..Too little snow in spots d/t the wind, and kinda icy in spots. This past week we got snow almost everyday and it actually stayed put. I spent the past 4 days off doing nothing but shoeing. My hamstring muscles are a little tender and tight but it was so refreshing to be outside....did I mention average temp was 5 degrees????

Ok ShellyJ- I am impressed. That's a lot of cold shoeing to do!! :eek: Snowshoeing is an incredible leg workout.

They put up a few photos of our modest shoe trek on conservancy land last week, here are a few of our little group:

DH had the idea of bringing 2 folding chairs so we could put our shoes on in style- brilliant! :D....
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3317/...77399062e5.jpg


DH and me on the right here:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3359/...23253c9da9.jpg


DH alone in the middle, and me behind him, apparently causing a traffic jam(!):
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3259/...c3568654d9.jpg


Me waving, in back of DH:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3392/...ac6c0811cf.jpg

The littlest shoe-er (who did a somewhat shortened hike):
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3405/...956e78b9b8.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3439/...804eb3343a.jpg


Into the woods:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3310/...d181794d69.jpg

Bleeker St-- nice pictures!!
Actually, dressed properly with correct clothing, the temp. wasn't bad. There wasn't harsh winds when I went so it really made it enjoyable. You probably had comparible temps too didn't you???

I can't believe you brought folding chairs! You mean you haven't perfected the art of sliding your heavy hiking boot into the shoe and doing whatever straps you have with heavily gloved hands, when it's 10 degrees out, while standing on one foot?

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Originally Posted by shellyj

You probably had comparible temps too didn't you???

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I think it was 20 when we went out, and no wind. Big difference from what you did!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Crankin

I can't believe you brought folding chairs! You mean you haven't perfected the art of sliding your heavy hiking boot into the shoe and doing whatever straps you have with heavily gloved hands, when it's 10 degrees out, while standing on one foot?

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Yeah we have, but we were lazy. :D

I snowshoed in the Berkshires yesterday. Nasty drive in the morning, but overall a very nice day for a hike. I did about 7 miles on the Appalachian Trail, up and down hills, checking out ice storm damage. Sawed through some smaller limbs and saplings blocking the trail, walked over or through others. A giant birch tree fell just in front of one of our shelters, narrowly avoiding smashing the picnic table. Lots of work for our maintainers in the spring. I hiked alone in 20F temps with about 4-6" of fresh snow.

I didn't get out yesterday right after the snow fell, because I was working, so today I snowshoed for 1.5 hours on local conservation land. I was breaking trail through the fresh snow for a fair amount of that time so it was a good workout. I will probably go again tomorrow and do the trails I didn't do today.

I've shoed the past 2 days. Monday went with a friend from work whom I met at her Dad's house and all 3 of us went out. Cherie and I have the aluminum packed trail kinda shoes, her dad has the old fashioned wooden kind. They are almost tall as him, all webbing, lightweight, no crampons. I think I will stick to what I have even if I sink in the open snow. Her Dad was getting tangled in all the brush or any debris but did great in the open field areas.
Tues. Cherie met me at my parents house, my Dad made trails for us to x-c ski. His version of flat trails are not my version. Way too many hills and I value my life-I'm not that good at x-c skiing. So after a couple of miles of skiing, we put our shoes on and finished all the hills. I hadn't been on my parents property in over 20 years, and it was fun, and beautiful, and quite the workout. And, Mom had coffee and fresh warm oatmeal cookies waiting for us..so much for weightloss but oh so good...;)

My husband is having a groin type injury he thinks might be related to our snowshoe jaunts. We've backed off somewhat. He doesn't want to be injured for bike season, but I have a real itch to do more snowshoeing, and don't know anyone else nearby who does it. We don't always get enough snow,so I want to be able to take advantage of what we are getting so far this winter. I think we will try poles for him and a lighter pair of shoes(he was wearing boots) and maybe a new pair of snowshoes if we can afford it. He is using a pair that was origionally meant for carrying a pack.
Does anyone else have any suggestions? We might also try less hilly trails.

Becca-
Yes a friend of mine shoed in very big old fashioned heavy wooden shoes with me last year, and she wound up in pain and told me she hurt terribly for days afterwards. She also wore tall Sorrel boots that did not bend at the ankle well.

