H HillsoundHillsound Trail Crampon Pro I Ice Cleat Traction System for Off Trail & Backcountry Hiking

These are an upgrade to my first pair of the PRO crampon. I have many years and miles on the first pair and they still work well, I just wanted to see what the latest enhancements add to the functionality. Both pair are equally easy to put on and take off on the trail, even in gloves. This encourages using them when you need them, and not when you don't.The new key-less feature to adjust length works well, though I never had an issue with the earlier version's adjustment as they fit my boots snugly without using the tool provided.I learned quickly with the first pair (the hard way) to wear gaiters with these, especially when I'll be descending steep terrain. The spikes are very sharp and if a spike snags in a loose fitting pair of snow pants, you can loose balance.I highly recommend the PRO version as the anti-balling feature works well and is a must on icy snow.The spikes on my first pair have not needed sharpening even though I've not been gentle with them. I expect the new pair to last a long time, plus I now have an extra pair as backup.

My son and I used these on a recent winter hike up from Joe Dodge Lodge to Tuckerman's Ravine headwall on Mt Washington (NH) in mixed snow & ice. They performed well on the flats and moderate slopes, as well as sheet water ice on rock and snow/ice mix. We wore Columbia Bugaboo Plus III XTM Omni-Heat boots with some sole flex and had no issues in 6hr hiking. The "Snow Stoppers" appear essential as the straps loosened readily - an added bother with clod fingers and probably worse if you lose one. Maybe some short zipties as emergency backup? The adjustment bolts also loosen even if tightened hard by hand - I'll try some Loctite Blue on them - that should work fine. A bit bulky with the plastic bails and straps but they are easy on/off. My Regulars fit size 11 boots well and his XLs fit size 14 boots, but barely.

I ordered these to address some issues I had with my MicroSpikes so as to tackle alpine hikes in winter and early spring in the Wasatch. These are very well made, seem solid and function as described. Unlike some other devices, they do not accumulate snow pack even in wet snow. Similarly I find that the spike system is more comprehensive and aggressive that my elastic traction devices. I am trying them on with different pairs of heavier duty hiking boots to see how they tackle the trails in various terrain. As another writer mentioned, I found the lack of a manual to be an annoyance, so I YouTubed an explanation of how to fit them properly ([...]). I find that I must adjust them to fit each pair of boots so that the fit is correct, otherwise there is some slippage while climbing, and it is important adjust their fit with the allen wrench with the toe section fully extended. Also, I am finding that my feet get rather sore and tired of the pressure of the crampons after about 3 hours of hiking, but that could be just me. They do best on trails covered with packed snow and ice and provide a mighty grip, but on bare ground with scree or rocks, they don't fare as well as other less aggressive traction devices, so you need to plan ahead and know your terrain. They are easy to take on and off, but do comprise some amount of bulk along with their carrying sack if you need to carry them. All in all, these are a nice non-technical crampons that do the job well over the right terrain.

When I bought these I had never worn crampons as I ad never winter hiked. I went to local hiking shop and this guy was trying to convince me to spend almost $200 on crampons. These have now made 4 of the high peaks in the ADK. No balling of snow and no traction issues in the higher ice areas. My companion had "microspikes" and he had some balling issues but also struggle in the higher elevations with steeper ice. His advantage was in lower elevations where rocks and trail were slippery from a light snow cover I had to go with slippery books because these were uncomfortable out of ice or packed snow areas. I may get a pair of microspikes to carry when I do this again.

These are probably deserving of much higher review but my gripe is deceptive guidance from Amazon (and to be fair, it says the same thing in the instruction manual from Hillsound): "Utilizing simple ratchet buckle bindings, these crampons can be fastened to most footwear effortlessly". My gripe is this: it also states in a completely different section of the manual that: "Only stiff soled, full shank hiking or mountaineering boots should be used with the Trail Crampon Pro. If the sole can bend easily it is possible for the metal base plate adjoining the bar to bend or break." I wish this would have been made crystal clear on Amazon website so I wouldn't have to return them. It's an important piece of information to omit. That said, many reviewers were talking about using them on shoes and for running, so it's all a bit misleading. They might hold up fine with flexible soles, but they might not... I waited a long time to receive these only to have to send them back. Huge disappointment.

I had been searching for some crampons for a backpacking trip I was taking, but I didn't want to go out and buy some expensive crampon boots.I put these crampons on my Trail Runners, I adjusted them, and they worked great! They didn't tear up my shoes.

This is the perfect upgrade from microspikes. I've used full crampons but got tired of switching back and forth to microspikes. I can hike with these and only switch to snowshoes.Only problem I had was on long descent they bothered the top of my feet where the straps meet.

I've used these a couple of times nowon short hikes. Took them for their maiden trip onto the Adirondack high peaks. They performed flawlessly. They stuck like glue to the sheer ice flows and stopped the backwrenching sliding with every step on snow pack.I'm somewhat concerned how the riviting and slide will perform on the long term. However so far so good. They were significantly less expensive then other crampons, and have performed flawlessly so far.