Kenetrek Mountain Extremes, has anyone used crampons with them for hiking/mountaineering?

[mike1320]

Specifically looking for feedback on using crampons to climb steep inclines. I have a trip out to Mt. Hood and was wondering if the shank was stiff enough to achieve the climb with crampons on them or am I better off investing in another pair of boots?

 

[B_Reynolds_AK]

They would be very soft for true mountaineering. The sole on those is basically equivalent to a midweight hiker. Your feet would be hating life as they would be flexing way too much when climbing steep snow & ice.
Most definitely look elsewhere.

If you want to buy a boot that will do double duty for mountaineering and mountain hunting, I really like the Hanwag Friction 2 GTX. It is semi auto compatible, has a stiff shank yet just enough toe flex to be walkable.

 

[Jason Snyder]

I climbed a few Cascade range volcanoes with Lowa Baffins, Zamberlans and crampons. We did a somewhat technical route up Rainier with no issues.

I think the Kennetreks are likely every bit as stiff as what I wore.

 

[mike1320]

I climbed a few Cascade range volcanoes with Lowa Baffins, Zamberlans and crampons. We did a somewhat technical route up Rainier with no issues.

I think the Kennetreks are likely every bit as stiff as what I wore.

The biggest concern would be the final 800 feet going up from the hogsback to either the pearly gates or old chute on Hood where the incline increases greatly where I need to be swinging/puncturing the tips of my feet and crampons into the ice and snow as I climb up on all fours.

 

[Jason Snyder]

The biggest concern would be the final 800 feet going up from the hogsback to either the pearly gates or old chute on Hood where the incline increases greatly where I need to be swinging/puncturing the tips of my feet and crampons into the ice and snow as I climb up on all fours.

We did a few inclines that required ropes and two ice axes. I guess I can’t compare them to stiffer mountaineering boots, but they did the job for me. I think only one guy out of our group had boots stiffer than what I was using.

 

[grainhog]

I'd be more worried about the weight. Those things weigh like 12 pounds each.

 

[mike1320]

I'd be more worried about the weight. Those things weigh like 12 pounds each.

Yeah even though I’ve done some longer hikes and ascended Mt. St. Helens with them I definitely wouldn’t mind something lighter