Category: Climbing Skins

Climbing skins for easy ascents on mountains of snow.

Review: G3 Escapist climbing skins

G3’s new Escapist climbing skins may be the climbing skins of choice from the 2020 season onward. There’s nothing revolutionary about these skins, just a solid mix of good components from the grip and glide of the plush, to the stickiness of the glue, but my fave ingredients are the tip and tail kits. Tip …

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Skeats — Strap-on ski crampons

Skeats™ are small crampons that connect to the bottom of your skis, over and in addition to a pair of climbing skins. They’re attached via a bungee strap around your skis, with the cone shaped teeth pointing down and puncturing the surface of hard snow. The video I saw on Facebook was undeniable proof they …

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Review: BD Ultralite Mo-mix Skins

Like any decent pair of climbing skins, Black Diamond’s Glidelite Ultralite climbing skins, the mohair mix variety, is a product guaranteed to get you to the goods and plaster your face with at least a smile, if not a giggle of delight for the face shots. As with most climbing skins, the grip and glide …

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Review: 5-point ‘pons, Tech Crampon 250

  Years ago the thought entered my head while kicking steps up a couloir that I really didn’t need a full set of crampons to boot up it, but some teeth at the toe would be nice. No doubt the same thought has entered your head if you’ve ever cramponed up a steep couloir. Alpinists …

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Review: Fischer ProFoil climbing skins

Time for an update on Fischer’s new climbing skin technology, their ProFoil climbing skins. Unlike traditional skins that are modeled after the fur of seals, these are essentially a full length sheet of plastic scales like that found on waxless cross-country skis. Like climbing skins, they are attached or removed to the base of your …

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Thule’s One-Minute Chains revisited

The problem with chains is they’re a pain in the ass to put on and take off. For common chains, by the time you cave and admit you need them, putting them on usually requires crawling on your belly in slushy snow while the wind howls. It’s a miserable, time consuming process. There are alternatives. …

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G3 Expands Climbing Skin Connections

  When it comes to climbing skins it’s important to be mentally prepared to split hairs when it comes to differences. Which is another way to say that if you’re new to the sport of backcountry skiing, don’t worry about who makes the best climbing skins, just get a pair. You need to get some …

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