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shivas.wisdom
בּ



Registered: 02/19/09
Posts: 13,428
Loc: Turtle Island
Last seen: 10 hours, 32 minutes
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Snowshoeing 2
#27078751 - 12/08/20 12:56 PM (3 years, 1 month ago) |
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After years of trudging through snowdrifts, I finally picked myself up a pair of snowshoes and it's been incredible so far. I've just been walking into the backcountry behind my house a little further each day - reaching places that have been pretty much impossible for me to reach for years. It's that time of year up north where the sun doesn't rise high enough to make it over the surrounding hills for a few months - but I'm pretty sure if I push myself high enough, I'll find some good vantage points looking over the river valley where I'll be able to do some sunbathing.
It's also great because since most of my walking is over virgin snowpack, it's super easy to find animal tracks. I spent a few hours on Sunday following some wolf tracks that were following moose tracks. I'm no professional tracker, but in the fresh snow it's pretty easy to see the individual tracks, the scat, and even where the animals would pause to lie down.
I go out just me and my little yukon bear dog (~17kg) - my preferred way of experiencing wilderness. She's quickly learned that sometimes it's easier to follow my tracks than make her own through deep drifts, and it's pretty hilarious watching her hop from footprint to footprints immediately after I take the next step.
The shoes:

The backcountry:

Anyone else here go snowshoeing? If you live somewhere that gets enough snow, I highly recommend you strap on a pair and go exploring.
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feevers



Registered: 12/28/10
Posts: 8,546
Loc:
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I love snowshoeing. I do most of my hiking in NH where most of the trails I do are basically piles of rocks... when the snow covers them they turn into pleasant strolls with snowshoes on. One downhill scramble from a summit that took me 3 hours in the summer I did in 1 hour with snowshoes on, a lot easier on the knees and joints too. The downside is it’s incredibly easy to get lost and wander off trail if the snow’s fresh and there is no tracks/path to follow, but bushwhacking to the top can be its own experience.
Looks like you have some oldschool snowshoes, they look like they’d be really good in deep powder. I just have some old LL bean ones, not ideal for serious uphill but I can’t justify spending more when they do get the job done.
I’m still waiting to find a deal on a nice -20 sleeping bag so I can do some winter backpacking, I have all the other gear. There are some old logging railroad grades in the White Mountain wilderness that get pretty grown in and hard to access in warmer weather, really want to spend a couple days out there exploring. I found an old stove and some logging camp artifacts from the 1800’s last time I went out that way.
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psi
TOAST N' JAM


Registered: 09/05/99
Posts: 31,456
Loc: 613
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Re: Snowshoeing [Re: feevers]
#27079273 - 12/08/20 06:52 PM (3 years, 1 month ago) |
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I like snowshoeing but I don't own a pair of snowshoes any more. The traditional style ones are a really cool piece of bush engineering.
What I used to like to do was make a packed trail in deep snow with the snowshoes, then come back after on cross country skis.
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pslyke
fantasmagoric



Registered: 06/12/10
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Re: Snowshoeing [Re: psi]
#27079382 - 12/08/20 07:49 PM (3 years, 1 month ago) |
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Yep, I enjoy snowshoeing. Great to get out in the winter and get some sunshine on your face. I use the modern, aluminum frame style of snowshoe. They are quite easy to walk in, but I don't think they have quite as much 'floatation' as those older style shoes.
Feevers-- One trick I have learned for winter camping is to take those hot packets/pouches that are activated when you take them out of the plastic bag. I'll throw 2 or three of those in my sleeping bag half an hour before I turn in for the evening and they are still giving off plenty of heat the following morning. Makes for a really comfortable sleep and seems to keep moisture down as well.
-------------------- "What appears impenetrable to us does exist, manifesting itself in the deepest wisdom and the most radiant beauty" Einstein "The conservatives of 70 years ago would be outraged at what has come to pass. It embodies everything they took up arms for to defeat"Asante
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shivas.wisdom
בּ



Registered: 02/19/09
Posts: 13,428
Loc: Turtle Island
Last seen: 10 hours, 32 minutes
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Re: Snowshoeing [Re: pslyke]
#27087267 - 12/13/20 01:23 PM (3 years, 1 month ago) |
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Yeah I would get those heat-packs kicked down to me pretty frequently while hitching and busking around southern Canada in winter. When I was really living luxuriously, I would put one in each boot, glove, and pants pocket! I haven't tried any winter camping this far up north but I'm considering building a quinzee shelter and overnighting. My snowshows are 120cm long (~4ft) and rated up to 135kg (~300lbs) - the idea is that I can load up a full backpack and still make my way through deep powder. I'm just letting my hips and knees adjust to the different stride for now - there's a lot of winter left so I don't feel particularly rushed.
I considered getting cross-country skis, as well as some different traditional snowshoe patterns (objibwe and alaskan), but I think I'll be spending more time climbing ridges than following rivers - especially since I'm hoping to catch some elusive winter rays - so not just yet. Nowadays you're more likely to see them hanging as wall decorations, but I've seen old snowshoes over 2m long (~7ft) that would have been used when running alongside dogsleds before most people switched to running snowmobiles.
A few folks still use snowshoes up here though - mostly hunters or birdwatchers who want to be silent. Apparently plastic and aluminum sounds a lot more unnatural than wood and rawhide when walking on packed snow. My main selling point is the repairability of traditional snowshoes compared to modern ones - even if that comes with the trade-off of more maintenance.
It's worth it though, because these things can break trail like nobodies business. I might only travel at 2km/hr, but considering I'm pushing uphill through metre deep drifts - that's pretty good. Between the permafrost and seasonal imbalance, a lot of our bush is fairly low-density - but it looks deceptively accessible. That permafrost prevents soil drainage, and you end up with super spongey mosquito-filled muskeg everywhere. I've always understood that the frozen months are the easiest time to explore the northern latitudes, but it's pretty great to finally get to experience it first hand.
Was it one of those fancy castiron woodstoves or just an improvised burning barrel? Old artifacts is something I expect to stumble on too. My backyard is the klondike goldfields - there's definitely a bunch of abandoned and overgrown stuff left over from the early days of the goldrush. That, and dead animals. I want some moose vertebrae to decorate my cabin with.
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ShroomedOcean


Registered: 09/14/20
Posts: 446
Loc: Hbg
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snowboarding in tahoe
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morrowasted
Worldwide Stepper


Registered: 10/30/09
Posts: 31,377
Loc: House of Mirrors
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we have no snow where I live and I read this as snows - hoeing
I thought it was gonna be a thread about prostitutes freezing their butts off wearing skimpy clothing in snowy weather
a little disappointed
as you were
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