Anyone use "Trekking Poles" when they hike/backpack?

[melensdad]

Any of you folks here use "Trekking Poles" when you hike or backpack longer distances?

I just bought 2 pairs of Leki poles, one for me, one for the lovely Mrs_Bob.

I've been hearing a lot of good things about using trekking poles by people who use them but it seems like most people have never tried them.

Bought these for me => Corklite Antishock - Shop - LEKI
And these for my wife => Cressida Antishock - Shop - LEKI

I'll probably write up a gear review after I use them for a week to give my early impressions, then maybe a follow up later on. But I'm curious if any of the INGO hikers use them?

 

[shibumiseeker]

I do. Trekking poles or hiking staff.

 

[melensdad]

I do. Trekking poles or hiking staff.

Are your trekking poles adjustable? Do you have the anti-shock poles? Do you use them for casual hikes (3 to 5 miles) around your home? Etc.

 

[shibumiseeker]

I use them primarily when backpacking or if I am going to be hiking on unstable terrain. Not for casual around the home and woods (I have a lot of woods) and I don't usually use them on short hikes.

Do not go cheap on collapsible trekking poles, if they collapse it will be at the moment the fall will cause you maximum injuries. The shock absorbing ones are nice, but not necessary. I prefer my hiking staff I made out of a tulip poplar sapling, but I use the trekking poles when I am travelling since they collapse and save space in the car. I prefer the cane-tips to the carbide tipped ones for rock and trail, I prefer the carbide tip for ice.

I just packed my poles in the car as I am heading out tomorrow for a week backpacking in Glacier National Park.

 

[hooky]

I use trekking poles on multi day backpacking trips. Mine aren't shock absorbing though. I started using them last year. The year prior to that, I had a lot of knee pain at the end of a 5 day trip to Yosemite when going down hill. I did a little reading, admitted that I was getting older and decided to try them.

Shibumi, I'm jealous. GNP would would be a blast. I hope you post some pictures and give a little report when you get back.

 

[gstanley102]

I've done alot of backpacking. Mostly on good trails and never needed poles.
I don't like to carry things in my hands while hiking.

At my age now I would pack a couple of poles to use if I turned an ankle
or had a gout flare up.

I've seen the cheap ones fold up unexpectantly, so get a goid set.

 

[melensdad]

I use them primarily when backpacking or if I am going to be hiking on unstable terrain. Not for casual around the home and woods (I have a lot of woods) and I don't usually use them on short hikes.

Do not go cheap on collapsible trekking poles, if they collapse it will be at the moment the fall will cause you maximum injuries. The shock absorbing ones are nice, but not necessary...

I've done alot of backpacking. Mostly on good trails and never needed poles.
I don't like to carry things in my hands while hiking.

At my age now I would pack a couple of poles to use if I turned an ankle
or had a gout flare up.

I've seen the cheap ones fold up unexpectantly, so get a goid set.

Well I didn't go cheap. Both sets of Leki poles that I purchased were on the upper end of their price/feature spectrum.

I looked at those and also at Black Diamond brand poles. Initially I was planning to get one of each brand, then I figured that I'd be better off with 1 brand for interchangeable parts, commonality of repair, etc. One of my biggest concerns was the locking mechanisms and Leki seems to have some of the best and has a great reputation.

We are trekking across England next year from East to West and will encounter everything from sidewalks to sand with rocky paths, cow/sheep pastures, hills and bogs in between. Both of us are in our 50's, thinking the poles will probably help make the walk more comfortable.

What brands are you using? I paid $125 for one pair, $130 for the other. MSRPs are are about $35 higher for each set.

 

[rgrimm01]

I always bring a staff while in the wild. Helps with balance, clearing snakes and moving briars etc. While probably unfounded, I do not trust any telescoping stick to support my weight if I lose my balance or to help me keep my balance on slopes or slippery surfaces. It is possible that I have never experienced a quality locking system on a telescoping product. The ones I have played with seem to slip with a minimum of pressure. I trust my near wrist thick walking staff (So much so, I think I would trust it to fend off a medium sized bear...).

 

[shibumiseeker]

I have:
Black Diamond Trail Ergo Cork Trekking Poles

My very first pole was one I bought in the 80s and was one of the first lightweight collapsible ones on the market (can't remember the brand, cost $50 in 1984) and I used it for a year until I lost it and decided that the tulip poplar saplings I was cutting and drying worked just as well and were a lot cheaper for a high school student to afford. I also studied staff fighting in my martial arts so feel pretty confident using them as a weapon and for defense.

My first one in modern times was a Mountainsmith cheapy that a friend gave me and it would collapse regularly on its own, so a few years back when I was going to rim to rim to rim in the Grand Canyon I got the one linked above.

I still use my poplar staff regularly. I only use one, but I have good knees and like having one hand free.

 

[hooky]

I have a set of Pacemakers that I bought on ebay for 30 bucks.

