Trekking poles, use or use not?

[Paradox]

I never used poles until this season. Now I use them all the time, both ascending and descending. My knees recover after a long hike much faster and don't seem as bad the day after. I don't like having my hands encumbered and don't use them when traversing flat areas. IMHO they have just got to be safer on the descent. They allow you to lean forward, and plant something weight bearing ahead of you before you actually try to step into it. I never use the straps, and have considered cutting them off. I lost the rubber tips fairly early on and have not missed them.

Also my dogs never seem to lose their balance, so 4 legs have gotta be better than 2.

 

[Wanderer1]

I use them for backpacking and sometimes day hiking. A few years ago while I was hiking the Colorado Trail I discovered other benefits than just the knees. I had used them daily on my hike. One day after picking up a food drop I had a 5 mile road walk out of town. Thinking it would be an easy walk, I strapped my poles to my pack. After just two miles my shoulders ached and my back was cramping. At first I just thought it was the extra weight but I also seemed to be dragging. So I stopped and decided to use the poles. My pace quickened and the pain in my shoulders and back went away. My therory is by using the poles I was moving my shoulders thus shifting the shoulder straps do different muscle locations instead of them just hanging in one place. They helped to shift the load around. It made all the difference. I also have noticed after a long day that my hands don't swell like they do if I don't use them. Again I'm sure due to the improved circulation due to the arm movement. Sometimes they are a pain but most the time they eliminate it.

 

[Artex]

I used them for years, but don't anymore unless I'm wearing snowshoes. Just one less thing to carry and worry about.

 

[kmac]

I use them in the winter for sure, and on the downhill in all other seasons.I noticed when I use my poles, my hands are less likely to become swollen, I think because they slightly elevated and not hanging down by my sides while hiking.
kmac

 

[gaiagirl]

I tend to move pretty fast, and find that poles help me with my momentum. Being somewhat vertically challenged, I also find them useful on inclines as well as steep sections when descending. I also like the upper body work that they provide and find they help with my balance too, especially when crossing streams and the like. I have tried various types of poles, starting with very short (kiddie) Xcountry ski poles. Having gotten used to using them last winter, I think I put more weight on poles than I probably should at times since they don't ever collapse and they're very strong and find I just kill normal hiking poles (from cheapies to pretty expensive ones and everything in between), so I use short, cheap X-country ski poles now all the time .... Is that weird?? .... Ok, don't answer than anyone!

 

[JohnL]

I was thinking about this very subject yesterday while I was descending the OBP and noticed the proliferation of holes that were poked into the trailsides by hiking poles. I was wondering how much of a negative effect these holes had on trailside plants and the resulting erosion. Are people overusing them because they are an “in” piece of gear to be seen with? My belief is “Yes” but that’s just a gut feel and I don’t have any hard evidence to support that.

I carry poles with me on hikes over 15 miles and/or if there are plenty of questionable stream crossings just in case. I also use poles when I carry a real heavy pack but I don't do much of that anymore. Otherwise I prefer to hike without them. I actually find that I maintain a better walking rhythm without them. Winters are a different ballgame and I always use them in the snow. I never use the straps, winter or summer.

That being said, I can understand why people use them to bring relief to their knees and hips. Bad knees and hips are not necessarily an old age problem so younger hikers with orthopedic problems will find poles useful. As an older hiker who still has good knees (knock on wood), I still prefer to go without them.

JohnL

 

[KayakDan]

Mrs KD and I have used them for about 7 years. Very handy to have on a winter trail,particularly for stream crossings.
We don't use the straps,as it seems like an invitation for a broken wrist if you fall.

 

[Kevin Rooney]

I was thinking about this very subject yesterday while I was descending the OBP and noticed the proliferation of holes that were poked into the trailsides by hiking poles. I was wondering how much of a negative effect these holes had on trailside plants and the resulting erosion.

Observations like this (and about poles scratching rocks) are often made when the subject of poles is being discussed. Rather than a negative effect - I wonder if they have a positive effect? For example is soil compaction a problem on trails, and if so, do poles provide useful aeration?

 

[adirobdack46r]

When my wife and I started hiking we didn't have them. Then decided to give them a try, liked them for many reasons already listed, weight off the knees, streem crossings, checking mud depth etc. After a summer of frequent chain saw use I developed a bad case of carpal tunnel. On the next hike I went on my hands were going numb from the angle the poles kept my arms in. I had to dangle an arm to get the circulation going again. A friend I had with me that day broke his hiking stick, so I let him use one of my poles, this worked out good because I could switch back and forth from one hand to the other to keep feeling in them. Now my carpal tunnel has subsided but I am used to using only one pole and I like it because it frees up a hand when the going gets tuff and I need to grab on to a rock or something. When it is too steep and need both hands the one pole is only half the weight to strap on the my pack. In winter with snowshoes I still use 2.

 

[carole]

I don't use them

I hiked quite a number of years without them and then kept reading on 'hiking forums' how you should use them so I hiked with them for a while. Didn't like them, stopped using them and am happy. Maybe (like Pete Hickey) when I reach "middle age" I'll use them again.

 

[Adk_dib]

when you have to jump off a 4-5 foot rock face they help a lot. instead of jumping down and smashing your feet and knees, you can easily lower yourself down.

