These are a slightly more durable option, making them a little more suitable for those more uneven valley tracks and bridleways that are muddy and rocky in summer and frozen hard in winter. The extra durability comes from a steel cable around the base that is fitted with a series of diamond-shaped beads, which have six spikes each. These steel beads rotate on the wire, which helps them bite into the surface and also to ‘self-clean’. It is an ingenious design and one that is less likely to break when crunching over gravel and rock between the patches of snow and ice. The teeth are quite short, though, so they won’t be able to bite into surfaces that are covered in loose snow or ice very easily; and as the spikes are not very sharp, they may not grip as well as full crampons on very hard ice.
Materials rubber cradle with steel chain of spikes
Sizes S (5-6), M (6-9), L (9-12), XL (13+)
Weight 260g (pair, size M)
Stockist details www.icetrekkers.co.uk