Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Well, what's the best and what's the worst? Let's talk about all those things we carry to make our trips more comfortable...

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Post by Rose »

I can definitely see the advantage of having "trekking poles". We've never used them before, but this year on my big 1/8 mile "hike", I had one crutch under my arm and used my monopod in the other hand to stabilize myself. I could not believe how much stability those two items provided.

We purchased the black diamond contour and contour compact off of Ebay this week. The sell for $99 each on the black diamond website and we got them for $62 each and was able to combine the shipping charges.

I'm looking forward to being able to walk far enough to use them on a "real hike" once they arrive. We have a nature reserve that is a few miles from our house... and a walking path that is level. I'm going to put my hiking boots on and try out my new poles!
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Post by Ear Mountain »

Rose,
I think you'll like those. I'll repeat my self here, I think, but going downhill, those poles can really help take some of the forces off the knees. The rougher the trail the more they help.
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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by july gal »

i've even read in various health/fitness magazines that using trekking poles when hiking burns extra calories... so cheap or not, they're good for the workout!
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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by calicotraveler »

I use trekking poles whenever I'm going to do any kind of a steep hike. They help so much especially on the downhill parts. Got a pair of cheap ones first and then graduated to a pair of Leki's from Campmor. These have the antishock feature and are better than the cheapies.
They help to stabilize (4 contact points with the ground) and save the knees. I recommend them!
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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by dorf »

In my quest for post 700 I'll weigh in here as well. I've got no ACL and am missing most of the cartilage in both knees. I stupidly did not bring my sticks along for a dayhike up to the Grinnell Glac overlook last summer and thought I'd start crying on the way back down my knees hurt so bad.

Not a great post but it gets me closer to 700 8)
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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by Rose »

We used our new trekking poles at a little wildlife refuge close to home last Sunday. I did a couple of miles, although most of it was relatively flat, there were some uphill and downhill areas. It was a good rehab workout for my leg and I found our new poles to be very effective. However.... Monday morning found me with one sore arm.... :shock: !

They will definitely be in the suitcase and backpack on all future hikes. I like the idea that they give you more stability and I easily see how they could help your knees. We purchased some Black Diamond ones off Ebay and were very pleased with our purchase. :D
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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by Ear Mountain »

Rose wrote:We used our new trekking poles at a little wildlife refuge close to home last Sunday. I did a couple of miles, although most of it was relatively flat, there were some uphill and downhill areas. It was a good rehab workout for my leg and I found our new poles to be very effective. However.... Monday morning found me with one sore arm.... :shock: !
That tells me you're using the poles. Last summer I did a little experiment. As the summer wound down and we went into fall, I lengthened my trekking poles and used them more like a simulation of cross country ski technique. I found my arm strength increased and I was able to transition into skiing more easily. Those poles definitely have a place on my mountaineering equipment list.
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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by gypsyjack »

Ya, now this talk about conditioning the arms and such has convinced me that I should buy better poles! The ones I use are ok, but kind of difficult to adjust on the fly... Usually I set them (and twist them tight) at a certain height when I start the hike, and after a hundred feet or so they get set in pretty tight, due to the pressure I put on them. So if I want to adjust the height after a few miles, it takes both my daughter and myself using both hands, twisting the pole in opposite directions, to loosen it enough to make the adjustment. What a pain. And, it looks a bit comical. Fortunately the wildlife haven't laughed too hard.
So, I guess I do also get some forearm conditioning from the poles....every time I have to adjust them!
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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by Rose »

We looked at some trekking poles back in April (the cheap ones at Wal-Mart, the $20 ones at Dick's Sporting Goods and some $80+ Leki brand. Robert got them locked, but could never get them unlocked. I have a strange suspicion that it would have probably taken the two of us to get them unlocked and adjusted!

The Black Diamond poles have the flick locks that are very easy to adjust (I can even adjust them by myself) and the model that we purchased has 2 sets of handle grips. Although we've only used them once just to see what they were like... I can already say that I like them. They will be going to the beach with us at the end of November as there is a wildlife refuge center there also that has some short walking trails. What better place to practice?

Gypsyjack, you might want to look at the Black Diamond website and then look for some on Ebay. We got ours for $60 each, and they retail for $99 each. Robert got the Contours and I got the Contour Compacts.
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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by calicotraveler »

The flick locks may be a better idea. One of my twist locks gave way on a hike (I probably didn't have it tightened enough). Scary and potentially dangerous when it didn't hold. If I were buying new trekking poles I'd get the ones with the flick locks. I have a tripod for my camera with the flick locks and they are so easy and fast to use.
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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by llholmes1948 »

I found this discussion to be very helpful and thought I would relate our limited trekking pole experience in this venerable thread.

I bought my Leki Malalu Trail (or maybe it is Trail Malalu) poles for $79 at L.L. Bean last year after looking over the assortment of poles at the main store in Freeport and getting some advice from the clerk in that department. The poles have three sections and collapse to 25-1/2 inches. I would have preferred poles with cork grips but there were none available in my price range which was under $100. As it turns out the foam grips have worked just fine for me and I have had no problem even on hot days. I also decided not to spend the extra money for poles with shock absorbers so I don't know what I am missing.

Before we went to Glacier, Carlene couldn't decide if she wanted poles or not. Once we were in West Glacier, the thought of hiking Apgar Lookout, and the Sperry and Gunsight Pass trails got to her and she decided she wanted poles. Our friends in Whitefish recommended the Glacier Outdoor Center at West Glacier as a good place to buy or rent poles and that was a good choice:

http://www.glacierraftco.com

Carlene considered renting poles but decided to buy some Like-Link Teton Backcountry poles for $49. They have two sections, foam grips, no shock absorbers and collapse to 30-1/2 inches.

We have been quite pleased with both sets of poles.

Two points of advice:

1. If you are ready to start a hike and need to (1) adjust your poles and (2) apply sunscreen, do it in that order. I did it in the reverse order once and found the locking mechanism would slip because I got some sunscreen on the poles. Once I realized this and carefully wiped the sunscreen residue off the poles, the locking mechanism worked fine. Aside from the sunscreen problem, we have had no problem with the twist and lock mechanism.

2. For some reason there is an exceptionally strong bond between the "removable" rubber tips on the Life-Link poles and the tip of the pole itself. Have these rubber tips removed at the store if possible. We found it was very difficult to remove these even after they have been taken off and on several times. I didn't have this problem with the Leki poles.

I also spoke with one experienced hiker at Sperry Chalet who was very pleased with inexpensive poles he had obtained at Walmart. He was a metalurgist by profession and told me that he had studied the metal used in these poles and found that it was very durable and of good quality.

Thanks again for all of the advice on this thread and our poles greatly enhanced our hiking pleasure in Glacier last year.

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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by kiddoc »

Ha ppened to be at Walmart the other day and wandered through the camping dept. I see Walmart now sells trekking poles with flick locks-- might pick up a pair for my kids to try on our upcoming trip. I can't remember the price-- I want to say $18 per pole.
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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by Hockey Ref »

I did some hiking this past weekend in the San Francisco region and really missed having my poles on the steep uphill and downhill segments. They make a world of difference and are not what I would consider a hassle at all.
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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by Tiz »

If you use them as a tent pole for your UL tent, they are not a hassle but a necessity ;)
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Re: Trekking poles---worth the hassle?

Post by llholmes1948 »

I will revive this old discussion (Wonderful to see the Hockey Ref's post again) and post a link to this recent article in the Missoulian (originally from the Spokesman-Review) which some Chatters may find helpful:

http://missoulian.com/lifestyles/recrea ... 9c6a8.html
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