Just wondering if anyone has had any experience with these? Looking for a better option than snow shoes for pulling a pulk. Not a ton of info on them but they are reasonably priced.

Pros:
Better grip than a cross country ski
Better glide than a snowshoe
Good floatation
Shorter and more maneuverable than cc skis
Better climbers than skis
More controlled descents

Cons:
Less glide than cc skis on flat terrain
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gearjunkie review

Karhu used to make the Karver and the Meta. Don't believe they make them now but you may find used ones on a search.

nice ski. way lighter than the Marquette backcountry ski. I have been looking at a pair of these for the last 2 years. other needs have pushed these out of reach for now.
If you can ski and have the boot to drive the ski it should be no problem. If you do not have a good boot this will add to the cost. if lucky under $80 used online deal, or up to $500 new.

this is a good ski and is the right move on your part.

quote PortageKeeper: "Karhu used to make the Karver and the Meta. Don't believe they make them now but you may find used ones on a search."

These also look great. Same concept. No luck finding them on CL though :(

I think I'll give the Alti Hok's a go. Found a new pair with the universal bindings for $275 shipped to my door. Very reasonable

I like my snowshoes and these wont replace them but sometimes they can be awkward and a lot of work. Plus these look really fun!

quote kmjsuperfly: "

quote PortageKeeper: "Karhu used to make the Karver and the Meta. Don't believe they make them now but you may find used ones on a search."

These also look great. Same concept. No luck finding them on CL though :(


I think I'll give the Alti Hok's a go. Found a new pair with the universal bindings for $275 shipped to my door. Very reasonable


I like my snowshoes and these wont replace them but sometimes they can be awkward and a lot of work. Plus these look really fun!"

How wide are they?

My wife has a pair of these and she thinks they are fantastic. Like a fat tire bike she just points and goes. She has the snow board ratchet binding and wears Steger Mukluks, hiking boots or Salomon winter boots. Let me know if you have additional questions.

quote Pinetree: "

quote kmjsuperfly: "

quote PortageKeeper: "Karhu used to make the Karver and the Meta. Don't believe they make them now but you may find used ones on a search."

These also look great. Same concept. No luck finding them on CL though :(



I think I'll give the Alti Hok's a go. Found a new pair with the universal bindings for $275 shipped to my door. Very reasonable



I like my snowshoes and these wont replace them but sometimes they can be awkward and a lot of work. Plus these look really fun!"

How wide are they?"

According to the manufacturer they are tapered 124mm/110mm/122mm or 4.9 inches at the widest and 4.3 inches in the middle.

Its more of a hybrid snowshoe than a ski really. Can't wait to try them out.

quote whitecedar: "My wife has a pair of these and she thinks they are fantastic. Like a fat tire bike she just points and goes. She has the snow board ratchet binding and wears Steger Mukluks, hiking boots or Salomon winter boots. Let me know if you have additional questions.


"

I think the best part is I don't have to pack a ski boot with the universal binding, just strap in and go. I ended up getting the longer 145cm ones thinking more float.

Good buy, should work just fine, now we need the snow
happy turns.

Pics please and a review after you have had them for a spell! I need new skis, and these are quite intriguing.

I used a rental pair on a trip last year. They were awesome when used hauling a sled. We got them from Stone Harbor in Grand Marais.

Mike

I was wondering if Stone Harbor rented them. Thanks!

I have a pair of the Hok 146s and have used them in the BWCA a couple of years ago.

I used a backpack at the time, but I expect that the climbing skin would work good for pulling a sled.

At that time, I had the Universal Binding, which did not expand large enough for my Scarpa T3 boots size 12.

So I used a pair of gortex winter shoes. The Hok/shoe combo worked great on untracked snow, but was not good on existing ski/snowshoe trails. The roughness of the trails bothered my ankles since the Hoks stick out at an angle on existing ski tracks.

Soon thereafter, I sold the Universal Bindings and put on Voile Mountaineer bindings for my Scarpa T3s, which solved my ankle support problem.

I plan on using them on the SHT this winter.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

LL Bean used to make something similar that I tried and I wasn't very impressed with how it handled deep snow. If these are lighter they probably work better. I still don't believe they would work very well for the portages with steep hills but I could be wrong.

quote Gadfly: "LL Bean used to make something similar that I tried and I wasn't very impressed with how it handled deep snow. If these are lighter they probably work better. I still don't believe they would work very well for the portages with steep hills but I could be wrong. "

I agree on the portages. Snowshoes are still the way to go pulling a sled up and down hills. The nice thing with these is you can switch between them quickly without changing boots. I'll be heading up there in two weeks on a 4 day trip to try them out.

quote kmjsuperfly: "

quote Gadfly: "LL Bean used to make something similar that I tried and I wasn't very impressed with how it handled deep snow. If these are lighter they probably work better. I still don't believe they would work very well for the portages with steep hills but I could be wrong. "

I agree on the portages. Snowshoes are still the way to go pulling a sled up and down hills. The nice thing with these is you can switch between them quickly without changing boots. I'll be heading up there in two weeks on a 4 day trip to try them out. "

I think you better take water skiis the way the weather is and forcast for the next 10 days.

quote Pinetree: "

quote kmjsuperfly: "

quote Gadfly: "LL Bean used to make something similar that I tried and I wasn't very impressed with how it handled deep snow. If these are lighter they probably work better. I still don't believe they would work very well for the portages with steep hills but I could be wrong. "

I agree on the portages. Snowshoes are still the way to go pulling a sled up and down hills. The nice thing with these is you can switch between them quickly without changing boots. I'll be heading up there in two weeks on a 4 day trip to try them out. "

I think you better take water skiis the way the weather is and forcast for the next 10 days."

I know I'm planning on heading up for 4 days starting the 19th and im really nervous about the weather, I might be winter camping with a canoe for the first time

quote kmjsuperfly: "

quote Gadfly: "LL Bean used to make something similar that I tried and I wasn't very impressed with how it handled deep snow. If these are lighter they probably work better. I still don't believe they would work very well for the portages with steep hills but I could be wrong. "

I agree on the portages. Snowshoes are still the way to go pulling a sled up and down hills. The nice thing with these is you can switch between them quickly without changing boots. I'll be heading up there in two weeks on a 4 day trip to try them out. "

I used my 175 cm Rossignol BC 125 skis in the BWCA two years ago while pulling sled. For the portages, I put on my kicker skins and had no trouble hauling the sled up and down the steep portages.

So based upon my personal experience, the Hoks with a wide and long kicker skin on a flexible base should work for dragging a sled up and down steep portages.

Now, your sleds may be heavier than my sled so my experience may be different than yours.

I travel somewhat light (e.g., the backpack referred to in my first post above is about 20 lbs.). I am not hauling heated tents, heavy axes, big cook sets and the like.