Poles vs. walking stick(s) (%)?

[Morpheus]

I've happily hiked hundreds of miles with my single, homemade, padded, strapped, spiked, Sassafras walking stick. Feeling somewhat remedial, I recently bought Leki Super Makalu's.
Then my reliable (wooden) old friend kept laying a guilt trip on me. Yes it's a magical talking/ walking stick. I got tired of the nagging, so today I took the Leki's back for a refund and will hike Springer to Tray Gap with "Old faithful" in April. By the way, the Leki's never said a word.
I'm curious how many hikers (%) are still satisfied with sticks? Maybe somebody in Georgia observing the large, constant migration on the AT has a clue.

[Tinker]

I'm 100% satisfied with my entry level Lekis. Would probably be satisfied with anything else. I used a single wooden staff all through the '80s and '90s. Not needed? What really is? I find them useful to take the impact off of my old arthritic knees, help me set up a tarp or prop up the eaves on my HH hammock tarp for better views. HYOH, and I mean that.

[Seeker]

i retired my faithful old (cut in 1976) elm staff about a year ago. it was getting short from wear. i replaced it with an oak sapling, once again about 6' long. i use it mostly for easing the bumps down hills, propping up a corner of a tarp, or as a prop for walking across footlogs. but what i really like is its character, or potential for it. my old staff was covered with carving, nicks and scratches, and the handle was polished with sweat and blisters. the new one will get that way... there's just something warm and still alive about a wooden staff that i don't find in a 'set of poles'.

[Morpheus]

I thoroughly agree. I've always enjoyed seeing how other hiker's have customized their staffs with carvings or artwork that gives some individual character. I do need a staff or poles for the down-hills to save my knees. I also agree on HYOH. I'm just surprised how many pole hikers there are now compared to 10 years ago.

[Philippe]

I'm not sure that a comparison can be made here. I always thought that it was best to hike with my hands empty. When I retired I was given a pair of Leki Super Makalus along with some other nice gifts. I didn't do anything with them for several months. Then a friend told me that they made a big difference with his knees. I have a tricky knee and have had a hip replacement, so I was interested. He was right. They make a big difference. They have no character other than their function. They would never replace something with the memories of you hand made sassafras staff or Seeker's elm. If your joints don't need the assistance, I'd say go with what you have. My poles don't say anything either, but my knees clearly say thank you. Happy hiking.

[CocamoJoe]

What does Lone Wolf think of Leki's?

[Tinker]

If you get a couple of strong Poles to carry your gear, you won't need hiking sticks.

[Montego]

Just replaced my ol' hiking staff with another one recently. Sure do hope the new hicory staff 'speaks' to me as well as my old one did. Hiking poles just look to cold and clinical to me!

[Hikes in Rain]

Recently replaced my beloved, faithful old Laural hiking staff. It developed a crack after saving my sorry butt from a bad fall, and I couldn't trust it any more. You could hear the weakness when you tapped it on the ground, and I retired it before it could break. Beloved child bride got me a pair of Leki Ultralite Longs, which far surpass the old stick in performance.

I leaned the old stick against the At map hanging in the library. When asked why, I replied that I didn't want it to feel abandoned, that if it was beside the map it might feel it was just waiting for the next hike.

"Oh, old sticks have feelings?"

"Well, they do have memories", I replied.

She surprised me by mounting the stick on a beautiful hardwood display plaque, hanging on the library wall. I love my child bride.

