Winter hiking sleds

“Do you have a brake on her sled?

In this picture, the rope thing on the front of the blue sled is the brake. It works great, and actually would slow me down on skis.

Sled Picture

My friend used a length of chain for the same effect on his homemade sled, it also worked very well.

Home Made Sled”

“Yo Pennsy, that looks like the kind of sled I'll be getting. Thanks for the pics/ideas. What is the pole at the back for?”

“Ok Twiggy, I'll check my calendar and see when I can squeeze it in. ;o)

Buddur - the back pole is a broomstick handle that swivels and can be quickly removed. This sled could be used for 2 people so the second one can use the pole to steer and/or help push.”

“Well they looked pretty detailed to me alrady, lol!

I added a knotted drag rope on mine. My friend used one last year and it worked great. She also just put the rope that was attached to the sled around her waist and it was fine for what we did.”

“Peensy, I like the swivel stick idea! Regarding brakes...the ropes that run through my PVC traces have knots at the bottom and, in theory only, should slow the sled down when the rope goes slack (on downhill).

The biggest problem I have found is not the getting run over part(the PVC traces will stop the overrun) but the sled kicking out and off trail...
usually swinging all the way around to the front of me and then proceeding to drag my a$$ the rest of the way down the fargin' hill!
=:0”

“Yeah mine didn't run over me, but it tried to race me down a coupla hills, lol. Maybe I'll try jumping on this time!”

“Yeah, AmyG usually trips me and uses my body as an anchor That stops the sled pretty well....lol. Seriously though, I usually just try to out run in on the downhills. Kinda tough in snowshoes at times.”

“Awwww.. forget the brakes. We gotta have SOME entertainment while on the trail.

Now I get it Twiggy - I thought you were being just a tad sarcastic at first (which is sooo un-Maineiac like ;o)). By details I meant thickness of the platform, pole lenghts, bolt sizes etc. Also, the pics aren't that good and could be redone and enhanced.

But it's a start!”

“Okay, we typically try for 20% of our body weight for summer hiking, and we always seem to go over a little bit. That's about 35lbs. for me and 25 lbs. for Skeetah Bait What is a reasonable target weight to tug on your sled in winter??”

“Hmmmmm.... I just add the things to the sled that normally wouldn't be in the pack to begin with....

such as firewood.....”

“Can someone please get some shots of you guys grappling with your sleds on a steep downhill. I wanna see that! I know, I know...sadist!”

“Got my sled tonight...for a whopping $4.23.”

“Penssy...looks great!!! Just a thought, though....spare parts?? BTW don't ya worry about entertainment, I'm sure I will be plenty entertaining when I take my first spill going downhill. Maybe I should change my name to Scary bait??? :)”

“Oh those kinda details...

I have no idea how much weight I put in my sled. If my contraption falls apart I have penty of line and I'll just pull it like normal people do. :)”

“haha, Scary Bait. I like that!! ;o)
Spare parts? Hmmm, maybe a few extra bolts, but like Twiggy said, if it falls apart, good old rope will work.”

“I have some chain I was going to attach to the back so if the sled slides backwards the chain will go under the sled and "theoretically" give traction and slow the thing down if not stop it. What if a short loop was attached to the front and held off the snow, but was able to be let down when going downslope to keep the sled from sliding into ya. Seems all you'd need to do was use a little force to pull the sled downslope rather than have it push you down.

Anybody have any comments on that idea?”

“Rosey, I have a shot of Adventurist retrieving his sled from a bush last weekend, after a downhill "fishtail." Unfortunately, it is a faraway shot, so the comedy is not as good as in real time. I was lucky to stop laughing enough to snap the shot though!
”

“If you're just looking for something to ride sown snowy hills around camp, and not hauling with a sled, a thermarest works great.”

“Buddur if I getcha right, that's similar to my knotted drag rope. It's attached to the front and I can throw it under if I need to.

As far as weight goes - by the looks of things I think my food bag'll weigh 20lbs alone, LOL.”

“Thanks...
The problem was the fact that the snow had an icy crust on top and the sled wasn't tracking at all so if we hit a downhill it swung around from the side.

I am making some adjustments before the next trip based on the pictures I see of the expensive Swedish sleds for sale.”

“Good Question From This Guy Over In Easton

;-)”

“My sled pics:

sled”

“Twigster - that sled should work fine. Have you tested it yet?

