Chinook Trekker Snowshoes Review – Great For Beginners

Not only do you get a decent snowshoe for a budget price, all of the features you would want – at least until you want to upgrade.

Materials

Chinook has saved a little money on the materials, but that does not mean these puppies won’t work out in the snow.

The frame is produced out of sturdy Aluminium tubing. And the rest of the platform is made from UV-resistant polyethylene. Together they will help you stay afloat in a reasonable depth of powder.

The crampons are made of aluminum too, which saves a little on weight (although these snowshoes are not as light as the MSR Evos) but it is not as durable as steel, which most of the snowshoes use these days.

Foot Securing

An important part of any snowshoe is the foot securing system. And Chinook’s is a simple ratchet system like you see on a lot of rollerblades and some other winter sporting systems. It is a little prone to failure over the long haul but is certainly simple to use (more than a lot of others on the market).

Crampons

How well you can cope in steep terrain or icy conditions is determined by the crampons. The Trekkers has a nice heel and foot set of crampons but lacks the side rail set that some more expensive models have. You should still be ok in rolling terrain and on some hills, Just be aware of this shortcoming when you get into steep icy conditions (when there is a powder you can always create a platform to climb on with each step – harder work, but I do it a lot).

Summing It Up

The Trekkers are not winning any awards for snowshoe of the year, but for the price and anyone just needing a decent or beginner snowshoe, it is a good buy.

Note: It even comes with its own bag which is rare in base models (you normally have to buy them separately). They are super-handy for carrying, storing, or traveling with your snowshoes (remember they have spikey crampons on the bottom!)

If you want to check out some other beginner models you can read my 3 snowshoe comparisons.

But if you just want the cheapest option that works well, this is a good bet!