10 Best Gear for Ice and Snow Walking in 2020

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Our Top Picks

ICEtrekkers Diamond Grip Shoe Chains at Amazon

"You will feel very secure with the Diamond Grip design."

Icebug Shoes and Boots at Amazon

"Icebug footwear comes in over a dozen different designs for men and women."

Stabilicers Maxx Heavy Duty Ice Cleats at Amazon

"Uses velcro straps at the forefoot and ankle for a secure attachment of the ice cleats to your shoes."

Leki Legacy Trekking Poles at Amazon

"Add 4-wheel drive to your winter walking by using Leki trekking poles."

Snow Trax at Amazon

"Snow Trax slip-on snow cleats have a design with steel coils under forefoot to grip snow."

Stabilicers Sport Ice Cleats at Amazon

"They have a rubber grip at the forefoot and ankle to slip-on over your athletic shoes or dress shoes."

YakTrax Shoe Chains at Amazon

"YakTrax have a metal coil design to crisscross the bottom of your shoe."

Snowshoes at Amazon

"Today's compact, lightweight snow shoes are easy and fun to use."

Sure Foot Get-a-Grip Ice Joggers at Amazon

"These were some of the first types of ice cleats available on the market."

Big Pair of Socks at Amazon

"Slip a big pair of socks over your shoes to add a little grip."

Our Top Picks

1

ICEtrekkers Diamond Grip Shoe Chains

You will feel very secure with the Diamond Grip design. These are not dainty ice cleats. They are easy enough to put on your shoes when you need the traction and take them off when you reach a safe walking surface. Take them off indoors to prevent scratches and damage to floors or carpets.

2

Icebug Shoes and Boots

Icebug Alder-L BUGrip Snow Boot. Courtesy of Pricegrabber

Icebug footwear comes in over a dozen different designs for men and women, including fashion boots, running shoes, hiking boots, snow boots. Each has carbide studs in the soles so you will get a grip in snow and ice, even when you aren't expecting any. Yet you can wear them indoors as well. Snow and ice are accidents just waiting for a careless moment when you didn't put on shoe cleats. Icebug footwear remembers for you.

3

Stabilicers Maxx Heavy Duty Ice Cleats

Stabilicers Heavy Duty Ice Cleats. Wendy Bumgardner ©

The Stabilicers heavy duty design uses velcro straps at the forefoot and ankle for a secure attachment of the ice cleats to your shoes. They are easy to get into and out of and they won't slip off the shoe unexpectedly as can happen with some slip-on designs. The heavy-duty Stabilicers come with replacement cleats if you lose one when walking on ice or snow.

4

Leki Legacy Trekking Poles

Camelbak Scout on Camino de Santiago. Wendy Bumgardner ©

Add 4-wheel drive to your winter walking by using Leki trekking poles. They have a carbide flex tip to get a grip on the snow, ice or mud, and small performance baskets to keep them from sinking too far into the snow. You can use ski poles if you prefer, but you can use Leki trekking poles on summer hikes as well as winter walks. They have a 3-section design to compact down when you want to store them or carry them. They fit into checked luggage for taking along when you are headed to a snowier or icier climate.

5

Snow Trax

Snow Trax slip-on snow cleats have a design with steel coils under forefoot to grip snow. Ice cleats over the heel provide extra grip for ice walking and snow walking. Snow Trax were made by Yaktrax and sold at Costco, but they have been discontinued. You may still find some being sold online.

6

Stabilicers Sport Ice Cleats

Stabilicers Sport are a lighter version of Stabilicers. They have a rubber grip at the forefoot and ankle to slip-on over your athletic shoes or dress shoes. On the bottom are eight ice cleats. The forefoot grip may not fit wider athletic shoes well.

7

YakTrax Shoe Chains

YakTrax have a metal coil design to crisscross the bottom of your shoe. Their older designs slip on with rubber grippers at toe and ankle. But the new Pro design has a velcro strap across the forefoot for more security. Some walkers don't find the steel coils grip as well as cleats.

8

Snowshoes

If you need to walk on unplowed sidewalks or walk on snowy trails, snowshoes teamed with trekking poles are a great combination. Today's compact, lightweight snow shoes are easy and fun to use. Most have crampons/grippers at the front and back to help in going uphill and downhill without sliding. The disadvantage here is they are less convenient to remove and carry with you if you reach a stretch of plowed sidewalk. But if your winter walking regularly means walking in deep snow, snowshoes are a great tool.

9

Sure Foot Get-a-Grip Ice Joggers

Sure Foot Get-a-Grip Traction Cleat. Courtesy of Amazon.com

These were some of the first types of ice cleats available on the market. For walking shoes, the larger size is often needed in order for them to them to fit onto walking shoes. They have ice cleats on the toe and heel. The slip-on design never felt as secure as one with velcro straps, especially when they were hard to slip on.

10

Big Pair of Socks

If you are stuck out in a snow emergency and need to do something, anything for traction—slip a big pair of socks over your shoes to add a little grip.