Microspikes vs crampons

[crowdsurf]

Y'all know me. Know how I earn a livin'. I'll catch this bird for you, but it ain't gonna be easy. Bad fish. Not like going down the pond chasin' bluegills and tommycods. This shark, swallow you whole. Little shakin', little tenderizin', an' down you go. And we gotta do it quick, that'll bring back your tourists, put all your businesses on a payin' basis. But it's not gonna be pleasant. I value my neck a lot more than three thousand bucks, chief. I'll find him for three, but I'll catch him, and kill him, for ten. But you've gotta make up your minds. If you want to stay alive, then ante up. If you want to play it cheap, be on welfare the whole winter. I don't want no volunteers, I don't want no mates, there's just too many captains on this island. $10,000 for me by myself. For that you get the head, the tail, the whole damn thing.

"We're gonna need a bigger boat."

Sharknado2.jpg

[nyker]

Alright, this topic seem to get enough passionate responses to warrant its own thread. So do you love or hate microspikes*? When do you use them? Do you break out your ice axe whenever you put on your spikes? How about crampons? Pros and cons?

*Note: by "microspikes", I'm not referring to a single product, but a group of traction aid with a similar design made by several companies like Kahtoola, Hillsound, Chainsen, and many Chinese copycats. I'm also not referring to Yak Trax, icetrekkers, or any other similar ice clates.

Let the battle begin!

Microspikes:
* on icy driveways or sidewalks
* Older folks walking to get the mail in winter
* on trails where ice is eggshelled on rocks
* Fishing in shoulder season or on river banks with ice/snow; modified version used in the water for algae covered rocks works great
* trails with flatter firm packed snow like Bright Angel Trail Grand Canyon
* on moderate sections where snow is firm on moderate slopes with limited fall consequences
* "some" mixed terrain with a lot of rocks
* possibly on steep slick grassy slopes when wet, esp downhill

10-12pt full Crampons
* Glacial traverses or anytime walking on glaciers
* Where a fall may be fatal
* Steep and harder snow/ice (Rainier, Hood, Whitney) or any steep long snow climb, esp where you need to kick steps or steeper front pointing (chutes and couloirs)
* Steeper snow where I have a moderately heavier pack and need better purchase into snow
* Heavier snow pack where balling makes microspike type traction useless
* Heavier ice where microspikes will slip too much and you need a welted crampon on your boot

I've used instep crampons, but don't like them. I only used them out of necessity in Japan when they required them for an ascent where I didn't pack my normal ones; better than nothing, but only because I didn't have anything else.

Ice axe (Mountaineering axe), well any reasonably steep snow slope with fall risk where I may need to self arrest or need to belay myself, rest stops etc. Sometimes I'll use an axe without traction, sometimes I'll use traction without an axe. It depends.
Ice axe (shorter) - as a supplement often, i.e. steeper ice/snow, or spots where I need to pull myself up spots, hard to generalize, but most ADK snow trips I'll have one on me.