Trekking Poles

[josh litt]

I was just curious on the amount of thru hikers that carry trekking poles. An Rei employee who thru hiked, told me to get them but to be honest they seem a little strange to me and something ive never considered much in the past. What are the benefits and is it just more of a hassel lugging them around?

-josh litt

[Lone Wolf]

Don't just buy them cuz someone says to. Try hiking a couple of hundred miles without them. Borrow someone's poles and try them. They aren't needed.

[Ender]

I agree. Don't buy them just because someone told you to. Try them out first. Use an old pair of ski poles if you have them lying around to get the idea. Or even just a couple of sticks you pick up.

I use them because they help me a lot when going down hills, taking a lot of pressure off the knees. For flat ground and for going uphill, I don't find they do very much, and even slow me down on flat terrain. They also do help me a lot when crossing streams, using them for balance, but any stick picked up at the edge of the stream would do pretty much the same thing.

But yeah, try them out before you buy them. Some people love them, some people don't. Just depends. I like them, but that's because I'm me.

[swantekkie]

Trekking poles seem like another way to get trust fund hikers to waste more of there money. Why would u buy a trekking pole when there are hundreds of free ones in the woods, this sort of goes against the leave no trace theme but if the sticks not a living branch than what harm could it do.

[Lone Wolf]

Get some used ski poles at a thrift store for a couple of dollars like Warren Doyle does.

[josh litt]

excellent advice all of you! THANK YOU

[SalParadise]

I love my hiking poles and don't like to hike without them. But everyone else is right, try some out first before you buy. I also like being able to adjust the length of poles according to the grade.

But if you do get any, just get the cheapest ones you can find (ski poles work great, too). The hydraulic feature in expensive poles is just a waste of a lot of money. My last pair of poles was $10.

[mountain squid]

The only time I don't use poles is when I'm doing trail maintenance. My hands are usually carrying tools instead (and even then there are times when I wish I had them).

While hiking with poles, don't know how often they've kept me from having a nasty fall. On steep down hills, they help to slow momentum. On very steep down hills, they give you an extended arm to maintain balance as you step down. They also help when crossing streams strewn with slippery rocks and for determining depth of said stream. Also helpful for retrieving bogs that have "floated" away and then for maintaining balance on the "floating" bog.

At night, if staying in a shelter, they become my "whacking" pole (anyone remember "whacking" day? - DOH!!) for keeping pesky mice at bay.

Of course, any ole stick might suffice, but, in addition for me, one pole serves as a tent pole. Many lightweight tents have this ability in lieu of carrying an extra pole.

While hiking I never adjust the length, nor do I have springs inside. I agree that that is probably wasted money, but I'm sure some use that function often. Bear in mind that ski poles are not adjustable and there are a few times when you may need to stow them in your pack, ie. when traveling and possibly through Mahoosuc Notch, etc.

See you on the trail,
mt squid

[SalParadise]

One other reason I really like having poles with me is for any road walking. Too many people don't have the courtesy to move over and can get awfully close. When I'm roadwalking I like to stick one pole out a couple feet into the road, and it always works to move the cars over a bit. I guess they care a little more about scratching their car than hitting hiker trash.

[Kaptain Kangaroo]

Wow, I'm suprised at the negative comments about poles, especially considering that I didn't see one thru-hiker without them once I got past the first couple of hundred miles. I think they are possibly the best piece of gear I've got. They take a little getting used to, so please don't just borrow some poles for a day hike & then decide that you don't like them. It takes a week or two to really get them working & understand how to use them.

They let you hike further & faster (especially on rough terrain) and they WILL save you from falling. They save a lot of stress on your knees on downhills.

A comment on using ski poles - hiking poles have a small carbide tip that gives them good grip on smooth rock, ski poles don't & will slip more easily(usually at the worst possible moment:-) Also, having wrist straps is important as they allow to to put a lot of weight on the pole without having to grip it hard. So if you do use ski poles get ones with wrist straps. Oh... this is why a stick doesn't work so well either.

Anyway, this is just my opinion. Good quality poles do cost a lot, but I think they are worth the money.

Cheers,

kaptain Kangaroo

[rswanson]

Wow, I'm suprised at the negative comments about poles, especially considering that I didn't see one thru-hiker without them once I got past the first couple of hundred miles.

The folks who have an issue with them are typically more outspoken than those that like 'em. This thread comes up weekly at W/B. It comes down to a matter of personal preference.