[Lone Wolf]

I've happily hiked hundreds of miles with my single, homemade, padded, strapped, spiked, Sassafras walking stick. Feeling somewhat remedial, I recently bought Leki Super Makalu's.
Then my reliable (wooden) old friend kept laying a guilt trip on me. Yes it's a magical talking/ walking stick. I got tired of the nagging, so today I took the Leki's back for a refund and will hike Springer to Tray Gap with "Old faithful" in April. By the way, the Leki's never said a word.
I'm curious how many hikers (%) are still satisfied with sticks? Maybe somebody in Georgia observing the large, constant migration on the AT has a clue.

you made a good decision. don't succumb to marketing BS. leki schmeki. i've never used a stick, pole, staff, etc. take your old faithful

[darkage]

aww, that hurts LW ... i kinda the new age BS the aluminum poles give ... saved me from breaking an ankle a few times ... tho my $20 swiss army with rubber boots have lastest me 2 years with no bends or faults ... i'm not really bought into these high class "shock absorbent" poles ... and thats 240+ weighin in on them badboys ... properly adjusted height and you won't risk bending um ...

I've tried Staffs ... i felt like moses at times .... eh, i think its all down to personal preference ...

[darkage]

blah, no editing ... above reads " i kinda like the new age BS " .. =]

[joel137]

I've hiked with both. The staff, for me carved from an oak sapling "harvested" in Tesnatee Gap, GA has more soul, but I've used poles now for the last 8 long distance hikes or so.

Pole advantages: weight and use with both arms, so its probably better for the knees. Of course using two sticks would satisfy the second advantage.

Some tents are designed for use of hiking poles in their set-up; this would be trickier or impossible with a staff for many of those tents. Of course, this depends on the tent or tarp or hammock.

I don't find the shock absorbing feature of the poles to be of much use, while a bit more useful; I tend to not vary the length of the poles much either.
______________________________
Staff advantages: One big advantage a 5 or 6 foot staff has is in balance support while doing stream crossings. Particularly when you are walking across a fallen log that is about 3 or 4 feet above the stream, you need a long stick to put into stream to provide balance support; the hiking poles usually aren't long enough in such situations. This also can apply sometime for boulder hopping across a stream as well.

[Summit]

I opted for the non-shock absorbing Komperdell C3s and like joel137 tend not to want to bother shortening the length for uphills and lengthening them for downhills. I found a suitable length that works fine in both situations. At 14 oz. for the pair, 7 oz. in each hand feels like you're carrying air. Much lighter and less wear and tear on the arms than one or two wooden staffs.

[hopefulhiker]

Has anyone used actual ski poles to hike wth? Are they strong enough?

[Thrasher]

I just ordered some leki non shock absorbing poles last night for my wife and I. I like the idea of using both hands, and my nice hiking stick/staff was always giving me a blister on my hand from rubbing on it. I'm hoping it will help with my knee that has been hurting lately on my hikes. I've gotten up in the morning and have stumbled around just trying to walk because my knee has been so sore the next morning. I might even get a tarp/tent to pitch with my poles. I'm keeping my stick though, I'll continue to use it sometimes on shorter hikes and at a camp that I volunteer at every year.

[Summit]

My old "stick" is standing in the corner of my home office as a memorial/reminder of my early years of backpacking. I'm going with my son to Shining Rock Wilderness the first weekend in April and will take it along and offer it to him. It will be good for it to get it out of the house and stretch its legs!

[SunnyWalker]

I have used both although my wood staff is actually lighter than the swiss gear hiking staffs I used for a week last summer on AT. there are hundreds of sites on the net about this but here are two fun ones:
- www.earth01.com/equipment/hikingstaff.htm
- inquiry.net/outdoor/skills/b-p/staff.htm
-and my favorite is the Trail-stik. It seems that it would be real good at gently nudging dogs away from ones legs. It can be viewed at: trailgeartradingpost.com/ Empty it is 13.9 oz. Empty cuz its made from anodized alumimun and one can put survival stuff in it1 Neat huh?!? I liked the Swiss gear and thus hiking sticks but they are SO lightweight that they were not good for the dog bounding up the trail. Now I don't bean these dogs at all, would not want to hurt them-but I gently nudge them away from my legs.

[shelterbuilder]

Definitely a wooden staff. Lots of memories with the one I have. I only hike with one - that leaves the other hand free to hold the dog's leash!

[Wags]

go with what makes you happy!