>>2811648
You can avoid it entirely by staying on trail and avoiding the bases of trees. I've certainly postholed plenty of times while on-trail but never fallen into a spruce trap. From what I understand, they're far more common a problem for off-piste and grove skiers than hikers as long as the hikers aren't lost and off trail.

I've actually even postholed in the middle of the summer, stepping off the trail to pee and sunk a leg up to my thigh punching through some moss and rotten wood into a hollow that I can only assume was where a stump or log rotted out.