In preparation for the upcoming backcountry snowboarding season, I took the new snowshoes out for a shakedown cruise today. It’s been a while since I humped around the woods on a pair of snowshoes; my last pair of snowshoes was made from hardwood and rawhide, these are “western” style snowshoes; aluminum frame with neoprene and nylon decking with a hinged binding and powder coated cleats.
These are Redfeather Hike 36 snowshoes, made in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. 36″ long, they are made to hold 220 lbs. I don’t weigh 220 lbs., but I figure with a pack full of camera and mountaineering gear as well as a snowboard, water and food, I should get close to that for a day in the backcountry.
The snow conditions were a good test for the new snowshoes; about a foot of snow with a frozen crust on top. Without showshoes, you would break through the crust into the soft snow, walking would be tough. The snowshoe’s cleats came in handy on icy uphills and descents. You could see animal tracks, mostly deer, that were breaking the crust and sinking into the soft snow.
The trails that are awesome singletrack mountain bike trails are now snow covered paths through the woods, the bikes are packed away and the snowshoes and snowboards come out.
Looks like more snow in the forecast so we may be snowboarding soon.