Answer

By GrahamThompson

Icy ground makes walking tricky as normal boots tend to slip, pitching you on your behind. This is as true in town and along country paths, as it is in the hills. There are products designed to help you get a grip and each has pros and cons.  

The Cotswold Magic Spiker is ideal for walking around town when it's snowy and the pavements are iced up. They are also ok for walking along valley paths or frozen bridleways. However, as you extend your walk onto the hills and moors, it is possible that using items such as the Cotswold Magic Spider may back you into a corner of difficulty that is more committing and dangerous - they do help you grip, but they may give you a false sense of security that could lead to problems.

The Grivel Spider is a slightly more aggressive crampon that has longer spikes than the Cotswold Magic Spider, so is a little better for wandering off the firm flat pavements, roads and bridleways. However, these are still not ideal for hillwalking, as once again they have limited ability and they could lead the user onto terrain where longer spikes are required to cope with the deeper snow and ice. They are useful on valley bridleways and paths, but taking them onto the hills may lead to difficulties if the terrain changes from what you expect.

When going onto hills it is safer to use dedicated crampons and boots for the task. Boots should be graded B1 or B2 so that you have a boot that is stiff enough to kick steps as required, can provide support when edging and can keep your feet warm and dry. The matching crampons such as the Grivel G10 are ideal for hillwalking as they allow the walker to safely negotiate a wide variety of terrain and be prepared for what the hill may produce on a winter's day.