Perhaps your husband needs smaller shoes that are lightweight aluminum and also waterproof winter boots that don't go up the leg, and then wear warm wool ski knee socks and gaiters to keep the snow out. Good mobility helps keep you from straining muscles. Definitely avoid the hills for now if you go with him.

The Tubbs website allows you to calculate what size shoe you need based on your total weight with gear. Handy.

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Originally Posted by beccaB

My husband is having a groin type injury he thinks might be related to our snowshoe jaunts. We've backed off somewhat. He doesn't want to be injured for bike season, but I have a real itch to do more snowshoeing, and don't know anyone else nearby who does it. We don't always get enough snow,so I want to be able to take advantage of what we are getting so far this winter. I think we will try poles for him and a lighter pair of shoes(he was wearing boots) and maybe a new pair of snowshoes if we can afford it. He is using a pair that was origionally meant for carrying a pack.
Does anyone else have any suggestions? We might also try less hilly trails.

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Definitely use poles. They make a big difference with how much energy you use to pull your leg up. I don't know if that makes sense, but it works.

If you feel that his boots weigh too much, try a pair of sneakers with overboots (like NEOS) over them. It really cuts down on the weight and you can wear any shoes that you like, so you get a good fit. If you're wearing shoes that don't fit well your foot will slide around, messing up your stride.

Are you doing a lot of traversing hillsides? If you are, your snowshoes may be sliding sideways. This will make you use muscles differently than you're used to and will contribute to groin strains. I would suggest some snowshoes with an aggressive heel crampon (as well as the toe crampon) or some shoes with a serrated side, like the MSR brand. MSRs tend to be a bit heavy, and a bit pricey, but they are the best at controlling sideslip.

If you want a lighter snowshoe there are a bunch out there. I can personally recommend the Northern Lites. Once again, they're a bit pricier than a lot of the others but they are unbelievably light yet very sturdy. I bought a pair a few years ago when I was thinking about snowshoe racing. (Luckily, my 20 year old Tubbs had just given up the ghost and had to be replaced anyway.)


Just for grins, some handy websites:
MSR's website: http://www.msrgear.com/snowshoes/flat.asp
Northern Lites website: http://www.northernlites.com/
NEOS website: http://www.overshoe.com/recreational/

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Originally Posted by roadie gal

Definitely use poles. They make a big difference with how much energy you use to pull your leg up. I don't know if that makes sense, but it works.

Are you doing a lot of traversing hillsides? If you are, your snowshoes may be sliding sideways. This will make you use muscles differently than you're used to and will contribute to groin strains. I would suggest some snowshoes with an aggressive heel crampon (as well as the toe crampon) or some shoes with a serrated side, like the MSR brand. MSRs tend to be a bit heavy, and a bit pricey, but they are the best at controlling sideslip.

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In hilly areas, definitely use poles and appropriate crampons.

And avoid traversing when you can. Snowshoe perpendicular to the fall line; ski parallel to it. Traversing in snowshoes on steep slopes can be hazardous to your health. With poles you can glissade on the tail of your shoes down some pretty steep slopes.

I don't think our hills are very steep. It's rolling glacial formed hills, not mountains. I also wondered about what's better-new un-walked on snow, or someone's previously walked trail. I think we started out aggressively without working up to a goal, but like I said, we don't always get the right kind of snow. We're going to REI, and I think maybe he could try a waterproof trail running type shoe with gaiters. He never buys anything for himself, so I'm not sure if I can talk him into a new pair of snowshoes or not.

We have done a lot of snowshoeing here in the Mountians with a lot of elevation gain. I think a smaller lightweight shoe would do wonders. Both DH and myself have logged a lot of miles without pain or injury. I think we have Atlas shoes which I really liked. As for which trails, Depending upon how much snow you have sometimes it is easier to make your own tracks as the ones that have already been made may be uneven and cause you to have to always adjust your gait pattern. Kind of hard for me to explain. We don't use our shoes too much anymore, we prefer to ski where we go...granted sometimes it is survival skiing:eek: We have gone on some pretty tight trails..My skills have definately improved.:D

We also have Atlas shoes, very light weight, with just a crampon on the toe. I have gone up and down some pretty steep grades with them and never had any problems. I wear winter hiking shoes from REI. They are fairly heavy shoes, mid cut, but the snow shoes feel sturdy with them. I would never wear my snow shoes with my trail runners; they are just not as sturdy (plus, mine are not waterproof).
I like snow shoeing better when the snow is deep and I am breaking trail. I have worn them other times when it might have been better to be wearing Yak Tracks and it wasn't fun, let alone necessary to be wearing them.
On the other hand, give me a nice groomed trail when I x country ski!