[Michele]

I've hiked with and without poles. I prefer hiking with my poles now. Just 2 weeks ago they saved my butt (literally) from hitting the ground in a nasty fall when I turned my ankle. They also help me tremendously when I'm at the end of a long tiring hike where my energy levels are dwindling and I need that little extra "help" up a hill. When I first went out to try them it was awkward, but I was thinking about it too much. I finally found a rythym and love them now.

I do agree w/the consensus that you should just try some first and then decide. There are also another style of hiking poles, called Pacer Poles that Brian, from ULA sells. They look pretty interesting. http://www.ula-equipment.com/pacer_poles.htm Whatever you decide, good luck and happy hiking!

[Ender]

I hope my comments weren't considered negative. I meant them to be as neutral as possible. Just that someone should try them before he lays out $130 for a pair to see if he likes them.

I use them, I like them. But that's just me.

One note on how I use my poles, that prevents me from using plain sticks... because I use them primarily on the down hills, the hand grips need to be a certain shape for me. During the decent I will place the very top of the pole in the palm of my hand, right at the heel, and steady the pole between my ring and pinkie fingers. That way when I place the full extent of my weight onto the poles, it avoids me having to grip the pole tightly, and relieves stress on my wrists. Because of this, sticks won't work (unless I feel like having palmfulls of splinters) and neither will a lot of skiing poles... Downhill poles often have very large tops that prevent holding the pole that way, and xcountry ski poles are pointy on the top. Just something to think about if you end up using poles the same way I do.

And yes, poles will help one to catch their balance... 4 feet are better than 2.

YMMV

[Oklahoma 98]

I've hiked without them and with them. With them work works best for me.

[SalParadise]

when I hiked with ski poles I wrapped some athletic tape a few inches below the handles and switched between the two grips depending on whether I was going uphill or down.

[Peaks]

Well, short answer. Most thru-hikers seem to use them, even the ultra-lighters. Must be a good reason. (Maybe when I get old I'll try them myself.)

[d2m]

I switched to poles after hurting my ankel, in PA . this was in 2004 .i was hiking with a guy from alabama and after about four days of watching me limp he insisted that i try his poles out. they were a huge help and when i got to duncannon mary took me to the outfitter in harrisburg and i bought a basic set of lekis. since then i have allways used them. there were times during my hike this summer that they were a little bit of a pain. but this was mostly during the sections of rock climbing in NH and ME. so basicaly i'm for them, plus i noticed than my hands tend to swell up when i hike w/out my poles. i don't have this minor problem when i ues them.

[rafe]

I've been hiking since the mid-1970s. I was in my early 20s then. I didn't bother with hiking poles until about six years ago. Even among thru-hikers, I don't think poles became really popular until 5-10 years ago.

These days, I wouldn't do a serious hike without them. Sure, there are times and places when I don't need them (eg., when the ground is quite flat and unobstructed) or can't use them (eg., on extremely steep ascents and descents.) For the "typical day" on the AT, I'll use them almost constantly. Nice to have adjustable poles so they can be "compacted" when not in use.

If in doubt, buy a cheap pair and give them a try. Campmor's basic set are $50.

[Programbo]

I think the only reason 90% of people you see with them carry them is because they see everyone else with them or some salesman told them to buy them....I sold backpacking equipment at one of the largest stocked and busiest outdoors stores on the east coast 6 days a week for almost 11 years and never once sold a "trekking pole" and all those thousands of hikers I helped outfit weren`t out there falling all over the place or passing out from exhaustion beside the trail..They were in general carrying more weight than todays hikers and using for the most part inferior equipment and I can honestly say I really never met anyone either on the trail back then or in the store who had physical problems...It`s just a fad...I`m sure there are some cases where they help some people but in most cases they are pointless...I think the majority of people who seem to be having "problems" (Falls, ankles, knees) that these poles cure are having the problems due to incorrect packs and or boots...Getting in shape and slowing down wouldn`t hurt either.....But since I am out of the loop era wise I shall say try them out and see what you personally think.

[handlebar]

I don't think my 61 year old knees would have survived 2175 miles this year without them. Started using one pole on a 100-mile trek with multiple passes when I was 49. Found that supplementing it with a stick found in the woods really improved the utility and took a lot of weight off my knees. Wouldn't hike without them. On up and level terrain I use them to push off with my lats and they really increase my speed. Descents, they are helpfull to take stress off the knees and stabilize. On this year's through hike I used them every day---even through Mahoosus Notch and on the descent from Katahdin. Only rarely did I let them hang by the wrist loops from my writst while using hands and legs both to scramble. Highly recommend, but recommend trying (using some sticks or ski poles before buying).

Handlebar
GA-ME 06