Skip to content
Wild10Basecamp

Top 10 · Gear

Top 10 Pack Shovels

Avalanche shovels, folding spades, and compact digging tools worth their weight in the pack.

All top 10 lists

A pack shovel earns its place in three distinct roles: avalanche rescue in the mountains, snow-shelter and stove-pit work in winter camps, and general fire, latrine, and dig-out work in three-season travel. The materials split cleanly — aircraft aluminum for backcountry ski and mountaineering, steel for hard digging and long-term camp use, and lightweight blends for ultralight trips where any shovel is better than none.

  1. 1

    Pro Alu III Shovel

    — Black Diamond

    Aircraft aluminum blade, extending oval shaft, aggressive teeth. The reference avalanche-rescue shovel for guides and patrollers.

    Read the full profile
  2. 2

    Alugator Ride / Pro

    — Ortovox

    Full-size aluminum blade with a hoe-mode option. Fast in dense avalanche debris, well-thought-out ergonomics.

    Read the full profile
  3. 3

    Deploy 7 / Deploy 3

    — Voile

    American-made, telescoping, minimalist. The workhorse ski-mountaineering shovel — the '7' handles serious digging, the '3' is the ultralight pick.

    Read the full profile
  4. 4

    Lynx Shovel

    — G3

    Deep blade, comfortable T-grip, one of the fastest shovels in comparison rescue tests.

    Read the full profile
  5. 5

    Special Forces Shovel

    — Cold Steel

    Solid steel spade with a sharpened edge. Chops roots and small wood, digs fire pits and latrines, lasts decades.

    Read the full profile
  6. 6

    Entrenching Tool (E-tool)

    — Glock

    Folding polymer/steel tool with a saw. The compact overland/vehicle shovel — light, tough, cheap.

    Read the full profile
  7. 7

    Original Field Shovel

    — Gerber (E-Tool)

    The updated military folder. Steel blade, glass-filled nylon handle, real capacity for latrine and fire-pit work.

    Read the full profile
  8. 8

    Piepsspaten Shovel

    — Pieps

    Compact metal blade with hoe-mode. Efficient at moving avalanche debris without the weight of a full-size guide shovel.

    Read the full profile
  9. 9

    Bushcraft Trowel / Vargo Dig Dig

    — Vargo

    Titanium ultralight digger. Not a real snow shovel — the right pick for three-season backpacking where you only need a cat-hole tool.

    Read the full profile
  10. 10

    Cold-War Surplus E-Tool (Swiss / Soviet)

    — Surplus

    Heavy steel, wooden handle, indestructible. Cheap, extremely durable, ideal for base-camp and vehicle use where weight doesn't matter.

    Read the full profile
Bottom line

For avalanche country, a full-size aluminum blade with an extending shaft is non-negotiable — the small ones don't move snow fast enough when it matters. For camp and general use, a compact folding steel spade like the Cold Steel or Glock outlasts almost anything.

Next list
Cold-Weather Hats
Read next

Independent editorial picks. Buy links open the maker or a retailer search so you can price-check and pick your source.