On Walkabout Gear Review: ICEtrekkers Diamond Grip

Basic Information

• Item: ICEtrekkers Diamond Grip
• Price: $41.95
• More Info: ICETrekkers Shoe Diamond Grip on Amazon.com

Narrative

This winter I decided to do buy some chains for my hiking books in order to provide some better traction while hiking on the ice that frequently covers the trails here in Colorado during the colder months.  After doing some research on REI and Amazon about some of the best chains available I decided on purchasing the ICEtrekkers Diamond Grip.  I went to the local REI store and purchased the chains and the very next day I went on a hike to test them out at Cheyenne Mountain State Park.  I also used the Diamond Grip while hiking up Mt. Cutler and the Seven Bridges Trail as well over the following weeks.  So I was able to get a pretty good sample size of how well the Diamond Grip works on these hikes.

To start out with I found putting on the ICEtrekkers to be quite easy.  I just put the front of the sling over the toe of my shoe and then pull the heel tab back to stretch and cover the rest of the shoe:

According to ICEtrekkers they use a patented diamond bead design that  provides hundreds of biting edges for superior traction in all snow and ice conditions.  They also claim that their rubber sling remains elastic in sub zero temperatures:

I found that on compact snow and ice that the Diamond Grip worked extremely well.  I have to say I was quite happy about its performance.  However, something I have noticed is that when walking on ice and then back on muddy dirt that a lot of debris would sometimes get compacted under the chains.  I would have to stop periodically and use a stick to remove the debris.  I don’t know if this is something that typically happens to other chains but it does happen with the Diamond Grip.

Conclusion

Overall I am happy with the Diamond Grip’s traction and found the price to be affordable compared to the other comparable chains. I haven’t used them enough to really test if the Diamond Grip is as durable as advertised, but I will update this review if I have any durability problems.  So has anyone else used the Diamond Grip?  What do you think of this piece of equipment?