Adventurist - that first link to the beast sled is the sled I have. Unfortunately, I paid a lot more for it at a local sporting goods store.

I'm cracking up about that Outside Online question. I'm thinking... wow, there is another backpacker in Easton named Bruce that is making a sled. I forgot that a few months ago I posted a question there.”

“Hey Pennsy...look at the "Whats at your birdfeeder thread"

There was a guy there from the newspaper taking pictures...

He had a Nikon D1...Is that what you have?”

“Hey, that's cool. I'd love to see a snowy owl. I have a D1H, a newer version of the D1. I bet he doesn't backpack with his. ;o)”

“Checked out the "rigid" PVC at the local hardware store and the pipe don't seem so rigid to me. They had the regular PVC which did seem less-rigid, but the rigid stuff still seemed pretty flexible.

I plan to just thread a nylon rope through the PVC, knot it, thread it through the front of the sled, and knot it on the underside to attach the pipe to the sled. Has anyone else done this, and if so, did it work?

I'm somehow going to use my Dana Design Terraplane-X hipbelt as the sled hipbelt, just as soon as I figure a way to attach it to the poles.

I scrapped the backend sliding chain as a slidding-backwards brake since I couldn't find what I know I have at my storage shed. I figure I could knot a rope and attach that to the backend. I have tyvek I'm going to use as a drybag bu laying it on the sled, loading the gear, wrapping over and rolling up the tyvek, using nylon straps to hold it inplace and the load to the sled.

My sled will be pretty simple. I think if I knew I'd use it alot, I'd spend more $$$ and time to make it more professional.”

“I still say get some fiberglass tent poles. Eureka sells replacements. Drill a hole in the end, use a ring to fasten it. My buddy drilled a hole through his hip belt, put a bolt through it. Use an eyebolt and you can put the ring through it.”

“couldn't we just wait till all the snow melts and then go hiking with the chiggerz n skeeterz n snakes n ticks?”

“yuck. You just listed the best part of snow camping.”

“Well, we took our sleds to Bradbury Foothill and tried out the sleds with 6 foot pipes and the ropes up thru them. They were way too loose on the sleds and they kept passing us on a packed trail down hill. On the level, it was almost as if you weren't carrying anything. Up hill was only a little work, but we need to tighten up the connections and shorten the poles. We will adjust and try again next week. Pennsy's design is looking awfully good about now....”

“I need more advice...

1) where the hipbelt connects to the poles, should I leave 6", 1' or anyother shorter/longer length of pole extending "to the front" so I can grab them if necessary, or for lateral support against my sides? And...

2) Are cross-beams on the poles necessary for torsion/shear stresses and to keep the poles spaced together at all times (ie. when going across inclined surfaces)? D'You know what I mean?”

“I will have to say yes to the cross beams.......”

“Buddur

Yes to the cross pieces. I was thinking that next time I build I would use joints and build a ridgid "H" . . .my thin, non-ridgid PVC (1/2 inch) twisted, crossed, ran past me on hills, and slid out on traverses across the face of an incline.

On the postive side, the flex did allow it to rocket down hill behind me through a slalom of trees . . .as long as I kept ahead of it!!!!

My friend had his go wide on a corner at a high rate of speed. It kissed a tree dead on and explode all over the trail . . .total yard sale.”

“Maybe a dumb question, but where is a good place to start looking for winter sleds? I'm in the midwest, so not a lot of sporting goods places stock winter sleds, except the kind for kids to sled on. Any good on-line places to start the search?”

“I posted a link for a sled on this thread on the 17th....”

“sled and trip pics

Pennsy this is the same sled I used last year, different traces.

I loved the rigid traces! My sled stayed right behind me like a good little puppy at all times, even on the downhills - no side hill winding or anything. Plus I could get it off to the side much quicker when snowmobiles came along.

I was glad I replaced the old velcro straps with "real" straps as the remaining velcro strap (the one that goes lengthwise) snapped in the cold.

The belt was great, but I need a sturdier one. Before, when the sled was strapped to my pack the pressure of the sled was quite like a backpack, and I needed to adjust my daypack to move the pressure from shoulders to hips and vice versa over the day. The belt alleviated that pressure.

