Snowshoeing

[short cut sally]

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????

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Ok ShellyJ- I am impressed. That's a lot of cold shoeing to do!! 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! ....



DH and me on the right here:



DH alone in the middle, and me behind him, apparently causing a traffic jam(!):



Me waving, in back of DH:


The littlest shoe-er (who did a somewhat shortened hike):




Into the woods:

[short cut sally]

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???

[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?

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

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

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

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?

Yeah we have, but we were lazy.

[DebW]

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.

[Jolt]

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.

[short cut sally]

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...

[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.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

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.

[roadie gal]

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.

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/

[SadieKate]

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.

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.

[beccaB]

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.

[solobiker]

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 We have gone on some pretty tight trails..My skills have definately improved.

[Crankin]

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!