 

[Grumpy]

My first encounter with modern trekking poles came in the early 1990s, when Mrs. Grumpy, our daughter Prima Donna Grumpy and I were on a picnic walk to Marcy Dam and beyond. Just before Marcy Dam we caught up with and passed an older couple picking their way along with the new-fangled sticks. They caught up with and joined us for lunch at a picnic table on the dam pond shore.

The two were in their 80s, and celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary (might have been 55th or something like that) and a lifetime of hiking together. Said that for them the trekking poles made the difference between being able to go back in to Marcy Dam and not being able to go.

That was enough to sell Mrs. G and her old man on the idea. Inertia being hard to overcome, we got our sticks a few years later. It was a good move. Have used them ever since – usually as singles. They save the knees, and help with balance/stability issues.

G.

 

[LivesToHike]

Well almost...

I've been a fervent pole user in the winter/winter-like conditions and somewhat of a lackadasical user otherwise, except on downslopes or when I've gotten tired. I.e. when suffering the end-of-day floppy-foot syndrome.

Admittedly, I am finding them more and more helpful in wet/slippery talus fields and open downslopes. I'm probably less enthusiastic in their application when climbing down steep, tree-lined routes, often full of roots. I'm more inclined to grab a tree as I step down. I don't use the straps, as I'm concerned with breaking or spraining a wrist if I fall, but I understand the value of using the straps, esp in winter.

I was surprised upon grabbing at one tree on the Bridle path, I think up in the agonies, last week - it was really, really loose, probably from the likes of me grabbing at it to gain balance! ;-)

 

[SLB]

Always use them hiking downhill. They add an upper-body workout using them hiking uphill. Never use them bush-whacking, since they get in the way.

 

[Tuggy]

www.backpacking.net/trekpole.html#top

This is an article about using trekking poles and how to use the wrist straps.

I find them to be very useful. I always hike with them unless its on pavement.

 

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

I was thinking about this very subject yesterday while I was descending the OBP and noticed the proliferation of holes that were poked into the trailsides by hiking poles. I was wondering how much of a negative effect these holes had on trailside plants and the resulting erosion.

If it were not for trekking poles, and x-c ski poles earlier, which I began using on hikes in the mid-70s for dry-land x-c ski training, I doubt that I would still be hiking today. I have bad ankles, so I use the poles ascending, descending, spring, summer, fall, and winter. They are great for balance in stream crossings and for vaulting over muddy sections. Compared to vibram soles, I doubt that trekking poles do much trail damage, and as Kevin Rooney notes they might even help aerate overly compacted trails. I also use my poles to flick sticks off trails, which otherwise eventually clog up water bars ("shot, save, shot, another save, another shot, scorrrrrres!").

 

[rocksnrolls]

Another vote for using them from me. I find they really help with my balance, especially since I tend to rock hop whenever possible, trying to lessen trail erosion caused by my footprints. I also like how they give my arms a bit of a workout. After I got used to using them, whenever I hike without them my arms sort of hang there and I don't know what to do with them I also use them for clearing spider webs (and tent catepillar silk ) from my path, especially if on an early start or less-used trail. I always use the baskets on the ends and find they're helpful in muddy areas to lessen the depth they sink in to, make it easier to remove accumulated leaves, and help avoid sticking them into deep spaces between rocks. The baskets are also helpful in applying torque when adjusting the pole lengths. I love my poles on downhills, especially steep ones. I plant them ahead of me and then lightly jump down, saving stress on my knees and/or the need to sit on wet rocks before lowering myself down. I also usually use the straps as they really help on the uphills by lessening stress on the wrists and when I need to use my hands to grab onto something the poles can be let go of and they just hang there. Just have to use caution that you don't let them get in your way.

 

[Roxi]

Just before Marcy Dam we caught up with and passed an older couple picking their way along with the new-fangled sticks. They caught up with and joined us for lunch at a picnic table on the dam pond shore.

The two were in their 80s, and celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary (might have been 55th or something like that) and a lifetime of hiking together. Said that for them the trekking poles made the difference between being able to go back in to Marcy Dam and not being able to go.

That was enough to sell Mrs. G and her old man on the idea. Inertia being hard to overcome, we got our sticks a few years later. It was a good move. Have used them ever since – usually as singles. They save the knees, and help with balance/stability issues.

G.

You may have just sold me Grumpy. Up until last week I have not had any knee issues and didn't think about using hiking poles. I hate carrying anything extra (chocolate doesn't count!), but after ascending South Twin 4 times in two days from 3 different sides, my right knee was very painful doing any up and down movements. I've laid off it for 5 days now, and while it's better, it still has twinges of pain.

I went to EMS today and looked at 4 different models of their Leki poles: the regular Makalu and Makalu Tour models were $99 pair, the Super Makalus were $139 pair (and seemed a little heavier), and the Ultralight Makalus were $149 pair. With the 20% 0ff sale and my $25 gift card I can get a pair for much less, but which one is least likely to have problems/break? Any recommendations? Thanks!

Roxi

 

[dms]

Always use them hiking downhill. They add an upper-body workout using them hiking uphill. Never use them bush-whacking, since they get in the way.

As I said in my post about using them on Barren, three of us on the trip used them extensively, on one of the most difficult bushwacks there is, none of us thought that they got in the way!

 

[Roxi]

Maybe (like Pete Hickey) when I reach "middle age" I'll use them again.

The funny thing about "middle age" is that the closer you get to it, the further it moves away.