Snowshoe
[1] British archaeologist Jacqui Wood hypothesized that the equipment interpreted to be the frame of a backpack of the Chalcolithic mummy Ötzi was actually part of a snowshoe.
[4] Despite their great diversity in form, snowshoes were, in fact, one of the few cultural elements common to all tribes that lived where the winters were snowy, in particular, the Northern regions.
[5] The Inuit have two styles, one being triangular in shape and about 18 inches (46 cm) in length, and the other almost circular, both reflecting the need for high flotation in deep, loose and powdery snow.
However, contrary to popular perception, the Inuit did not use their snowshoes much since they did most of their foot travel in winter over sea ice or on the tundra, where snow does not pile up deeply.
The French voyageurs and coureurs des bois began to travel throughout the land of the Cree, Huron, and Algonquin nations in the late 17th century to trap animals and trade goods.
While many early enthusiasts found this more difficult to learn on, as they were thicker in the middle and rather cumbersome, they did have the advantage of being easier to pack and nimbler in tight spaces.
Traditional snowshoes are made of a single strip of some tough wood, usually white ash, curved round and fastened together at the ends and supported in the middle by a light cross-bar.
The space within the frame is filled with a close webbing of dressed caribou or neat's-hide strips, leaving a small opening just behind the cross-bar for the toe of the moccasined foot.
Outside of Indigenous populations and some competitions such as the Arctic Winter Games, very few of the old-fashioned snowshoes are actually used by enthusiasts anymore, although some value them for the artisanship involved in their construction.
It started in the 1950s when the Vermont-based Tubbs company created the Green Mountain Bearpaw, which combined the shortness of that style with an even narrower width than had previously been used (Pospisil 1979).
Eastern snowshoers were a bit more skeptical at first, believing that the style was unnecessary in the east, until the Praters demonstrated their improved effectiveness on New Hampshire's Mount Washington.
These use an aluminum or stainless steel frame and take advantage of technical advances in plastics and injection molding to make a lighter and more durable shoe.
Some, such as the "Denali" model made by Mountain Safety Research, use no metal frame and can be fitted with optional detachable tail extenders.
The use of solid decking in place of the standard latticework of lacing came as a surprise to many enthusiasts, since it challenged a long-held belief that the lattice was necessary to prevent snow from accumulating on the shoe.
Neoprene/nylon decks also displayed superior water resistance, neither stretching as rawhide will when wet nor requiring annual treatment with spar varnish, features that were immediately appreciated.
In fact, ski resorts with available land are beginning to offer snowshoe trails to visitors, and some popular hiking areas are almost as busy in the colder months as they are on warm summer weekends.
As is often the case with downhill skis, wood-frame snowshoes and suitable bindings are typically marketed and purchased separately rather than as a single piece.
They allow the crampon cleats that are under the foot to be kicked into a slope for grip in climbing, but are relatively awkward for stepping sideways and backwards as the tail of the snowshoe can drag.
It is important that a user be able to manipulate these straps easily, as removing or securing the foot often must be done outdoors in cold weather with bare hands, exposing him or her to the possibility of frostbite.
When putting on snowshoes, left is distinguished from right by which way the loose ends of the binding straps point: always outward, to avoid stepping on them repeatedly.
In 1994, Bill Torres and a younger associate developed the step-in binding, designed to make it easier for snowshoers wearing hard-shelled plastic boots (serious mountaineers) to change from snowshoes to crampons and back again as needed.
Snowshoe manufacturers, too, have begun including carriers and tote bags for their products, if for no other reason than to prevent the often-sharp cleats on the bottom from damaging surfaces they come in contact with.
[14] The method of walking is to lift the shoes slightly and, with wider snowshoes, slide their inner edges over each other, thus avoiding the unnatural and fatiguing "straddle-gait".
While a snowshoer with space to do so can, and usually does, simply walk in a small semicircle, on a steep slope or in close quarters such as a boreal forest this may be impractical or impossible.
Alternatively, snowshoers can use two techniques borrowed from skis: the herringbone (walking uphill with the shoes spread outward at an angle to increase their support) and the sidestep.
As of 2006[update], at least 500 American schools, mostly but not exclusively in the Northeast have started offering snowshoe programs in their physical education classes to help combat obesity.
For the same reason, it is less detrimental to the environment, since the snow likewise buffers the earth against the impact of so many hikers and campers, cutting back on trail erosion and other effects of heavy use.
It allows people to explore hard-to-reach places in snowy frontiers, and if the snow is deep enough, obstacles such as large boulders and fallen logs can be more easily bypassed.
Another popular expedition, particularly among hikers, is the "ski-shoe" trip combining a cross-country ski portion on a level, wide trail with a snowshoe up a less skiable section.
Similar organizations, such as the European Snowshoe Committee and Japan's Chikyu Network, exist in other countries and there is an international competitive level as well.
