Gear Review

Black Diamond Crampon Bag

• mesh body
• daisy-chain tie strap
• full zip
• 5.1 oz

As you get to be on more intimate terms with your crampons, you'll soon learn that they require special...shall we say...accommodations.

Carelessly toss a pair of steel crampons inside your pack, and you'll be lucky if anything comes out alive. The steel tips of your crampons can quickly shred all that critical nylon: your expensive Gore-tex shell, your tent, your sleeping bag—not to mention your tender human flesh.

Thus the need for products like Black Diamond's crampon bag. The goal here is to keep steel points and backcountry dedicates separate—even when they're all smashed together at the bottom of your pack.

The Black Diamond Crampon Bag has a noticeable weight advantage over competing models like Petzl's Fakir case, while still offering enough protection to help prevent unexpected—and unwanted—shredding. You'll still want to store your crampons point-to-point, of course, but this case absolutely offers extra insurance against mishaps.

The full zip allows you to effortlessly get your crampons in and out of the bag, and the mesh upper ensures that things dry out nice and fast. The bottom of the case is made of a sturdy vinyl-coated Nylon for puncture resistance. Black Diamond has also sewn a daisy-chained nylon strap to the bottom to give you an abundance of tie-off options.

On the downside, five ounces may not sound like much, but it does qualify as dead weight in your pack. Alternatives include strapping crampons onto your pack's exterior, switching to aluminum points when feasible, or perhaps wrapping your crampons in your camp towel. Whatever method you choose, it's nice to have one of these around as a safe place to keep your crampons, be it in your backpack, your closet, or in transit.