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  • Hiking sticks and poles

    Hiking poles and sticks and staffs have been around a long time. Even Moses used one and he certainly was not the first.

    Beside helping take the load off of the body, walking sticks can help with keeping rythm. They can help push thick brush aside. One of the best uses I ever saw was when an old dude in Thailand used his stick to kill a cobra that had slithered into a meeting room.

    Today, of course, we have adjustable walking sticks and staffs of a great variety.

    My favorite was hand carved for me by my dear old dad years ago. More precious to me today than gold.

    It is fun to add those metal hiking staff Medallions to your hiking staff which you can buy at souvenir shops along the way. They are often of such cool designs that you run out of space on your walking staff.

    The two pole system can really make hiking easier - especially if you are carrying a pack.

    I am not a fan of the Leki style adjustable length poles Too often they have failed me with the worst of timing. To that note, they generally are not long enough to begin with.

    For the hiker on a budget, I recommend a visit to the local thrift store where you can get a set of old ski poles for less than $5.00. I suggest getting poles with a lenght at least from the floor to the middle of your shoulder joint.

    What say you, Friends? Any suggestion for hiking poles? Styles, brands, modifications, lengths, etc?

    Last edited by Mike; 01-05-2014, 04:51 PM.

  • #2
    Re: Hiking sticks and poles

    I use 1 pole (adjustable) which doubles as a tent pole for my Lunar Solo. It came from Wal-Mart and it is sturdy enough to get me through tight spots. Not a UL carbon-fiber deal, but it's OK, the price was right. The nice thing about this setup is I can adjust the pitch of my tent according to the weather.
    2018: Any way the wind blows; doesn't really matter to me....Too Meee....

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    • #3
      Re: Hiking sticks and poles

      I have been making my own sticks for 30 plus years. I have also made canes for me and family who need them. I think there is nothing like the feel of wood in your hands so I don't use anything else.

      here are pic's of a few I made
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      • #4
        Re: Hiking sticks and poles

        for walking sticks i like to pick up a good stick on a hike,
        i usually work on it while at camp making it more and more comfortable and kind of bond with that stick,
        at the end i leave it at a trail head for someone else to use.

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        • #5
          Re: Hiking sticks and poles

          Mike,

          Great idea about going to a thrift store and re-purposing an old ski pole. If I lived near a ski resort, I could probably find a lot of orphaned poles for free!

          I am thinking about getting an ultra light weight tent that uses adjustable hiking poles for the tent frame/support.
          Visit me at Campward Bound for more camping information.
          sigpic

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          • #6
            Re: Hiking sticks and poles

            I use a tobacco stick. I find I do better with one stick instead of two.
            - Laura
            Coleman Dome/Instant Cabin Tents, Kamprite IPS, Shasta Oasis 18ft Travel Trailer

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            • #7
              Re: Hiking sticks and poles

              I've tried wooden staffs before. I never felt all that comfortable with 'em, I guess because they always felt a bit unwieldy to me. Definitely better than walking without anything, but still too much weight to me. I've definitely wondered about the durability of my Leki's but, so far, with about 15 years on 'em, they're holding up just fine.

              I remember the guys asking me how much they cost and them telling me I was out of my _______ mind. As it happened, the site we were at had a huge, steep hill behind it. When I showed them how I could more or less run up the hill, suddenly I wasn't so crazy. Then it was, "Damn - they're expensive - but that's awesome!"

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              • #8
                Re: Hiking sticks and poles

                I used an aluminum hiking stick for the first time on my last back packing trip. We did a fair amount of off trail cross country walking and having the stick made it easy to traverse steep terrain without slipping. We easily crossed streams with slippery rocks. I am sold on hiking sticks. And like MacGyver said, albeit expensive, they are awesome!

                Here is photo of me with my first ever aluminum hiking stick.

