Broken crampon strap 18 miles from the trailhead near Anaconda

Last Tuesday my right crampon strap snapped just past the old mine cabin on the Pintler loop, and I had to rig it with a piece of paracord and a carabiner for the rest of the day. It held, but I kept checking it every 10 minutes, which killed the flow. Anyone else carry a spare strap or do you just trust the rig job?

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bailey.sam28d ago

Wait, was the strap actually snapped or did the buckle just let go? Because I've seen guys swear their strap broke when it was really the ladder lock slipping, and that changes the fix completely. If it's the ladder lock, paracord will hold fine, but if it's a true tear in the webbing near the heel cup, you're basically one good step away from a ski mountaineering boot doing the splits. I'd carry a spare strap if you're doing the whole Pintler loop again, but for a quick day trip, a zip tie wrapped around the boot cuff works better than a carabiner since it won't catch on brush. Just make sure you seat the paracord knot right at the plastic anchor point and not halfway up the strap, or you'll be re-rigging it every mile.