Snow Shoes

I was hoping to get a pair of snow shoes this winter. Last winter saw too much snow to go trekking into a family cottage, looking for grouse on some family land, or even looking for rabbit along fence rows in fields.

I have only used a set once before ... I think they were Fabers.

I have line on a set from TSC ...make is ... I think Yanes.

I might get to use them 3 or 5 times each winter and likely not much more than 1 to 3 hours at a time.



Anyone do much snow shoeing?

Any insight as to what to look for?

Entropy

I bought a set of Yanes lat year and used them alot. Miles of trekking and never an issue.

Discussed this a bit last week in off-topic... I picked up a pair last winter in wood/raw hide.... 14x48 or something like it. Those made all the difference in the very deep snow we got last year here.

http://www.oodmag.com/community/show...rning-shopping

FYI... take their weight ratings with a grain of salt... You may find you sink in a lot more than you expect. I upgraded last season to a set of larger traditional wooden snowshoes to gain more floatation (I think a 14x48 is what I got)... I'm 175lbs without gear on, and needed those for the waist-deep snow we had last year. The GF (who weighs about 140lbs) uses a set of mens aluminum/plastic snowshoes rated for somewhere around 225+lbs... and she sinks in quite a bit.

Take a look at something a little more "local"... http://www.snowshoesalesandrepairs.com/
Snowshoe Sales & Repairs in Timmins weaves wooden framed shoes w/ 400lb test monoline. I've never had the chance to use a pair, but from what I understand the monoline is nearly unbreakable and resists abrasion. Snow and ice don't really stick to it, so you can give them a bang to break off any buildup, no need to varnish the rawhide every season, and the monoline doesn't stretch when it gets wet. Wooden frames are sourced from Faber snowshoes (I believe). They offer some big snoeshoes at good prices.

16x30 bearpaw... rated to 350lbs on the Faber website (https://www.fabersnowshoes.com/snows...vy-duty-lacing). Basically the same price from Faber or SS&R. When I spoke with the lady at SS&R last year, she ships with Greyhound to keep costs down.

Just be careful with bigger snowshoes... if you step on a log or in a hole, you risk breaking them trying to carry your weight on the span of the snowshoe. I looked at a couple used pairs of snowshoes (big 60" units) this summer and both sets had one broken/patched snowshoe from spanning something. Same thing applies with the aluminum tubing... span across something and risk kinking the tube.

Get enough weight rating to carry you plus clothes plus gear.
Also take the boots you plan to wear with to the store and besure the harness will work with room to spare.

I bought a set of these..... I never owned a pair so can't compare but they are pretty good for the couple of times a year I use them...

http://www.sportsmansguide.com/produ...dings?a=771260

I always used rubber bindings cut from a heavy truck or tractor tube . Stretch over your boot with a tail at back. No frozen bindings. Used them trapping where you had them of and on a lot. Shape is a elongated triangle , with a hole cut to suit your boot. old243

I have a pair of Faber Mountain Masters in 10x36 size. I love them for hunting in winter. The biggest difference I find when stepping up into premium ones is the quality and effectiveness of the bindings. When you strap these suckers on they aren't come off unlesss you release them.
https://www.fabersnowshoes.com/snows...ountain-master

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Originally Posted by old243

I always used rubber bindings cut from a heavy truck or tractor tube . Stretch over your boot with a tail at back. No frozen bindings. Used them trapping where you had them of and on a lot. Shape is a elongated triangle , with a hole cut to suit your boot. old243

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Seen lots of those used. Nice thing is that it's easy to have a few spare binding in a pack with the rubber ones.
Of course tubes are not as easy to find now a days. At one time every tire shop or shade tree garage had torn ones around some where.

No size or style of snowshoe does everything. You need large snowshoes for deep fluffy snow. In areas that are wind blown, fields or lakes then the snow packs and smaller shoes will do you fine--depending on your weight.
I hate to admit it but newer snowshoes with nylon webbing that come with nylon bindings that snap shut are what I'm happiest with. I've grew up using the old lampwick, then to leather which is probably the poorest, then tried rubber inner tubes that I did not like either.

