Snowshoes or Mircospikes in Smokies

[Eric Dodson]

Hey guys I'm looking for a little advice. I am planning on a 5-7 day hike on the AT in the Smokies in late December/early January. Will snowshoes be a must or overkill? I know weather can drastically change within the hour on any mountain but I do not want to be post holing 75% of the trip but i would love to leave 3.5 lbs off my pack. I'm looking at MSR Evo snowshoes if they are needed. They seem like a balance between price/weight. Any advice on this trip or equipment suggestions is greatly appreciated. Thanks

Eric Dodson

[Stephen M]

Eric,

if ghe snow is more than 6~8inches deep I would be looking at ssnowshoes, it would also be worth hsving the spikes.

[James Klein]

Often neither is needed in the Smokies in the winter.

The higher elevations on northern facing slopes can get icy at times (southern facing and lower elevation too in the right conditions).

Typically trails covered in snow are well broken by Saturday after the snowfall so unless it snows a lot on the weekdays you are hiking, snowshoes probably wouldn't be needed.

[Eric Dodson]

Thanks for the replies.. Ive never had to deal with snow before but its something I'm both looking forward to and dreading. What bothers me about the Smokies is the possibility of big snow in the upper elevation, where I will spend a good deal of my hike. Snowshoes seem to be a great thing if the conditions require them but their weight has me trying to talk myself out of them and tough it out with microspikes. Also does anybody use low cut shoe with knee high gaiters, such as MLD Snowlights, or does that completely defeat the point? Sorry for my ignorance but I'm not a fan of being wet/cold.

[James Klein]

What bothers me about the Smokies is the possibility of big snow in the upper elevation, where I will spend a good deal of my hike. Snowshoes seem to be a great thing if the conditions require them

GSMNP had recieved a lot of snow just before this trip (Jan '10). There was ~3' atop Leconte. No snowshoes were not needed but they would have been if my trip was earlier.

I wish I had microspikes for the ice:

[Eric Dodson]

Well the spikes are definitely going. I guess I'll go ahead and buy the shoes and decide right before i walk in depending conditions and weather reports. And kinda hope for the best if i don't carry them haha. Thanks again.

[Jeff Jeff]

There is no way you will be able to use snowshoes unless you are out on a bald and the snow drifts in. I've been up there with 3 ft drifts and snowshoes still weren't needed. Even if the snow was deep, most of the trail corridors are narrow and lined with brush, which makes for awful snowshoeing.

Snowshoes will give no benefit in 6-8 inch snow. I usually don't even put them on unless there is at least 2 ft.

I would take microspikes. I've gotten by without, but it can be tesious. There are several sections of trail notorious for turning into pure ice. It's not usually sustained, but it can take a while to get around if you don't have something pointy on your feet.

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