Ready for Duty in Alaska (Lrg)

By Shamarcus Ranked #614 - Backcountry Snowboarding December 29, 2008

Took them out Christmas week to snowshoe Winner Creek trail in Girdwood, AK. This is a five mile round trip hike to the gorge and back. We did both on trail and off trail hiking. The snow shoes provided excellent traction on icy grades. Flotation suffers slightly due to the shoes being relatively narrow. Keep in mind that I am six feet plus and with my pack on I'm weighing in at about 215 pounds. I didn't hike anything steep enough that required me to use the ascent bar yet. I wouldn't trade them for another style unless I was doing all deep powder where I expect significant air pockets in the terrain. In my opinion, I don't think anything will help with air pockets. The other or standard style of snowshoes did have better flotation, but my wife was more prone to sliding down little hills where I step down the sides. The bindings are huge and I believe they can accommodate snowboard boots if I tried. My rank of 4 out of 5 is due to the compromise in flotation and the straps can be a little cumbersome to hook in. I would recommend these if you are expecting to traverse varying terrain.

View Details: MSR Lightning Ascent Snowshoe - Men's

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