Yukon Charlie’s Snowshoes Review

Originally posted 2019-03-18 20:50:34.

Happy March everyone!  For some reason here in Colorado March tends to be our snowiest month of all.  And unlike the earlier snow with fluffy white powder, march snow is wet, heavy and thick.  If you were watching the news last week, you’ll notice that Colorado and several other mid west states were struck by a bomb cyclone storm system (which is basically a hurricane equivalent of a blizzard).  While this wasn’t the biggest snow storm I have experienced, it was still a blizzard – and blizzards call for blizzard preparation gear.  It was my first change to try out my Yukon Charlie’s snowshoes.

I picked up my pair of Yukon Charlie’s snowshoes at a garage sale and got a fantastic deal on them.  I think I only paid like 20 dollars or something for them, and they have been waiting for this day!  After the winds died down, I decided to trudge around outside on some 4-5 foot snow drifts using my Yukon Charlie’s trail series 930 snowshoes, and I gotta tell you I had a blast.

If you’ve ever tried to walk through deep snow, you’ll know how frustrating and tiring it is to try to progress through the deep, cold fluffy stuff.  Essentially, a snowshoe works by a process known as “flotation”  which distributes the user’s body weight more onto a much larger surface area, preventing you from sinking all the way into the drift.

I was pleasantly surprised with my Yukon Charlie’s snowshoes!  They performed really well and I was excited to be able to actually walk across deep snow without getting totally exhausted.   This particular model is lightweight and pretty easy to get affixed to your boots (it uses a rubber and plastic strapping system similar to a snowboard binding).  The snowshes themselves are a light aluminum frame with a synthetic HDPE decking, and the boot straps are easily adjusted for different sized feet.   The snowshoes also have forged aluminum crampons for both your instep and heel areas to provide extra traction on slippery snow.    This model of Yukon Charlie’s snowshoes has a recommended max load of 250 lbs before they would start to fail.   I also got a nifty carry bag when I purchased my pair at the garage sale.

Now, we’re slowly moving into spring so I probably won’t see another monster snow storm this year, but if you live in an area that does have a vulnerability to large amounts of snow, I’d recommend checking out Yukon Charlie’s snowshoes.  The peace of mind that if you need to go out there and walk over large snow pack is worth it alone.  For example we have horses in a barn about 50 yards from the house and in a big blizzard, walking with snowshoes vs without could mean a few minute journey to something much longer, with more risk of the elements and cold temperatures.  They make all sorts of different styles, so there’s plenty to explore!

Check em out in my video, and I’ll see you soon!