Yaktrax Traction Chains for Walking on Ice and Snow (1 Pair)

In the last few months I've started having trouble with a hip, because I trail walk with my dog every day and wasn't willing to let a litle ice\snow stop me I felt I needed better traction than my trail boots offered. I learned last year what a slip on the ice and a slide down a hill felt like a couple times on one of these walks. Banged my head pretty good once and that was enough! I got these in hopes of gaining better traction. They work like a champ! Granted they are not quite as good as cleats or actual crampons but they are like tire chains for my feet. Just got hit with a bunch of ice on the east coast and these have proven their worth to me time and again. Now I don't see the sad face my dog gives me when I'm too afraid to take him out to the woods. Made the difference to me, literally walk the ice like a mountain goat! They seem sturdy enough to me and should last me a few years and I have already recommended these to a few of my fellow trail walkers

I believe I am one of the *most* qualified people to review these chains. Why? Because I'm Australian. Ice is not my natural predator. I don't understand it, I don't expect it, and I have fallen on it many many times in the past. I need all the help I can get, and if a product is no good, I WILL end up on my butt. Wore these chains around the icy towns and tourist locations of Norway and Iceland. I was also with a senior (late 70s) who has never experienced these conditions before. Neither of us ever slipped, while people around us not wearing chains slipped and fell. We both felt that these did an excellent job for the basic conditions we were in (pavement, iced over paths in national parks, etc). I felt sure on my feet and they provided good traction. They were also easier and more comfortable to walk on normal pavement with than the crampons that have actual spikes on them, and didn't feel like they were damaging the path. THEY DO RUN SMALL. The size guide says my boots should fit into an S. I had to return an S, and an M, before finally fitting into an L.

Best ice-gripping traction I have found in this price range. Edmonton has had some S.O.B. weather, and there is thiick black on the sidewalks in many places. These allow me to walk with confidence. Robustly made and easy to slip on to my shoes.

This is the perfect balance between traction and walkability. Spikes are fine for snowy trails, but you can't wear them to walk the dog on the sidewalks around town. The rubber slicks with the tiny metal pins grip okay on ice, but they turn the rest of the sole of your shoe into a slick surface, so you don't get the advantage of the extra traction your lugs might otherwise give in soft snow. These chains split the difference perfectly. They bite well into ice, but still leave the lugs of your sole exposed so they can add traction in soft snow. Our neighbors have sump pumps that create sheets of water over the sidewalk that later freeze. Sometimes these sheets of smooth ice are visible and sometimes they're hidden under a layer of snow. I was able to walk the dog around town without a single slip - even through areas that I'd nearly busted my rump on the day before. And when I got to a clear patch (where someone has actually shoveled their sidewalk), the chains are low-profile enough to let me walk normally - feels kind of like walking in pea gravel, which is fine. I even wore these while carving a channel by the mailboxes to let melting snow drain away from the area it normally pools - standing on 2-3 inches of solid ice while swinging a mattock, and never slipped a single time. Very easy to put on and take off too. If you need a versatile traction-enhancing device that works on a variety of surfaces, you won't be disappointed in these.

Great to prevent falling on ice! I like that there isn’t a strap over the top of these- you can leave them on your boots and just take boots off. I bought the ones with springs (same manufacturer) first- they lasted about 6 wks; about 6k daily. I hope these last longer: they do seem to be better built: thicker rubber bands on the sides and of course chains not springs. I think the springs probably gripped ice better, but who wants to replace every 6wks. I’m always going to have a pair of these for winter dog walks.