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Please use mountaineering boots on mt. Hood


christophbenells

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Right, crampons. I forgot that most folks don't know how to put crampons on and wouldn't see the potential mis-match coming before their trip. Still, if they are that clueless, I sure wouldn't trust their self arrest or crampon skills to be up to the Old Chute.

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Doesn't matter what footwear you wear. High heels, sandals, 8,000m boots, hiking boots... if you lack the ability to keep yourself safe in the alpine, you're already fucked.

 

I often wear hiking boots with contact strap crampons this time of year. Fast is light, and light is right. Or something like that.

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By far the most common cause of failure in the groups I've taken up Rainier: blisters from rented boots.

 

Pretty much any well fitting boot + crampons will work on a volcano as long as its warm and dry enough for the task.

 

I'm not sure what 'mountaineering' boots are, but full shank boots, which do perform better on steeper snow, also are the most likely to run a noob's feet through the meat grinder. 3/4 shank or less 'mountaineering' boots won't perform all that differently from a pair of adequately insulated 'hiking' boots when paired with crampons on a volcano.

 

Heading up a big climb in boots you've never worn before is pretty much a classic noob recipe for the agony of....

 

If a pair of boots hurts, they don't fit you.

 

Edited by tvashtarkatena
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Thanks for the PSA about how some of us are having fun the wrong way. It never occured to me that my choice of personal footwear was any of your business.

 

And ...everyone knows that ski boots are the best footwear for volcanoes.

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By far the most common cause of failure in the groups I've taken up Rainier: blisters from rented boots.

 

Pretty much any well fitting boot + crampons will work on a volcano as long as its warm and dry enough for the task.

...

If a pair of boots hurts, they don't fit you.

 

All true. Plastics are overkill for volcanos in the summer and that's usually what rentals are.

 

My first pair of climbing boots were Scarpa Mantas. Leather, not too expensive, and a bit on the heavy side. I never got blisters from them, and there was zero break-in required. None of the boots I've bought since then had any break-in come to think of it. But I do take a long time in the store trying on 2-3 sizes in 2-3 makes and narrowing down from there.

 

 

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bunch of nonsense

 

Relax, Christoph - they're just taking the piss out of ya'.

 

Seriously, proper footwear hasn't been the single leading cause of accidents/incidences in the Cascades, in my experience. It has been a contributing cause, but usually improper footwear is indicative of poor judgement in other facets as well (i.e., full-length-glacial-travel-technique-while-climbing-the-Pearly-Gates).

 

The guide services tend to go with plastic boots because they have a longer use-life, and are appropriate in wider range of conditions. Especially stormier ones, where local climbers may choose to turn around and wait for a nicer summit day.

 

That said, the only plastic boots I own today are my ski boots.

Edited by chris
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