Its all in the bindings. The best bindings ive encountered were on a pair of shoes from LL Bean, of all places. I expected them to be some yuppy cheap things but theyve surprised me. Had them for about a decade, and Ive NEVER lost a shoe. Ive put a lot of mile on them at both work and play.

http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/84949...lker-snowshoes

Now, theyve changed the bindings slightly, but I'd hope they still are as good (presumably better?)

A friend showed me last year how to tie bindings with a piece of shoelace or rope. This is what I used all last winter on my snowshoes, as well as on a smaller pair that same friend gave me for my 5 yearold. The laces can freeze up if they get slushy. Occasionally a foot would pop out, but that just means you're twisting your foot too much. ;)

Attachment 27605Attachment 27606Attachment 27607Attachment 27608

When it comes to bindings, what you choose is just as important as the footwear you have. Large bulbous toed boots are a terrible thing to try to slip into some bindings.
But as this topic is about the actual shoe, the new nylon web w/harness work great as they are just about slush proof and stretch proof.

Check out GV Snowshoes. Best I have used. Used them for forestry bush work all winter. Really good bindings and very durable all round snowshoes.

Snowshoes seem to be a personal thing, not every style, design, matierl suits every person. I've tried a few, this will be the 4th winter on my Atlas 1235's

Incredibly light, excellent flotation (I'm a large guy, and with gear they still hold me well)

Bindings are excellent, and in -40 they still don't freeze up.

They are a big shoe, however, so they do require more energy to use, and a slower pace.

http://www.mec.ca/product/5033-675/a...235-snowshoes/

Mine are in red.

had some atlas a long time ago as well. like them first - until I pulled a rivet through and had nothing to fix them (it's a good idea to have cable ties). then I used MSR. fantastic in steep terrain and on hard packed snow, but completely useless in powder...
as other said, chances are you need more than one pair.
make sure you are comfortable with the binding. that means you need to know what shoes you will wear - and that is a topic on it's own.

we do our fair share of shoeing , they come in super handy when looking for cats and the powder gets almost impassable in regular sorrel type boots

Back a half-a-century or more ago, My Dad used to make our snowshoe bindings out of lamp-wick when we were checking our traplines and snares. Worked fine. We never had to use it as such, but he always said that in a worse-case scenario you always had something to start a fire with.

I own a pair of the GV Traditional Hurons and they're pretty nice for the price. I use the rubber bindings and they also work pretty well which makes taking them off and on very quick.

I figure for the amount of use you're going to get out of them every year, it might not be worth the investment into a top of the line pair. And also the amount of time they're going to be just hanging up, they'll look nicer on the wall for the rest of the year than the new modern aluminum/plastic ones.

I'd check out Kijiji first.

I googled, rubber snowshoe bindings, there is quite a lot of info about them and plans to make them. old243

I snow shoe a lot depending on the winter. Last year I stared around mid Dec and wore them everyday till Mar. I walk the dogs thru the hay fields 3-4 times a day so a good 5 miles every day...no tread mill in a stuffy gym for me :)

I have an old wood pair of Faber Bear Paws with original bindings....never a problem for the past 16 yrs.

My wife also walks with us when she's home. We're having a hard time finding her a good pair of binding she can tighten. This year I purchased a pair with BOA bindings. Something different, but they work well for her in the living room, yet to have any snow to test them. Hopefully they will do the trick.

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But we feel none is a game changer like the addition of the revolutionary BOA closure. Just pull the adjustment knob out to release the heel strap, slip in your boot and tighten the knob for an exceptional fit. Even better, you don't have to take your gloves off. Adapts to fit most types and sizes of winter boot.

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http://cdni.llbean.com/is/image/wim/...5514&id=ARj8P3


http://www.backcountryedge.com/tubbs...22-womens.aspx

When I started using snowshoes we could not afford the fancy metal ones so we just got the old traditional wood and rawhide in a couple of sizes, then we wore the biggest we had with us.
they were not magic carpets, but the second or third person in line had it easy, the one breaking trail not so much. For bindings we started with lamp wick, but found that if they froze up in warmer wetter weather then you had a hard job getting them untied. Inner tube bindings could be removed while you still had your mits on. We had a fancy leather binding break ONCE and it left us in a bind far from the truck. Then we started carrying spare gear to replace them as they broke. They never got replaced....
we once had an idiot on a skidoo drive over a tail and break it off, the other four sets have lasted since the seventies....even the broken one is still sorta useable in a pinch....

