Get Outdoors - Women: Crampons

Crampons can be divided into five categories according to the type of terrain they are designed for: waterfall ice; general mountaineering; technical alpine ice; trekking/hiking; and ski mountaineering.

It?s hard to get one pair of crampons that perform acceptably in multiple situations, so a candid assessment of what you are likely to be doing is key. Bear in mind, however, that a good general mountaineering crampon will do a better job on waterfall ice than a waterfall ice crampon will do in the mountains! This is because of the great tendency of waterfall crampons to "ball up" when walking on snow, creating a platform of snow on the bottom of the crampon that destroys all traction and balance. Balled up crampons are dangerous and a pain in the butt, as you find yourself continually whacking your crampons with your ice axe.

For women, it may be desirable to avoid crampons that have a wide spread between the front points. Climbers with small feet are able to be precise in their foot placements. If the front points are too far off to the side, it is harder to be precise. The smaller the boot, the more pronounced the difference. Similarly, the length of the crampon teeth can make a difference. The longer the teeth, the further your foot is from the ice, snow or rock surface relative to your size and weight. With a small boot, this distance can make a difference in how stable your foot placements feel, especially when you are on rock. While shorter teeth will help with precision and reduce fatigue slightly, they may also wear out faster.

Crampons for Waterfall Ice

Good crampons for waterfall ice climbing are usually among the heaviest. They have a front bail and heel lever. They typically have vertically oriented front points, which shatter the ice less and provide better purchase on hard ice. (However, a beefy, rigid crampon with horizontal points works pretty well on waterfall ice, too.) The crampon frame is vertically oriented for rigidity and support to the boot sole. Some models have interchangeable mono- and dual- front points. Mono points are useful for mixed climbing and on good, clean, hard ice. They tend to feel a little less stable until you get used to them, but allow more freedom of body position. Interchangeable points give you both options.

General Mountaineering Crampons

General mountaineering crampons have horizontally oriented front points to hold better on snow and the soft, sun-eroded surface ice of glaciers. They have variable types of straps or systems to attach them to a wide variety of boots.

Look for a horizontal (flat) frame orientation to prevent balling-up on snow. (Some manufacturers make customized anti-bottes (anti-balling up devices) to fit their crampons, which are a good investment.) Buy the lightest weight crampon that you can for the degree of technical difficulty you will undertake. If you want to use your crampons with a boot that doesn?t have a groove in the toe for a front bail, look for a good attachment system that has a strap on the toe combined with a heel lever in the back. If your boots don?t have much shelf in the back or are really flexible, you may need a strap attachment in the back as well.

Technical Alpine Crampons

These crampons are a subset of general mountaineering crampons, but they have some slight differences to improve technical performance on more difficult ice or mixed climbing. Typical characteristics of technical alpine crampons include slightly heavier weight, second points that are more raked forward to help with ice limbing (but can be a hindrance on rock), and longer points. Some of these crampons are rigid, unlike general mountaineering crampons. They usually have a front bail attachment system since it is assumed that they will be used with technical boots.

Hiking/Trekking Crampons

The main purpose of these crampons is to provide security on the odd snow or ice section during an otherwise hiking or scrambling route. They are made to fit the lighter more flexible shoes and boots that would be appropriate on such routes. Because the need for crampons is incidental, you can get away with a much lighter weight, less technical crampon, and the weight of the crampon becomes much more important compared to other features. Crampons in this category can be very good even for major glaciated climbs like Rainier or Mont Blanc, where there is a lot of snow and ice but little technical difficulty.

Typical features of a hiking crampon include strapping and attachment systems that fit a variety of boots, light weight (sometimes achieved by having less than 12 points), shorter points, and a flat, non-rigid frame. These crampons are quite specialized, but if you contemplate a lot of off-trail travel on non-technical ground where snow and ice have to be crossed, the light weight of these crampons is worth a great deal.

Ski Mountaineering Crampons

Designed to be used on ski tours that take in sections of terrain where steep or hard snow makes skiing impractical, these crampons must be lightweight. The crampons are used only occasionally, and should not contribute much weight to your overall load. The best models are made of aluminum. The front bale must be sized to fit standard DIN toes on ski and ski mountaineering boots. These again are quite specialized, but if you are an occasional non-technical crampon user they are ideal.