Pair of Pace Maker "Aerostride" Nordic Walking Poles with Vulcanized Rubber Feet and attachments

 

[melensdad]

. . . I do not trust any telescoping stick to support my weight if I lose my balance or to help me keep my balance on slopes or slippery surfaces. It is possible that I have never experienced a quality locking system on a telescoping product. . .

I questioned that as well.

I played with some stuff at Wal Mart. It was of typical Chinese Wal Mart quality. Probably fine to use as a walking stick on flat ground, but nothing more.

I really liked the locking system on the Black Diamond Carbon Fiber poles. Its a flip lock, but a different design than they use on their aluminum poles. Quite honestly I didn't want to pay THAT much $$$ for poles, especially considering I've never used them until now.

Lots of people complain about the "Twist Lock" designs used by most of the pole builders. From what I can tell, a 'good one' is REALLY GOOD and is the strongest type of pole lock possible. But a 'bad one' SUCKS badly and gives all the others a bad reputation.

Newer designs seem to have a 'Lever' or 'Cam' lock design. These are much easier to adjust quickly and people say they fail less often than the Twist Lock designs (see 'bad one' above). They are, however, not as strong. Leki claims to have the strongest 'Lever' lock on the market, but they also say that their 'Twist Lock' design will support 100# more than their 'Lever Lock' design. Black Diamond seems to offere a couple different 'Lever' designs, which varies with pole quality and pole material.

Both of my Leki styles have 1 'Twist' lock and 1 'Lever' lock on each pole. The lower lock on my poles is a twist lock and it works with their 'anti-shock' system.

The 'anti-shock' system on the Leki brand is in the lowest part of the pole. The 'anti-shock' on the Black Diamond poles is up at the handle. I think both systems offer advantages. The Leki system claims to be more efficient and when I tested the poles I tended to agree. However, it adds about an ounce or two of weight to the lower 1/3rd of the pole. The B.D. system adds weight to the grip area of the pole, which I think is probably better for balance and for swing, but I didn't like their compression system as well.

The one pole I wanted to see was the Komperelli brand, but I wasn't at a store that had that brand.

I'll try to snap some photos and post up some pictures Friday or Saturday, got to get to a school meeting soon, won't get out of that until tonight at ???

 

[AGarbers]

I just bought a pair of Easton non-shock ultralight treking poles at Dicks. I had to choke down the bile as I thought of my self-imposed ban on Dicks but they were on clearance for $69.00. They have cork handles, weigh about a 9-ounces each and really lock down tight with an adjustable lock on the outside. I have been using them in preperation to hike the Grand Canyon rim to rim next year. While I like mine they were the last pair in stock at the Dicks I went to in Lafayette. We will go to REI in Castleton to see what my wife likes. It will most likely be Leki or BD.
Dicks also had Komperelli but the locking mech was already broken on one or two so that rules them out for me.

 

[BravoMike]

I have started using trekking poles for backpacking and love them. I didn't realize what I was missing until I started using them. They help my knees mostly during descent and help gain stability and find foot footing when on unstable terrain or crossing a stream. I have used Leki "twist lock" before and had bad experiences with them. These poles were a couple of years old and hopefully your design is improved, but I was assured that I had a "new" design and my concerns were a thing of the past. They unfortunately were not. I have replaced them with "flip lock" designs. I also opted to not get the anti-shock on my new poles because I found that feature to be pointless unless you were on paved trails and I see it as another failure point. It looks like those poles are light weight as well and that is something I would definitely advocate. Anyone who gets cheap and heavy Walmart poles may find it fatiguing after many miles on the trail and may have trouble keeping up their cadence. Make sure you have them adjusted to the correct height and know the proper technique as well. I have seen many people set the poles too high and have trouble keeping up with their feet. Hope this helps.

 

[Zoub]

I have yet to buy a pair but decided on Black Diamond in general when I do. Leki seem good as well but I am familiar with Black Diamond so I go with what I know. Anti shock feature seems a waste of time. They are no different than camera tripods, buy once cry once. I still have my first tripod I bought in 1975. It is beat to hell but still functions well enough for home use, same as most my optics and gear I bought in the mid 70's. Twist lock or flip lock, it is all in the choice of brands.

Home made walking sticks with the option of an archery field tip threaded into them work fine for me on walks but I wont go out on uneven ground again with a pack without a pair of good sticks. They are multi-purpose and a good safety item to have. I am too old to roll down a hill with a pack on and think it is going to go well after that.

I will be using a pair this winter with snowshoes to hunt so until then, I just have opinions.

 

[melensdad]

As for the anti-shock, it is something I really debate upon and then decided to spend the extra money for it.

My logic is simple. FIRST: Most of my local walking is on asphalt country roads. Anti-shock works well on asphalt. So far I like the anti-shock system, but again, 95+% of my walking now is on the local 2 lane country roads. I may come to hate it when I use the poles to walk across country in England??? SECOND: I'm in my 50's and I have Rheumatoid Arthritis, its most prominent in my wrists and shock to my wrists causes me lingering pain.