There's a beauty ser of bear paws on kijiji right now. I think the fella is in Timmins

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Originally Posted by Pat32rf

When I started using snowshoes we could not afford the fancy metal ones so we just got the old traditional wood and rawhide in a couple of sizes, then we wore the biggest we had with us.
they were not magic carpets, but the second or third person in line had it easy, the one breaking trail not so much. For bindings we started with lamp wick, but found that if they froze up in warmer wetter weather then you had a hard job getting them untied. Inner tube bindings could be removed while you still had your mits on. We had a fancy leather binding break ONCE and it left us in a bind far from the truck. Then we started carrying spare gear to replace them as they broke. They never got replaced....
we once had an idiot on a skidoo drive over a tail and break it off, the other four sets have lasted since the seventies....even the broken one is still sorta useable in a pinch....

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you don't need to untie the wick, just sling your foot into it

As said, take the weights ratings as being ON trail, not off.

I am 240lbs before wearing a pack/gear. I snowshoe in the woods, off trail, fresh snow.
I had a pair of the Tubbs from Can Tire rated for 225lbs + and sank up to my knees.
They worked fine otherwise.

Then got a pair of GV Wide Trails. WOW what a difference. Lots of flotation and easy to adjust bindings even with gloves on.
http://www.gvsnowshoes.com/en/snowsh.../wide-trail/22

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Originally Posted by Tony Mo

As said, take the weights ratings as being ON trail, not off.

I am 240lbs before wearing a pack/gear. I snowshoe in the woods, off trail, fresh snow.
I had a pair of the Tubbs from Can Tire rated for 225lbs + and sank up to my knees.
They worked fine otherwise.

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I was wondering how well these new small thin 'modern' shoes do with 'full figured' guys....physics dictate that they could not support a heavy load. I wouldn't think they'd work well breaking trail thru knee deep snow. Even my bear paws, probably close to double the width, sink substantially in new snow.

I have a pair of Gv 10/36 aerolites. Awesome. My son has a a pair of 9/30. The bindings make a difference. Worth the money!!

My wife and I have MSR snow shoes from MEC. We really like their grip on hills and that we can add tails on for deeper snow. The downside for hunting is the plastic is squeaky on snow where metal ones wouldn't be. I'm 230 #s. I can walk in deep loose snow (24" powder) with the tails on but they will want to go nose first into the snow. I need to intentionally put them down tail first in deep loose. The upside is the tails make them flexible for many weights. My 90 # wife, 280 # son and I all share the same snow shoes. With anything fixed length we couldn't. The straps are very easy to use in the cold. That's not the case with most.
HD

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Originally Posted by MikePal

I was wondering how well these new small thin 'modern' shoes do with 'full figured' guys....physics dictate that they could not support a heavy load. I wouldn't think they'd work well breaking trail thru knee deep snow. Even my bear paws, probably close to double the width, sink substantially in new snow.

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they are fantasic on packed snow and classy models are dangerous in steep or icy terrain. in powder they are a bit better than your regular shoes - next to useless. I got myself (200lbs) some 5 ft. ojibwa for this winter, because it's still a lot of effort with my 40" elongated bearpaws when I carry a pack.

Many are going the route of plastic like the GV with the heel lift option for backing up. I did myself. I'm just never on a trail.

I like the monofilament over the rawhide/leather/plastic but they're less convenient to get down south.

I have a cottage back in the bush and don't plow the 200 yard driveway in the winter. The whole family snowshoes in with our stuff. Of course I get to break trail and make multiple trips, pulling a sleigh. I am reminded that cardio is important.

Here is a photo of my 5yr old daughter. This was only her second time on snowshoes. The other kids were ahead of her. I figured I would have to help her and she would be falling a lot. She put on her backpack with all her clothes for the weekend and off she went up the driveway like she was a pro. Never fell once. Canadian girl!!!


http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...420835f501.jpg

Here are some photos I took last year when I was out in the bush at the cottage. This was fresh knee deep snow. These are my GV Wide Trails.


http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...tageFeb139.jpg


http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...tageFeb138.jpg

i have a pair of tubbs ,they are at least 10 yrs old and use them a coupletimes a weeek in the winter no complaints

Do they make snow shoes for a fat man like me?

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Originally Posted by topher

Do they make snow shoes for a fat man like me?

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Snowmobile......