First let me say I am a big booster of Hillsound's main competition, the Kahtoola Microspikes. In fact, my glowing review of the Microspikes was, for months, the first review you saw on Kahtoola's web site. I have worn out (and repaired them repeatedly with vise, hammer and pliers) my first pair of Microspikes. I now have a second pair of Kahtoolas to replace my old, very worn ones. Those spikes on the first set now resemble the teeth of a 80-year old Eskimo woman.
I thought this was a Hillsound review? It is... If you enjoy gnarly, snowy and icy trails the Hillsounds are your ticket. I gotta say they pretty much blow away the Katoolas on EXTREME terrain. If you trail run on the average woods road or such, the Microspikes may be better. They are a bit lighter and the spikes are not as long. BUT if you descend slippery and icy stuff the Hillsounds stick like Velco vs. the bit sketchy Microspikes. How so? Well, the dirty little secret of the Kahtoola's is that they have an Achilles' Heel. Where? In the heel. The heel area only has two spikes and they are inboard and more toward the instep than the edge of your heel. There is a review here on Amazon that actually calls the Microspikes "dangerous" due to this design flaw. IF Kahtoola were to add two more spikes toward the rear they would be near perfect, but still not as good as the Hillsound's. Why so? The spikes are longer-by quite a bit-than the Microspikes. I am sold on the Hillsounds and they will be on my trail running shoes (all I wear in winter even here in central PA) most often. They pretty much kick ass. I had about as much confidence in the Hillsounds on descent as I did with my Petzl mountaineering crampons (no not on trail running shoes) that I used on my local gnarly hill in one rather icy event last winter.
What about Yaktrax? Absolute POS. Awful. A joke. They are for the suburbanites on an icy sidewalk once a year. For that they are fine. Cheap too. As an recent example, though, in a group of 12 hikers two of our group had the rubber ribs break on their Yaktraxs. Don't step on rocks in Yaktaxs. Both Yaktrax owners ordered Kahtoolas the next day none of us had Hillsounds at that point. On another hike one fellow had both his Yaktrax fall off and never to be found.
I did check out the "extreme Yaktrax". They get poor reviews due to a design flaw the front and rear spike assemblies are not connected like Hillsounds. You would think Yaktrax would have figured it out. No wonder most sites have them on sale.
I don't know about Hillsounds durability yet. Nor their snow anti-balling properties. The snow I used them in was not of the consistency to cause that problem. The two metal plates that contain the spikes look solid, but may ball up. If so, I will first spray them with PAM and see how that works.
Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>
I live in Kodiak Alaska and have spent most of my hunting and hiking strugging up slidy muddy inclines and sliding down on my butt. These trail crampons are like adding AWD to your feet. Outstanding for use when the ground is wet, great for contoring along mountainsides. Now winter is upon us these crampons are really proving there worth in the snow and ice. These turn what was an arduous climb or descent into a stroll. Everyone I have been out on the hills with recently has now ordered a pair. If you live in an area that gets heavy rain or snow and ice and you like to hike or hunt, then these are a must have. Probably the best $60 I have spent on outdoor gear. They weight next to nothing and are easy to throw in your pack. Very highly recomended.
Best Deals on Hillsound Trail Crampon Traction Device
I had to give these a try based on the reviews and the potential benefit of the more defined spikes. My test involved climbing a 11K mountain, with Ice, moderate snow and hip deep snow, climbing 40-50 degree pitches at times. Temps range from 40s to 20s on top. Under certain circumstances these provide better traction than Micro-spikes, however I ran into two issues: (1) climbing uphill on mixed terrain, the front end had a tendency to shift off the front toe. It was just less forgiving than Micro-Spikes. (2) balling is much more pronounced than with Micro Spikes. That was only an issue, of course, in sticky snow. I did like these, and liked the assurance of the strap in that I didn't worry that I would loose them, however, I ended up putting on my crampons in conditions that didn't warrant anything that substantial because of the balling. Next week end I'll probably go back to my Micro Spikes, but in drier (less sticky) conditions, I'll use these. Maybe I'll figure a way of adding Anti-balling skids like the Pros have...
Honest reviews on Hillsound Trail Crampon Traction Device
These trail cleats are perfect for spring hiking. They extend the season by making it safe to walk those icy spring trails after rain or melting. Easy to get on and take off with a fairly aggressive base. Once they are on you don't even feel them under your boots. We have done some ice hikes in banff with these and the performed flawlessly! Good price and really good quality product. Great buy.
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Hillsound Trail Crampon Traction Device
These are very good for wearing over large boots/wading boots. Great for hiking through snow to get to the river. The spikes are quite long so it's hard to walk comfortably on solid ground but in icy snow or muddy conditions these are great, especially for steep terrain.
