Need Alpine AT Boot Recommendation

[georgeisrael]

Can a randonee Alpine AT boot be used effectively for hiking and climbing? If so any recommedations?

[JayB]

Hey George:

 

This is a perennial topic, and there has been a fair amount of discussion devoted to this topic here in the past that you should be able to dig up using the search function.

 

The general consensus is that the better an AT Boot climbs, the worse it will ski, and vice versa.

 

If you have Silveretta bindings with wire bails up front you can use mountaineering boots to cover moderate terrain, but trying to ski down anything resembling a real slope while carrying a pack with only climbing boots on is a nightmare (really) as you have very little lateral support and no rear support whatsoever, which is what will really kill you. You can improve the performance of this setup a bit with a couple of modifications like inserts for the back of your boots, and by attaching screws with eye bolts to the front of your skis and attaching cord/runner material to them that runs behing your knees for more protection against falling over backwards, but I gave up on skiing in mountaineering boots long before I resorted to any of these mods because I am not a masochist.

 

Amongst the various boots out there, there are apparently some that climb better than others, and some other folks that peruse the site could probably give you the scoop on those. I just carry my climbing boots now if am going to do any real climbing unless the approach is low angle.

[russ]

Depends on what you have in mind for your hiking and climbing... Trail hiking is some AT boots is not bad at all. However, if you doing much talus hopping I find them to be pretty awkward since you can't flex the ankle.

 

For climbing, if you mean volcano snow climbing, they work just fine. But if rock climbing, it's the same with talus hopping, not being able to flex the ankle makes them pretty poor. I'm not much of an ice climber, but have done one route in AT boots and they worked just fine - but it was like A-II ice.

[Clivus]

Dynafit TLT 4 is the best. I have tried the Lowa Structura and the Scarpa Laser. The dynafits are softer plastic, they hike as well as my Asolo double boots. They don't offer the ski performance of other boots, but for climbing they are hard to beat. Not to mention they use a binding system that shaves pounds of weight from your gear.

[Wauhaukau_Trau]

I must agree w/ Clivus Dynafit TLT 4 is the lightest weight dynafit boot that still performs well skiing, but keep in mind that pretty much any AT boot (including the Dynafit TLT 4) will impede your french step, so you will expend more energy in moderate terrain, since you don't have the ankle flex found in a regular Mtnrng Boot. Dynafit makes some shorter AT boots that are great for climbing but they look like they would make the skiing really tough.

[thelawgoddess]

i still can't get used to my at boots. (scarpa magic.) well, aside from the fact that they're a bit too big (they don't make them any smaller) ... they feel like they're not so great for skiing and REALLY suck for walking. but that's probably because i'm used to downhill ski boots for skiing and think my t1's walk fabulously. i don't think i could ever use the magic's for technical climbing. but anyway, i know a number of guys that use lowa's for technical stuff and love them.

[couloir_commander]

I have old Dynafit TL2's (pre tourlite tech era) and they climb great on snow. warm and comfy too. If you are a good skier they ski very nicely as well.

[Lowell_Skoog]

... trying to ski down anything resembling a real slope while carrying a pack with only climbing boots on is a nightmare (really) as you have very little lateral support and no rear support whatsoever, which is what will really kill you...

 

Here's a shot of Dan Nordstrom (L) and Jens Kieler ® skiing the Forbidden Glacier in 1987. They're wearing mountaineering boots on day 4 of a five-day trip.

 

 

The biggest problem most people have with skiing in mountaineering boots is mismatched expectations. They want to power the skis and recover from mistakes like a downhill skier. The expectations gap has gotten wider in the past ten years. In the 1980s, most of the people I knew who skied on alpine touring gear did it in mountaineering boots. They adjusted their techniques and their attitudes to work with the gear. It can be done, and you can get to some nice country that way.

 

That said, just about everybody I know has switched to modern AT boots and is not looking back. I still ski in mountaineering boots occasionally when I want more tourability than my AT boots offer. On the other hand, I climbed Forbidden Peak in my AT boots last year, so it's possible to climb in them, though not ideal.

 

[marylou]

i still can't get used to my at boots. (scarpa magic.) well, aside from the fact that they're a bit too big (they don't make them any smaller) ... they feel like they're not so great for skiing and REALLY suck for walking.

 

Could it be a fit issue? I ended up with the Mens version of that boot (Laser) and they ski great and walk/skin very comfortably too. I like them WAY more than any alpine boots I've ever skied in.

[thelawgoddess]

to some extent it definitely is a fit issue (nobody makes AT boots in a true mondo 22!!!) but the magic are not as beefy as the laser. the laser even comes with a stiffer tongue for skiing, and i don't understand why they don't offer that with the magic. regardless, i really think they walk rather poorly (it almost feels like i'm wearing downhill boots) but i haven't walked in a lot of AT boots so i'm not exactly sure how they compare with their brethren.

[snoboy]

Hey, tlg, have you tried the Flexon tongue mod? maybe that would help... :shrug:

[thelawgoddess]

no, i haven't, but i know someone that uses the raichle tongue in his AT boots for the ski and he's recommended that to me. his would be a bit big for my boot, though, but probably modifiable. i haven't looked into whether they make smaller ones and where to get ... but maybe that's my next step.

 

anybody happen to know if these are available anywhere in/near seattle? or know of an online source? maybe i should call my local bootfitters?