Thoughts on mountaineering boots for winter 14ers?

[justiner]

Get 'em while you can where you can, 'cause the Blizzard's aren't available on the La Sportiva website. You'll have to "settle" with the Cyklon Cross GTX.

[Veory]

people get nasty blisters wearing mountaineering boots when not appropriate, if your feet arent warm enough all you have to do is go down

lets be real here though doing "winter 14ers" for most people is just running up and down quandary in a couple hours on a nice day

I think that means ya boots just don't fit.

While the second point is true, I don't think that's really the intent of the conversation.

[KState14er]

G2 SM

[climbingcue]

I use the La Sportiva Trango Tech Leather GTX for my winter 13ers/14ers. I also used them to climb Rainier in June of 2024. They work for me on long hikes and keep my feet dry. The Nepal EVO cubes rip my feet up on long hikes, I only use them for couloir climbs. And when doing a couloir, even then I hike in with light hikers.

[zootloopz]

I have more shoulder season experience than winter but I rock my sportiva ultra raptor 2 mid gtx wide's with some gaiters for anything longer than 4 hours.

I tested out some Trangos as well but my feet got way too hot and sweaty even with postholing and 20+ mph winds in early december going for columbia point / obstruction / humboldt.

[Stratosfearsome]

My personal preference for Winter 14ers is light mountaineering boots. Wear and tear is definitely a factor but my boots aren't that pricey and I've done maybe 30 peaks in them so far with no durability issues.
Here's my setup:
Socks: Men's Hiker Micro Crew Midweight - could switch to heated socks but never have.
Boots: Aequilibrium ST GTX (non gaiter) - picked up new for ~ $270. No toe bail- need semi-auto crampons. [ ~1.3 lbs per boot ]
Gaiters: Rab Latok GTX ~ $90 [ 0.25 lbs per leg ]
Traction: Kahtoola MICROspikes [ ~0.35 lbs per boot ] or Petzl Irvis Hybrid Crampons [ 0.6 lbs per boot ].
Therefore, [ ~2 lbs per foot ] with gaiters and microspikes, or [ ~2.2 lbs (1 kg) per foot ] with crampons.

[Natelovestoclimb]

winter 14er boot tier list IMO

1- ski/snowboard boots + skis/splitboard
2- kamiks/sorels with the rubber bottoms (warm, light, comfy, can put snowshoes on them)
3- trail runners + warm socks
...
99 actual mountaineering boots because they are heavy, clunky, uncomfortable, and unnecessary in winter

an argument could be made about mountaineering boots for spring but couloirs are generally not avy safe in the winter

I agree I tried on a pair of nepal cube gtxs and they are way too heavy. I understand their use but I feel like they aren't worth the price tag for 14ers.

[Natelovestoclimb]

G2 SM

What do you think about G Summits compared to g2s?

[Wildernessjane]

There is a big asymmetry in the risk associated with this decision. If your footwear is too warm or heavy then you may be a little uncomfortable on your trip but that's it. If your feet aren't warm enough then you might lose toes or worse.

people get nasty blisters wearing mountaineering boots when not appropriate, if your feet arent warm enough all you have to do is go down.

This incident always comes to mind when I hear people make this argument. Sometimes stuff just happens. https://www.summitpost.org/rescue-on-ro ... 011/701157

[Wildernessjane]

1) Ski boots, whenever possible (even if I will be hiking in them for miles) - Castle & Conundrum, Mount Wilson, Wetterhorn, Holy Cross, San Luis, Huron, etc.

2) Oboz Bridger insulated snow boots* - Pikes Peak

3) La Sportiva G5’s if I expect I’ll be using crampons and it didn’t make sense to take my skis because of the approach and/or my partners weren’t skiers (got a screaming deal on them) - Crestone Needle, Kit Carson & Conundrum via Cole Couloir, Little Bear, Pyramid, etc.

*I tried wearing strap on crampons with the Oboz and this didn’t work out so well for me.

[daway8]

For me, this comes down to one simple question:
1) Do I expect to need crampons?
The answer to that is determined by a simple corollary question:
1b) Do I expect to climb or cross any snow steep enough in a location where a fall could be fatal?

If 1b is "yes" then 1 is automatically "yes" in my book now.

This stems from two simple, yet powerful experiences:
A) Doing Longs in a high snow year with strap-on crampons that kicked off partway across a steep slope. https://www.14ers.com/php14ers/triprepo ... m=tripmine
B) On a different occasion, taking a fall that led to 6 stitches on my left arm because I was too lazy/arrogant/stupid to put on traction when I should have. https://www.14ers.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=63563

With real crampons clamped onto proper mountaineering boots (Nepal Cubes, in my case) I have tried as hard as I could to intentionally attempt to knock them off and was completely unable to do so. As a result, I now have the confidence to entrust my life to this gear on steep, firm snow.

People who are skilled mountaineers probably don't feel the need for crampons in all the locations that I do. Maybe it's true that some places I now use them, they would be considered overkill by a real mountaineer. I don't care.

To me, having already made one stupid decision that took me to the ER, I don't want a memorial thread popping up on this site where an armchair quarterback opines "well if the dude used more than microspikes, maybe he'd still be alive..."

I'm sorry, but to me it sure looks a lot like arrogant machoism when people downplay using proper safety equipment in the mountains and, yes, this is coming from a guy who often doesn't use as much safety equipment in the mountains as others (I do unroped class 5 past other people's belay anchors, for example).

But I will never talk down to people who use greater safety measures than I do, be it using ropes, crampons or whatever (and please don't hesitate to call me out if you see me doing so).

I really, really passionately hate the attitude that often creeps out in this site where people puff out their chests because they don't need xyz for these "easy Colorado mountains." Can you do every route in Colorado without ropes or crampons or whatever? Great! I'll be happy to take a sharpie and write "bad ass" on your butt. But please let's stop any stupid, arrogant talk that xyz is not needed in Colorado. What's needed in Colorado is whatever a given person feels is most likely to allow them to enjoy their passion for the mountains while giving them the greatest chance possible of coming back alive at the end of the day. End rant.

Lastly, as far as blisters and such, I finally found that with the right pair of boots (La Sportiva Nepal Cubes, in my case), and proper technique in tying them (yes, there are simple techniques for tying boots that help lock your heels in place and prevent blisters) that I no longer have any problems with my feet even hiking 20 miles in them, which is great because I already carry too much weight in winter to want the weight of an extra pair of footwear.

[SchralpTheGnar]

I’m a member of the AT booth crew, they are like mountaineerings that are harder to walk in but easier to ski with.