Jon Tainton Offline Upload & Sell: Off
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Thanks for all the replies, they are much appreciated for a snowshoe noob.
@howatthunter - there’s not many stockists of snowshoes in the UK and MSR seem to be one known brand that is carried. This year I’ve also looked in outdoor shops in Norway and the French Alps and whilst skiing and snow boarding gear is well represented, snowshoes were much less so.
@Roland W - it may be my poor description of snow type/condition, but UK snow is very rarely ‘powder’, we don’t get sustained periods of high pressure and polar air seen on continents. UK snow events are typically confined to high ground with a heavy snow fall, partial thaw, then freeze for a crust/granular snow then rain/sleet and more snow on top, as low pressure systems skirt the European winter high. I’ve never traversed deep powder, but knee deep ‘wet’ stuff is a truly miserable experience.
Just to clarify the snow shoes are for breaking trail across virgin snow fields, most UK winter walkers stick to known paths/tracks to popular hill summits, my interest is in photographing from lesser peaks/ quieter areas.
@DtEW - how well do the add-on tails work?
@rockant - I’d like to rent, but AFAIK there’s nowhere in the UK that provides a rental service. I can’t imagine postholing in snow shoes is worse than crampon holes.
It’s the wisdom of the FM General Gear forum that I’m relying on to narrow down the size and model and at the moment an MSR lightning ascent/explore 25" model is the contender, with the caveat that it may be undersized for deep powder snow, but OK for the shallower and 'wetter stuff' prevalent in UK hills
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