Snowshoes??

[loanshark]

Thanks for posting this. What a riot!

 

[sierra]

I can't believe people are suggesting Sherpas lol. Don't get me wrong, I still have mine and they are forever part of my soul, but jeesh guy's, time to move on. I loathe MSR Lightning ascents, in fact, I have a pair in great shape anyone can buy for 100 bucks. I recommend Tubbs Alp flex, imo, the best snowshoes in the backcountry. There are cheaper models of varying brands out there and for walks like you took, they would work fine, but you get what you pay for. If snowshoeing is something you feel like you will do a decent amount of and you have the budget, buy quality.

 

[NH2112]

I’m 260lb, 290-300 with my winter pack, and even with the tails found MSR Lightning Ascents good only on semi-packed trails (snowmobile trails or high-traffic hiking trails.) They’re really made for snow not quite packed enough for crampons, in powder cut the recommended weights in half.
The snowshoes I like best for the backcountry are Louis Garneau Blizzard III 1036, they have very aggressive steel heel and toe crampons that grab equally well on crust, rock, and snow you’ve packed with a few stomps, and float well on softer stuff. They do have heel lifters. They’re also more rounded at the front and back, for a little extra surface area compared to snowshoes with more angular plans (Tubbs, GV, etc.) They have a BOA binding which tends to be fairly polarizing, I love them for comfort, speed, and security. Their reliability is well established on cycling shoes, ski & snowboard boots, hiking boots & shoes, etc. They have a lifetime warranty and BOA will send you a repair kit free of charge if you ask. It’s a 5-minute job.

For the times when the Blizzards aren't enough I have a pair of GV Wide Trail 12x42. These have moderately aggressive aluminum crampons (think Tubbs day hikers) and no heel lifters. I’ve bushwhacked up pretty steep terrain with them but it was some work, and my poles really took a lot of weight. The bindings are ratchets with straps long enough for truly enormous boots, and toe stops to keep everything in place on downhills. They are the absolute fastest bindings I’ve seen, taking maybe 10 seconds to put on and fewer to take off. Rather than a flexible pivot like on every other brand of tube-framed snowshoe that I’m aware of, these have a rigid rod about 16-17mm in diameter that the binding pivots on. The snowshoes are IMMENSELY strong. The catch? They’re heavy - mine weigh about 7.5lb/pair.

Neither brand is likely available at your local sporting goods store, unless you live in Québec. Pic is my Wide Trails flanked by Garneau Blizzard II 1036s, Blizzard IIIs are identical except for colors as far as I can tell.

 

[Sgt. Pepper]

Thanks for all the input! Really appreciate it. This site never lets me down. A buddy of mine dropped off his pair of MSR accents and a pair of Tubbs that he swears by. Gonna prance around the yard and hope to take them in the woods by the house later this weekend. Hoping to buy a pair ASAP.

Also I was unaware that I couldn’t hike on Livermore Rd?? There was a sign that asked hikers to stay off ski trails while hiking. Which we did. A bunch of skiers passed us and where more then happy to chat about the day. I assumed we were ok staying off to the side of the road and out of their way. If we can’t be on there in the winter I totally apologize and will not be out that way again

 

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

Thanks for all the input! Really appreciate it. This site never lets me down. A buddy of mine dropped off his pair of MSR accents and a pair of Tubbs that he swears by. Gonna prance around the yard and hope to take them in the woods by the house later this weekend. Hoping to buy a pair ASAP.

Also I was unaware that I couldn’t hike on Livermore Rd?? There was a sign that asked hikers to stay off ski trails while hiking. Which we did. A bunch of skiers passed us and where more then happy to chat about the day. I assumed we were ok staying off to the side of the road and out of their way. If we can’t be on there in the winter I totally apologize and will not be out that way again

WV Ski Association cannot keep anyone off Livermore and Tripoli Roads as those are public ways, but they do request no bare booting or mircospiking on either the set tracks on both sides or the middle part between the tracks where xc skaters do not want the relatively smooth surface full of divots and post holes. For Greeley Ponds Trail it is common courtesy not to post hole the tracks set by xc skiers, as there is plenty of room on the sides to snowshoe or post hole. All of the above is even more important after new soft snowfalls like we finally have been getting the past couple of weeks. If you were not post-holing, you were probably fine.

Best wishes testing out snowshoes; you cannot go wrong with much of the advice in this thread.

 

[rocket21]

Also I was unaware that I couldn’t hike on Livermore Rd?? There was a sign that asked hikers to stay off ski trails while hiking. Which we did. A bunch of skiers passed us and where more then happy to chat about the day. I assumed we were ok staying off to the side of the road and out of their way. If we can’t be on there in the winter I totally apologize and will not be out that way again

I haven't been through there in a few months, but last I knew there was a sign on Livermore near the Greeley Ponds junction stating that skis or snowshoes are required on Livermore during winter. Fortunately, freshly groomed trails make for great snowshoeing!

 

[JoshandBaron]