                Visit me at Campward Bound for more camping information.
                sigpic

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                • #9
                  Re: Hiking sticks and poles

                  Originally posted by markkee View Post
                  I am thinking about getting an ultra light weight tent that uses adjustable hiking poles for the tent frame/support.
                  Well, in part the tent you want depends on whether you normally use one trekking staff or two, or none. There are a number of good designs out there - I like the SMD because of the weight (23 ounces). Check out the BPL forum for everything you ever wanted to know about UL tents.
                  2018: Any way the wind blows; doesn't really matter to me....Too Meee....

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                  • #10
                    Re: Hiking sticks and poles

                    Originally posted by Irate Mormon View Post
                    Well, in part the tent you want depends on whether you normally use one trekking staff or two, or none. There are a number of good designs out there - I like the SMD because of the weight (23 ounces). Check out the BPL forum for everything you ever wanted to know about UL tents.
                    I have only used 1 trekking pole because my backpacking buddy only had 1 extra pole. I would like to try two pole.s
                    Visit me at Campward Bound for more camping information.
                    sigpic

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                    • #11
                      Re: Hiking sticks and poles

                      Originally posted by markkee View Post
                      Mike,

                      Great idea about going to a thrift store and re-purposing an old ski pole. If I lived near a ski resort, I could probably find a lot of orphaned poles for free!

                      I am thinking about getting an ultra light weight tent that uses adjustable hiking poles for the tent frame/support.
                      Look for an old A-frame tent that uses two verticals poles like the old pup tents. Make sure it has a rainfly. Tons available used. Still available new. For weight and packability, they are very good. You can use your hiking poles or just cut sticks to size at camp. That way, you will have your walking stick(s) for day hikes without taking your tent down

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                      • #12
                        Re: Hiking sticks and poles

                        Originally posted by Mike View Post
                        Look for an old A-frame tent that uses two verticals poles like the old pup tents. Make sure it has a rainfly. Tons available used. Still available new. For weight and packability, they are very good. You can use your hiking poles or just cut sticks to size at camp. That way, you will have your walking stick(s) for day hikes without taking your tent down
                        Any idea who is selling them used and new? This is an incredible way to save on weight.
                        Visit me at Campward Bound for more camping information.
                        sigpic

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                        • #13
                          Re: Hiking sticks and poles

                          Originally posted by markkee View Post
                          Any idea who is selling them used and new? This is an incredible way to save on weight.
                          Oh man. I buy them frequently at yard sales and thrift stores. They do exist online new.

                          If you happen to chance upon an old single wall pup tent, they make excellent one-person tents for today's modern large-size man who is accustomed to more space than we apparently were three decades ago. However, you need to add a rain fly. This is cheap and easy to do by simply investing in a tarp. The lighter and more compact your tarp, the lighter and more compact the total tent package.

                          BTW, some of the older pup tents had metal zippers or zippers that are shot. If so, walk over to the used sleeping bags section at the thrift store. Buy a couple of sleeping bags for about $2.00 each and harvest the long zippers from them. You can use these long zippers to replace old worn tent zippers.

                          Resist the temptation to buy old canvas pup tents. You will read a lot about the return to canvas like Kodiak tents, etc. This rule does not hold for small tents. Small canvas tents such as the two man pup tent has always been and remains today a miserable contraption not even suitable for a dog house.

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                          • #14
                            Re: Hiking sticks and poles

                            Originally posted by markkee View Post
                            Any idea who is selling them used and new? This is an incredible way to save on weight.
                            Tent Pole Technologies

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                            • #15
                              Re: Hiking sticks and poles

                              I got a pair of trekking poles on the recommendation of an ol' geezer I talked to on the trail on my first climb in the White Moutains. I have thanked him mentally on every hike every since. The terrain around here is really rough. The trekking poles make a big difference both climbing and descending. Huge help for the knees coming down steep trails. And, I think I catch myself from at least one rolled ankle every time out. They double as poles for snow showing in winter.

                              It's so rocky around here that rugged is important. I went with the Black Diamond Ergo Cork Trail poles. Aluminum poles. Collapsible for easy storage. I make them shorter for climbing; longer for descending. Cork grips, angled a bit. Replaceable tips. Interchangeable baskets for hiking or snow shoeing.

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