Womens Snowshoes Online

I’m tossing out a quick, short post today. Still working on my next article on Atlas womens snowshoes. That article will cover women’s snowshoes for mountaineering and back country hiking. You can read my previous article on Atlas Women’s Snowshoes for Trail Walking if you want to get to the nitty-gritty, but a conversation I had this morning prompted me to drop what I was doing to hopefully explain away a misconception about snowshoeing.

I was having a chat with my sister-in-law this morning. She asked what I’ve been doing lately so I told her about my new womens snowshoe site. She mentioned she’d never considered the sport, despite being an avid spring and summer hiker, because of the expense. “not only do I have spend a lot for the snowshoes but I have to buy boots for them as well,” she explained.

Good news, folks. Though she’s not alone in that assumption, she’s also wrong. Many people associate winter sports like snowshoeing with specialized footwear. You buy alpine skis, you need ski boots too, right? But the truth that holds true with skiing does not hold true with snowshoeing. In fact, the additional equipment needed in a womens snowshoeing arsenal is probably already occupying storage space in your closet. So let’s talk a bit about women’s snowshoe accessories.

Snowshoe bindings are designed to work with just about any footwear. While, technically, you could slip into your favorite sneakers and strap on your snowshoes, I don’t recommend it. Nothing says uncomfortable like a sopping wet pair of feet on a cold winter’s day. Ideally, you want to wear a pair of waterproof hiking boots. If you’d be comfortable hiking in them, you’ll be comfortable using them in your snowshoes. The three things you should consider in a boot that works well with snowshoeing are medium height, waterproof and the lighter the better. Something like the Asolo Stynger GTX Women’s Hiking Boots is perfect but pursue your own brand loyalty as long as it meets the criteria I’ve outlined. Another great boot I really love is the 2010 Northface ChillKat Woman’s Boot. While there isn’t such a thing as a specific snowshoe boot for women, this is what it would be were they to begin specifically making one.

In addition to hiking boots (which you hopefully already own if you’re the type who likes to get out in the wilderness) you should consider waterproof shell pants like those designed for skiing or snowboarding. Ideally they’ll have a powder boot cuff. While you will be floating above the snow when on snowshoes, you may occasionally sink a bit, fall over or kick snow up on your legs. Keeping the snow out of your boots will make your snowshoeing experience much more enjoyable. Marker and Nils are two companies that both make great clothes for snowshoeing and other winter sports.

From there it’s all about common sense. You’re going out in the cold so dress appropriately. Layered clothing for warmth, a coat or jacket that offers both wind and water resistance, waterproof gloves and, of course, something to keep your head warm. If it’s a particularly cold or wind-bitten day, you might want to consider face protection like that offered by a cozy Seirus Neofleece Extreme Masque. Remember that your outer layer of clothing (gloves, jacket, pants) should always be waterproof.

So don’t be turned off by the price, folks. After you’ve bought the womens snowshoes that are right for your particular hiking preference, the clothing (providing it’s sensible and weather appropriate) is something you probably already own and perfectly useful for other winter sport activities. Here’s a video to give you a bit more advice on layering and dressing appropriately for snowshoeing.

You might have noticed that there are some differences between men and women beyond the ability to discern the subtle difference between the color fuchsia and pink. Not only do men and women perceive the world differently, we also interact with it differently. Everything from a woman’s increased sense of smell (a good reason to always trust your wife when she says the milk has gone bad) to how we physically interact with our environments are different in sometimes subtle, sometimes dramatic ways. And, folks, that includes how we walk.

If you’ve wondered why somebody even bothered inventing women’s snowshoes, it has less to do with a gal’s particular size and weight and more to do with her particular stride and gait than you may have expected. A burly pair of snowshoes for dudes just isn’t suitable for a woman’s physiology. They’ll get the job done in an emergency, but don’t expect a lady to join you in your outdoor passion if you don’t take her physical needs into consideration.

Snowshoes for women were an overdue creation whose subtle differences open up the world of snowshoeing adventure to our better halves. With the differences in your physiology finally accommodated, you ladies can get away from lumbering behind your yeti of a husband in an awkward, Frankenstein stride (when you aren’t falling flat on your faces due to an ill-fitting and inappropriate snowshoe).

Which brand offers the best  womens snowshoes

It’s impossible to point to a single brand and say that this is the one you should buy. I’ll be reviewing several brands (and models) of womens snowshoe on this blog to help you pick the right one for you. But we’ll go deeper than that. Not only do you need to decide whether or not Atlas snowshoes for women are a better choice than, say, Tubbs womens snowshoes, you also have to consider size, style, bindings, intended terrain… the list goes on.

Snowshoeing isn’t as simple as strapping a pair of tennis racket forms onto your feet and getting to it. It can be a confusing world out there. While companies such as MSR, Atlas, Tubbs and Readfeather all make great snowshoes, the right one for you has less to do with brand and more to do with your physical requirements and the type of environment (and technical difficulty) specific to you.

Atlas Snowshoes for Women

We’ll begin delving into womens snowshoes by focusing on a great company in the industry, Atlas. Though a relative new comer (they began operation in 1990), Atlas is also an innovator. Their founder, Perry Klebahn, is credited with earning the first snowshoe patent in 40 years as part of his Stanford University Engineering thesis project. And he and his company didn’t rest on their laurels. Since its incorporation, Atlas has been awarded an additional 19 patents (at time of this writing) for everything from an exceptional buckle/binding system to an elliptical cross-section tubing design that lends excellent strength to their snowshoe frames.

So, though they’re a young company, their models are some of the best selling snowshoes out there and, hence, deserving of first go in our reviews and write-ups. Time and again I find retailers pushing Atlas products. The reason is as much due to excellent product design (I’m particularly a fan of their buckle system) as the fact that Atlas snowshoes for women are often affordably priced. Don’t get me wrong, I would recommend against letting price be the sole factor in determining your purchase as, in some cases, you get what you pay for, but Atlas snowshoes are affordable, not cheap. There’s a big difference.

Check back soon for our reviews of womens snowshoes by Atlas.