Posted by Shawn
on 8/3/2004, 2:09 pm, in reply to "Alternatives to Crampons"
64.136.26.226
I realize this response is coming too late your posted trip, but my advice would be to look into a lightweight ice axe. On NOLS trips we routinely encounter June and July snowpack so we train with and use ice axes. However, we almost never use crampons in the Rockies in late Spring/early Summer. There are ice axe conversions on the market now which will actually attach to your trekking pole or hiking staff and which will actually be lighter than crampons. With proper training, these may prove more useful than crampons. There are also very lightweight axes available which will provide you with a very secure handhold with each step on steep snowpack.
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