>>2823800>how do you advance in snow of this kind? what kkind of shoe's gear? >Microspikes
Good for mixed ice and rocks, ie. early or late in the year. It's possible to resharpen the spikes but many hikers instead opt to own two pairs, a fresh set that they use for snow hiking and a old set that they use in shoulder season, where there's more exposed rocks that wear down the spikes. The most concerning failure point is the rubber straps, which can fail catastrophically and completely without warning and a slight nick in the rubber can cause them to snap. I'd treat microspikes as a "wear component" and replace them every few seasons, depending on how much use they get.
>Boot Spikes
I would group some traction devices into an intermediate between microspikes and proper crampons, like Hillsound Trail Crampons Pro's or Kahtoola K-10's. These have fabric straps that are more durable and much more aggressive spikes.
>Snowshoes
These are, in my opinion essential for winter hiking and optional for proper mountaineering. Modern snowshoes are extremely lightweight and can attach to most any footwear. When buying snowshoes I'd look for ones that have a heel lifter (pic related), it makes such a world of difference when going uphill it feels like walking on flat ground. Trail snowshoes are often much larger than hiking-focused snowshoes, and provide more float and the weight rating are more suggestions than a hardset rule.
>Crampons
I've never worn crampons so I can't really speak much from personal experience, but from what I understand they're used on hard ice where you need genuinely sharp and hardened steel points to get traction and front points for extremely steep ascents.
>Ice Axes
I don't have any experience with ice axes.
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