I'll write up a review in a week or two after I have some more time with these poles but so far, so good.

 

[Hawkeye]

Are your trekking poles adjustable? Do you have the anti-shock poles? Do you use them for casual hikes (3 to 5 miles) around your home? Etc.

I have a couple of adjsutable hiking staffs that have a screw- off wooden knob on top so you can attach various things and use them for a camera monopod, etc. I have a "Y" adapter that would let me use the pole as a shooting stick or post for a rifle or handgun.

I also have some of the adjsutable, shock absorbing ski-type poles for hiking/backpacking/nordic walking.

I don't recall hte brand for sure but I think they are Leki. They are the twist type locking. I've had them and usded them for over ten years. Think they are great!

 

[BravoMike]

As for the anti-shock, it is something I really debate upon and then decided to spend the extra money for it.

My logic is simple. FIRST: Most of my local walking is on asphalt country roads. Anti-shock works well on asphalt. So far I like the anti-shock system, but again, 95+% of my walking now is on the local 2 lane country roads. I may come to hate it when I use the poles to walk across country in England??? SECOND: I'm in my 50's and I have Rheumatoid Arthritis, its most prominent in my wrists and shock to my wrists causes me lingering pain.

I'll write up a review in a week or two after I have some more time with these poles but so far, so good.

The anti-shock should serve you well on asphalt and I don't think you will notice a difference on an unpaved trail.

 

[melensdad]

Here are the poles that I've been using. My wife's poles are nearly identical, just a smaller hand grip and painted in girly colors

The poles are set for 115 CM and they have marks on the shafts both lower sections of the shaft so that you space them evenly and spread the load without having one section too long, and therefore weaker.

The grips have cork inserts and have vent cut outs. Supposedly cork is the best 'overall' material for comfort in all weather? I honestly don't know if that is true. One thing I really like is the way the straps adjust (more on that later). The grips have an 8-degree forward tilt angle, which seems to be very comfortable, but they do offer some models with an additional angle (not sure how much, but I'd guess closer to 15-degrees).

Here is the Cam/Lever/Speed lock system (front & back) that is on the upper section of each pole. Leki claims their lever system is the strongest in the industry. I also really liked the system used by Black Diamond on their carbon fiber poles, its much lower profile than this system. But this system, while somewhat bulkier, is totally snag free and nicely rounded. It is very easy to operate, I've not tried it with gloves on, but I don't think that would be an issue.

Here is the Leki twist lock system, mine also incorporate their shock absorbers. There is roughly a 1/2" of play and (so far) I've not had any issue with the shock system bottoming out on our walks, but again, our walks, while hilly, are on smooth asphalt. The twist lock system from Leki is supposed to hold about 100# more than their lever style locks. I've had no problems with slippage, but then again I only have a short amount of experience with this twist lock system.

The pole ends, with the optional (extra cost), road boots. The boots slip on and are very secure, so far no slippage or risk of them coming off. They are supposed to be made of 'vulcanized' rubber (like a car tire) and are not showing any wear (yet). There are standard Carbide tips (replaceable) under the road boots.

The 'baskets' have notches cut into them so the poles can be locked together for carrying. The baskets are also (fairly) easily removed. I suppose for road walking they are totally unnecessary but I leave them on. I really don't see any need to remove them for road walking.

The grips are hand specific, each strap is marked with a "R" or "L" for use with your right/left hand.

Strap adjustments are simple, fast and secure. Rather than try to describe the cam lock system they use, here is a photo from their brochure:

The shock system is use replaceable if it ever fails, here is another brochure photo that explains it. Its housed at the joint between the bottom and center shaft systems under the twist lock mechanism. The lowest part of the shaft recedes into the center part of the shaft upon impact. You cannot adjust the shock system, it is factory pre-set, operates like a mini-auto shock absorber. The Black Diamond system uses silicone(?) and rubber at the base of the grip and is also not adjustable.

 

[easy]

You guys!

I just use an old ski pole. Get them from most any thrift store for <$cheap. Light weight and won't collapse. Comes in many colors and grip styles.

 

[melensdad]

You guys!

I just use an old ski pole. Get them from most any thrift store for <$cheap. Light weight and won't collapse. Comes in many colors and grip styles.

But hard to take on an airplane to England.

The straps on ski poles, when they exist, are very different, and for trekking/hiking poles the straps are part of the system and integral to the pole action. Ski pole straps are under the grip, designed to hold the pole if you fall, trekking poles straps are at the top of the grip and the strap is placed between your palm and the grip to form a pivot point at the top of the grip.

Also trekking poles have to be sized properly for each users height to actually provide benefit, they should allow your forearm to be parallel to the ground, no lower, no higher of an angle. Further, you need longer poles for going downhill and shorter poles for ascent so having them adjustable is really a major benefit.

What you advocate may be better than nothing. Sort of like using the handle of a screwdriver to pound in a nail. You may make it work, but its not an efficient tool.