The extra line I left looped around my traces proved to be a problem on the way out. I was very happy with my set up, but made some small adjustments at the bunkhouse - like waxing the bottom of the sled and changing where the extra line was hanging.
I had to run back to get my watch (see Helix thread) and was supposed to catch up with the two groups that had headed out. For the first half hour I struggled along - sweat poured down my face and back - I cursed my friends for the rocks I was sure they put in my sled, my sled for acting like such a dead weight, me for putting wax on the bottom of a perfectly good sled, my stuff for being so much freakin' heavier than on the way in, and my skis for slip sliding away at every step.

Finally, I gave up and decided to break out the snowshoes. Took my skis off and flipped over the sled to see what that nasty wax must be up to, and discovered.....that there was a rope dragging under the sled the whole time! So I tied it up tight, took off with my skis and voila! Life was good again! Good enough for me to careen down some stinkin' hill totally out of control, barely keepin' my balance, only to do a total body plant once I reached the bottom. I'm pleased to report that during said body plant, my sled remained straight behind me in an upright position!

wahoo!

o(=}”

“Okay now. I gotta try something else. We just laced the rope thru the sled holes and up the PVC conduit. Way too flexible downhill. I was getting pissed, I mean real pissed. I don't like that feeling. I have little patience for things that don't work right.

I'm a gonna try something akin to what Pennsy has, and it appears twigeater has on those pics. I will try some rigid traces, mounted to plywood.

Twigeater and Pennsy, how long are your rigid traces, from the front of the sled to hip belt? Do you have any of it extending in front of you? I saw a picture of a leather carpenter's belt used to strap into it. Does anyone know where to get just a hip belt from a back pack?

Time is getting short here, come on and get it designed for me. Sounds like you have it all worked here!!! ;p”

“I wouldn't have any extending in front of me, I think it would get in the way. Flush with your sides is good. I'm guessing the drain pipes are 5ft, and I had no problem skiing with it. They were on sale for $5 each at Home Depot. The house coupler was a coupla bucks.

Someone suggested a weight lifting belt might be good, probably check Marden's for that. I liked my belt but it was too flimsy. The kick ass sleds (that I didn't get a picture of cause my batteries kept dying in the cold) used PVC for the traces, but it was a very complex design - also they all said a belt would be an improvement.

I didn't mount mine to plywood, simply tied it to the sled. I wanted some play in the whole thing and it worked great!”

“whoops, that would be "hose" coupler.”

“Thanks Adventurist for the link for the winter sled.”

“Twig --

you rule.


I am still jonezing for this trip.”

“I have a plan!!!


I am going to fashion a sled with the excuse that we may need it for our family trip to Maine.


We are headed to Western Maine (Lovell) the second week of February for a few days.

I will rebuild my sled, "to haul our 4 1/2 year old"

HE can be my guinea pig for downhill runs, stablity, tracking, traverses etc. If HE rolls out, then I can work on design flaws!!

THAT way, if I do finagle the points to escape to "HIKE MAINE" (if there is still room), then I will have a designed and tested sled ready to go!!”

“You go lee!
There's still one open spot, maybe more available.”

“UK - on my pvc sled, it's 61" from the tip of the sled to the end of the poles.

On the bigger sled with the drain pipes, it's 55."

I have about 5" of extension to prevent the ends from jabbing me.

I used thick leather belts that were lying around in a closet at work. I directly fastened the belt to the poles but they could be easily changed over to a clip thing if I wanted to hook up to a backpack.”

“I'm using my Dana Terraplane detachable-hipbelt as my sled's belt.

I have all the parts for the sled, poles, hipbelt and all the crap to attach everything. Now I just gotta do it. It's about half-way done, but I'm taking my time with it.”

“I have a question, but no time to read all 148 posts to try and find the answer.

I want to use my kids round disk sled to pull a little wood to the shelter this weekend.
But i was thinkind "how the hell do I keep the wood from falling out?"

So what if I get a garbage bag and put it over the wood and hold it down with Bungie (sp) cords?
that would keep the wood in the keep it dry.

so what do you think?”

“Maple --

I gotta believe that the round disks (flying saucers I called them as a kid)would tip over under a full load if you looked at them cross eyed.

And the bag would rip, and your load would go.


Will you pass a Walmart (or the equivalent) on the way?

The longer plastic tobbogan's are pretty cheap ($10)and would work much better.

I use an old one to haul wood from my wood pile to the house.”