Are these really necessary?

[Dokahona]

I am hiking the Maryland section of the AT in a month. It will be my first overnight hike. Up to this point I've only done day hikes (5-15 milers) in my area. Do I NEED hiking poles to do this section? And also, I guess I dont NEED to bring a stove for just 3 nights of camping right??

Thanks for any info you can hook this "noob" up with!

[Deadeye]

You don't NEED poles anytime or anywhere. If you like to hike with poles, hike with poles. If you don't like.... you get the point.

Same with a stove - you don't need a stove if you don't want hot food or coffee.

[rjjones]

Deadeye is dead on.All depends on what you want to do and like to do.I'l be doing an overnighter this weekend.Poles:Yes,i like my poles{for walking and my tarp setup}.Stove:I have food that requires no cooking and dont need a hot drink.

[Carl in FL]

I can live without poles or hot food. Coffee .... I draw the line there, gotta have it.

[johnnybgood]

The terrain coming out of PenMar is rocky and for that reason alone I'd take hiking poles. Hiking poles do lend balance when traversing over rocks .

[hikerboy57]

mmmmm coffee......stove...yes

[stranger]

Absolutely not haha, Maryland? Not exactly northern New England now is it? As for rocks, I find trekking poles on rocks to be more of a hazard than anything else.

Hking poles were very rare along the AT up until around '97-'98, you almost never saw them. There were plenty of hikers with the odd hiking staff, picked up along the trail, but as for the Leki craze, it's more of a fad than anything else. All of a sudden everyone has bad knees haha, at a time when people are carrying LESS weight overall.

Remember when we drank from garden hoses and taps? Now everyone buys Poland Spring, same deal.

I see friggin day hikers out there for 3 miles with poles nowdays, c'mon? I think people using trekking poles is more about their headspace and much less about their knees and ankles. Gotta be fashionable, gotta have your poles and don't forget your ULA!

[Dokahona]

cool thanks everyone!

[jeffmeh]

Absolutely not haha, Maryland? Not exactly northern New England now is it? As for rocks, I find trekking poles on rocks to be more of a hazard than anything else.

Hking poles were very rare along the AT up until around '97-'98, you almost never saw them. There were plenty of hikers with the odd hiking staff, picked up along the trail, but as for the Leki craze, it's more of a fad than anything else. All of a sudden everyone has bad knees haha, at a time when people are carrying LESS weight overall.

Remember when we drank from garden hoses and taps? Now everyone buys Poland Spring, same deal.

I see friggin day hikers out there for 3 miles with poles nowdays, c'mon? I think people using trekking poles is more about their headspace and much less about their knees and ankles. Gotta be fashionable, gotta have your poles and don't forget your ULA!

I certainly doubt that hiking poles are "more of a fad than anything else," given their ability to take significant pressure off of the back and lower body. That being said, "hike your own hike."

[hikerboy57]

I certainly doubt that hiking poles are "more of a fad than anything else," given their ability to take significant pressure off of the back and lower body. That being said, "hike your own hike."

All the cool kids are doing it.

[The Old Boot]

To each there own, but I wouldn't make it up the hill or down the next one without my hiking pole(s). Course then, I'm not in my thirties either like the OP.

Hiking poles have been proven to take the strain off the backs and knees...maybe if I'd used them when I was younger, my knees wouldn't be giving me so much grief now!!

[hikerboy57]

Ive never used trekking poles, but I intend to have them next year for my section hike from Springer to DWG.Ive had enough input to understand theyll be a big help in covering some 1200 miles.But Im 54 yrs old, so the knees are not what they once were.If you've already hiked over aggressive terrain for more than just a few weeks, thenmaybe you dont need them.

[ScottP]

Poles are nice if you have bad knees or a physiology not highly suitable for hiking. I used to use poles and loved them. Now I love hiking without poles.

[10-K]

I always take my poles when I'm wearing a pack which works out pretty good since they are also my tent poles. If I've got a light pack and am somewhere I plan on running I leave them at home.

Going stoveless for the first time on a weeklong hike starting this Saturday.

[LDog]

Both of these questions are well documented in these pages. I really like the simplicity that going cookless offers, but I too like my coffee - and, I love to cook. A hot meal or beverage could be life-saving in the cold, or at the least soul-soothing. As for hiking poles, I am in the over-50 set and see poles as a way to help relieve the pressure on my all too abused knees, ankles and back. I am one of those folks who use them on short day hikes, but more for practice than need. I'll be taking both a minimal cooking kit, and hiking sticks ...

[Cookerhiker]

When I hiked MD in April, I was glad I had my poles mostly because of some unexpected fords brought on by the heavy Spring rains. But on the whole, MD doesn't feature the long steep rocky descents like New England. There are a few rocky areas but if poles are a burden to you, leave them home.

[LDog]

Heh! Here's a link that came to me on FB right after I posted the above. Why you *need* poles by the folks who sell em.

[Pony]

Not to start the great pole debate, but I like them, and I don't think they're a fad. There's a reason why people buy them. I feel like they're an extention of my hands and give me better balance.

As far as stoves are concerned, it's a matter of comfort. If you want to eat cold food, then go for it. I like to have at least one hot meal a day, and coffee on occasion. Fires can also be used to cook.

p.s. I still drink out of the garden hose.

[EJC]

The terrain coming out of PenMar is rocky and for that reason alone I'd take hiking poles. Hiking poles do lend balance when traversing over rocks .

I just hiked this section last week and having poles saved me from a few potentially nasty spills over those rocks. I hated my poles at first but they proved to be pretty useful. They also made some steeper hills easier to climb/ descend. If you want hot food, bring a stove. If you can live without it for a day or two, skip it. It'll just add extra weight.

[garlic08]

There are lots of things many hikers carry that you don't really need. Over the years, I've left behind the stove, the camera, the multi-tool, ground cloth, inflatable mattress, water filter, flashlight, I've never carried a GPS or cell phone.... Your pack should reflect your experience, comfort level, difficulty and remoteness of trip, weather expected, etc.

Do a search on this forum and you may be surprised at the intensity of the hiking pole debate, too.