Tom Rankin
Well-known member
Passing along from a friend:
My wife and I are hoping to attempt Mount Washington via the Jewell Trail in Mid-March if conditions permit.
I would like to throw out the following question that I anticipate will have a wide spectrum of responses:
I recently purchased a pair of Lowa Mountain Expert leather insulated mountaineering boots. Needless to say, they are rather clunky to walk in and nowhere near as comfortable as my insulated all purpose winter hiking boots (Hi-Tech, 200 Grams insulation).
My all purpose winter boots do not feel supportive enough for my Grivel G-10 crampons due to the long points (they do however feel very secure on the mountaineering boots). My all pupose winter boots do, however work great with my Hillsound Crampon Pros (shorter points but not to be confused with Hillsound Crampon that is similar to Microspikes - the Crampon Pro is similar to the Kahtoola KTS that is popular in the Catskills).
My question is given that my winter boots and Crampon Pros are sooooooooo comfortable, are they adequate for hiking in the Northern Presidentials or should I put up with the weight and clunkiness of mountaineering boots and G-10 combo? I definitely want to hike comfortably without sacrificing safety.
Note that the winter boot/Hillsound Crampon Pro combo has worked like a charm in the Catskills when Microspikes are not enough, but I understand that the Northern Presidentials is entirely different.
Thanks in advance for the feedback.
My wife and I are hoping to attempt Mount Washington via the Jewell Trail in Mid-March if conditions permit.
I would like to throw out the following question that I anticipate will have a wide spectrum of responses:
I recently purchased a pair of Lowa Mountain Expert leather insulated mountaineering boots. Needless to say, they are rather clunky to walk in and nowhere near as comfortable as my insulated all purpose winter hiking boots (Hi-Tech, 200 Grams insulation).
My all purpose winter boots do not feel supportive enough for my Grivel G-10 crampons due to the long points (they do however feel very secure on the mountaineering boots). My all pupose winter boots do, however work great with my Hillsound Crampon Pros (shorter points but not to be confused with Hillsound Crampon that is similar to Microspikes - the Crampon Pro is similar to the Kahtoola KTS that is popular in the Catskills).
My question is given that my winter boots and Crampon Pros are sooooooooo comfortable, are they adequate for hiking in the Northern Presidentials or should I put up with the weight and clunkiness of mountaineering boots and G-10 combo? I definitely want to hike comfortably without sacrificing safety.
Note that the winter boot/Hillsound Crampon Pro combo has worked like a charm in the Catskills when Microspikes are not enough, but I understand that the Northern Presidentials is entirely different.
Thanks in advance for the feedback.