Good Morning Kanga, I see you didn't have your coffee yet, how are the animals?
Good Morning Kanga, I see you didn't have your coffee yet, how are the animals?
Dogs are excellent judges of character, this fact goes a long way toward explaining why some people don't like being around them.
Woo
I used my trekking poles to fight off a wombat once, so they are absolutely neccessary...
I didn't know Wombats were a problem in NY
Dogs are excellent judges of character, this fact goes a long way toward explaining why some people don't like being around them.
Woo
I prefer trekking poles, my wife (missjessy) prefers sticks for now. It's all according to preference.
I'll let you know how my future bamboo hiking pole project turns out.
I have never used poles at all to hike. I plan on doing some long distance hiking so I'm guessing, based on what everyone says, that I have to get them. My question is: How easy are they to get used to?
In all honesty though, I love my trekking poles
NOPE...not NECESSARY!...but, you can whittle for several hours & put a finish on it & get it exactly right...(if your time is worth nothing)
OR...you could buy some trekking poles for $100 (or slightly more) that have been ergo-tested & tried by long distance hikers...& work for anyone with knees.
Good luck with your hike!
section-hikin' Clarks Valley,PA NOBO to Greenwood Lake, NY
Apr 24-May 8
w/ "Jigsaw"
There's plenty of middle ground, and it's expressed in these forums all the time.
Here's my answer: it's not necessary to do anything at all. It's not even necessary to go hiking. And if you choose to go hiking, you could carry anything at all in your hands, or nothing. Asking other people to tell you about your preferences seems strange to me.
But if your question involves whether you can replicate what commercial poles do by shaving the bark off of two sticks, the answer is: you can make hiking sticks that way, but not trekking poles. Whether you think the engineering that goes into trekking poles is worth the money is your decision. I think it's worth it.
Pretty easy, I think. I started using mine 500 miles into a thru-hike. It took me a few days to get used to them. And maybe the best thing to do for those without experience with trekking poles (who are always the folks starting these threads) would be to borrow a pair for a few weeks and try them out on a trip that lasts a bit longer than a weekend (7-10 days). Then they'd be able to judge for themselves whether they're worth it or not for them.
You never turned around to see the frowns
On the jugglers and the clowns
When they all did tricks for you.
And you're likely to hurt yourself!
Following some advice here, I left my trekking poles at home one trip. After I took a nasty fall and suffered some nasty bruises and one pretty banged up knee, I decided some anti-bigcompanymarketingploy bs is bs. Don't let anyone else's opinion or sense of style interfere with what works best for you.
signed,
Tin Man the Klutz
Sticks.
And if you leave your house at home, neither are needed.
"A man is a success if he gets up in the morning and gets to bed at night, and in between he does what he wants to do."
-Bob Dylan
Everytime I pass someone that isn't using poles I wonder how they do it. Seriously.
I wonder how I used to do it. Way back when, I used to start out without anything, then grab a stick. Got tired of grabbing sticks, and carved my own full time staff. A few years ago, it cracked while saving me from a bad fall. I retired it with honor (it leans up against my framed AT map marking my progress), and before my next trip, my wife gifted me with a pair of Leki Ultralights. After a mile or so, I was amazed at how much difference two well engineered poles make. While I can't see myself braining a bear with them like my old staff, I figure the odds of having to do so are well in my favor, and that the benefits outweigh the risks. After all, I never had to use my old staff in self-defence, although it does have a couple of scars where a dog tried to steal it so we could play!