Reddit reviews Kahtoola MICROspikes Footwear Traction - Black Medium - 2016/17

clothing: BD Alpine Start softshell, patagonia r1 hoody, puffy vest, long tights, capris, light-weight long sleeve base layer, wool socks, hat, mittens, fleece headband.

food: S-caps, gummies, bobo bars, larabars.

gear: nathan pack, kahtoola microspikes, trail shoes, sunglasses

misc: headlamp, sunscreen, toilet paper, plastic bags, lip balm.


what I take definitely varies by distance and conditions, especially in the winter. There are days when I'll want everything on that list, other days when I can get away with just a tshirt, a pair shorts, and shoes.

Winter hat, face mask, heavy duty winter gloves, heavy duty jacket, multiple layers of clothing, with a synthetic base layer (underarmor), Microspikes, hiking poles, sunglasses, sunscreen, boots, snowshoes (recommend but not required), water, & food.

Hiking in Colorado is no joke, hiking in the winter is even more serious.

OK this is going to be long, so bear with me....

So I started in San Diego in late December and first stopped off at Zion National Park. I ran into a nasty snowstorm, and could barely get into campground section of the park. The Utah parks in the winter only plow every 2-3 days due to the lack of crowds (this was told to me by several park rangers, so just FYI). There wasn't much to do in Zion in winter since the Narrows and Angels Landing (the two biggest attractions) were particularly treacherous with ice and snow.

I continued on to Bryce Canyon. This was one of my winter favorites. I stayed in the campground there and was the only person. The snow was about a foot or two deep, and I stupidly didn't bring a shovel. I kicked a reasonable amount of snow out of the way, set up my tent and got to hiking. The park was blessedly empty and the snow was a gorgeous contrast to the orange and pink hues of the rocks. I highly recommend a winter stop here. The park is at over 9,000 ft, so keep that in mind for temperatures. It dropped to 0-10 degrees at night and was in the low 30's during the day. It was a very chilly night, but they have heated bathrooms! Seriously, best bathrooms I've ever seen in a National Park.

The gorgeous scenic route 12 is closed during the winter, and unfortunately, that's the shortest path to the next park, Capitol Reef. That park is otherworldly and usually skipped over in people's park trips. I was again the only person in the park and enjoyed an empty campground and empty trails. The colors there are unbelievable. You could probably just drive the main 15 mile drive and see the majority of the park if you're on a time crunch. The best way to move on from Bryce is go up 89 to 70 East and then come down the 191 to Moab.

The next park I went to was Dead Horse State Park. They hadn't plowed and the campground was closed, so I could only do a day trip, but it was well worth the stop before Canyonlands. Ahhhh Canyonlands. This park will ruin the Grand Canyon for you. There was again, very few people here, although more than the other parks due to the proximity of Moab (there really isn't a major town or city anywhere near the other parks that's actually open in winter). You really can only do a few trails in the center portion of the park as the rest of it is closed for winter. But, it's definitely worth the trip. I stayed in Canyonlands campground and it was so peaceful and quiet. It gave you that feeling of remoteness and isolation that is rarely to be had nowadays.

While staying at Canyonlands, I hiked through Arches. This park offered the most amount of available hiking during winter. Invest in some good crampons, like [microspikes]
(http://smile.amazon.com/Kahtoola-MICROspikes-Footwear-Traction-2015/dp/B00RXXJ0V2/ref=sr_1_1?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1458167182&sr=1-1&keywords=microspikes). They were absolutely necessary and I ended up rescuing a group of tourists after they got stuck up on an icy cliff. The temps in Moab stayed mild. At night it got down to the teens and during the day was in the 30's. I camped through yet another winter storm, which was... interesting to say the least. I was forced one particularly bad night to stay in a hotel in Moab and it was pretty reasonable. I remember the price being about $65 for a night.

I also made a trip out to the Four Corners to fulfill a life long dream of mine. After that, I stopped at Mesa Verde. Their campground was closed as well, but I didn't know that until I arrived since they hadn't updated their site. Check the NPS twitter feeds by the way! They had the most updated and reliable information, which was vital with the unpredictable winter weather. Mesa Verde was good for a day hike, but I had to move on to another park to stay the night. I tried Canyon De Chelle - same deal - closed for winter, along with Petrified Forest and Goblin Valley.

The grand finale was the Grand Canyon. Imagine my surprise when it was completely full! Holy cow is that park crowded! I've now been in summer, winter and fall, and I'd honestly be happy never going again. It's definitely a one time see before you die sort of thing, but I enjoyed the solitude of the Utah parks much more.

I've also stayed in Joshua Tree and Death Valley in the winter, as well as Yosemite. Joshua Tree and Death Valley are incredibly crowded in the winter, so show up very early to get a camping spot, or you'll go to "overflow" in a BLM area. Yosemite is crowded 24/7 and closes part of the park and its campgrounds in winter, so it can be hit or miss.

As far as supplies..... southern Utah is dead in the winter, so I was actually very happy I stocked my car before leaving, because I wasn't able to resupply until about 8 - 9 days into my trip at Moab, and even that city was mostly dead. I was really surprised at all of the ghost towns. Arizona stays open and active year round, so you'll be fine there. You'll have Kingman before the Grand Canyon and you can get everything you need there. You'll also be driving through a lot of Navajo territories, and they don't treat their roads very well. I had the most trouble driving in a few storms in those territories due to the lack of plowing and general conditions of the roads - massive pot holes, faded lines, stray dogs weaving through traffic. There are a few stores, but they're few and far between. California has nice weather year round, so you're not too far from a store to resupply.

Honestly, if you only have a few days, either hit Grand Canyon or Death Valley from San Diego. Both will be about a 5 hour drive. If you go to GC, you can hit Four Corners and then up to Rocky Mtn Park pretty easily. From Death Valley, you can hit Vegas, Valley of Fire, the Hoover Dam, and Bryce Canyon on the way to Rocky Mtn NP. The more scenic route will be the latter option, and with the snow, there's no real way to go from the Grand Canyon to southern Utah due to the road closures. That's a real shame because the North Rim is arguably better than the South Rim.

OK I think that's about it. Ask me anything else! I've done this trip a couple of times now and I've loved it each time.

EDIT: I uploaded an album of my trip for you to check out.

Keep in mind pretty much everything you see there is above the treeline.

For spikes these are the ones I have. I have seen them recommended a lot and they have been fantastic for me. Easier to walk on ice with them than on the ground without.

Kahtoola MICROspikes Footwear Traction - Black Medium - 2015/16 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00RXXJ0V2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_kL64ybA640QM5

Don't listen to /u/oregonianrager, the only boot supplement to get is this. Don't fuck with Yaktrax or any other bullshit. Buy 'em on Amazon with 2-day shipping or some shit and you can go jogging pass all these lily livered tip toers out here.

Buy some of these on Amazon and then return them if you don't end up using them.

http://www.amazon.com/Kahtoola-MICROspikes-Footwear-Traction-2015/dp/B00RXXJ0V2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1463098649&sr=8-1&keywords=Micro+spikes

How about since it's winter (depending on which hemisphere you're in anyway), Kathoola Microspikes. They help you get traction on ice, snow, up hills, etc. Most people outside of winter hikers wouldn't buy them, but they're a good waste of 50-100 bucks because they're actually pretty useful.