Thankyou everyone for the advice. As is usual for us, we forged ahead with this endeavor before finding out anything we needed to know, and then made adjustments along the way. I agree with the fact that trail runners might not have the stability.Maybe he could benefit from a Merrell type light hiking shoe. When I bought him the snowshoes he has, the sales person sold him a pair that was meant for carrying a pack. That's probably too much weight, but I would not have known better at that time. I don't know if he will let me talk him into another pair of snowshoes. He has a total aversion on spending money on himself. Unless it's to buy endangered farm equipment, to keep it from ending up at the scrapyard! He's a one-man histirical preservation society!

I went snow shoeing this afternoon, right from the trails off of my street. It was 38 and gorgeous and it was hard for me not to ride. But, I made my decision this morning when I was driving around town and saw just how much snow is still in the road shoulders, along with ice and sand. I thought that in 8 weeks I can ride all of the time, but the season for snow sports around here will be at an end.

Hey!
At first I thought that was my photo from yesterday :o
http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/b...y/DSC_0025.jpg

I went more for details, though.

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/b...y/DSC_0015.jpg

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/b...y/DSC_0040.jpgYou know that's some cold water.

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/b...y/DSC_0014.jpg

Yes, our scenery looks quite similar.
Last night I had to go do the refreshments after services at my synagogue. I was talking to a woman who I haven't seen for years, who lives at the end of the trail, on the other side of the pasture picture. I told her I had moved close to where she lives a couple of years ago and I had snow shoed up near her house that afternoon. She said, "You hiked alone.. I would be too afraid. It's four miles? I never knew that went up by your street!"
Oy. We are talking about suburbia here. I doubt there are any perverts running around the woods waiting for me. They would have to be in good shape to get up the 25% grade to get back to my house.

My dad made trails for us to adventure on since my last post. When I got to my parent's, dad had already left so mom said, your father made new trails for you but be on the lookout, he buried the snowmobile somewheres. She had no idea where or the details. I found the spot, he nose dived it into a ditch, had to walk almost a mile back home, get the farm tractor and pull himself out (he's 83) then towed the snowmobile home. I saw him later that day, thanked him for the new trails and mentioned where "someone" got buried..he chuckled. Then asked if I went on this one trail, which I hadn't. Apparently, he was making a trail thru a swampy area, thought he was going thru the marsh grass, when he ran up and over a beaver dam, almost tipping the snowmobile over and throwing him off...I hope he doesn't hurt himself at my expense..he said he had fun making the trails though...

Today we snow shoed at Northfield Mountain, where we x country skied last week.
The conditions didn't look optimum for skiing, although, in retrospect, I think it would have been OK.
All I can say is that this was the hardest snow shoe I have done. We took the most challenging route to the summit, about 1100 feet elevation. There is a lookout tower overlooking a reservoir, with picnic tables, so we ate there. There were 2 places with steep ledges, coming after long steeper climbs. I just lose my endurance on these long climbs, but I made it. After awhile, we thought we were at the summit, but we weren't. It did flatten out though for the last half a mile.
It was about 39 and sunny and I had my jacket and ear covering off, although they went back on at lunch and stayed on, going down. We took another trail back, which while downhill, was not as steep. It was fun, but very challenging. I now have a huge blister on my left heel :mad:. We stopped for coffee and pie on the way back at the same antique place/restaurant as last week. This time we saw the guy that used to be my son's coach when he was racing. Weird, because it's in the middle of nowhere.
When we get more snow, I want to go back and ski to the summit. This place has green trails that go up and down to the top! I'll probably try the blue ones, though.
Lisa, if you read this, this would be a place we could meet. I don't think it would be too long of a drive for you. It's about 10 miles west of the exit we used to get off of Rt. 2 for U Mass. The place is 2 miles off of Rt. 2.