Do you use trekking poles?

Jeff Luton wrote:

Good info Frank. Does the Flim-Lok mean they are collapsible? And are the collapsible ones as durable as the non? I guess I could just look this shit up on the internet 

If by "collapsible" you mean telescoping, yes, they are. I was pointing out that the type that you screw down ("twist lock"?) to adjust the length of the pole is not as good as the Flick-Lock,  which has the levers. http://blackdiamondequipment.com/en_US/trekking-poles/trail-trekking-pole-BD1121540000ALL1.html#start=16

Personally, I don't want the one that break down into three sections via shockcord. Telescoping poles (which are a vast majority of trekking poles available), will retract to short enough to stow in a pack.

Carbon poles, although slightly lighter, are more susceptible to breakage, so I don't use them.

Almost always.  I move faster both uphill and down hill, establish a cadence, trip less, better for my knees and back.  And a nice plus is they make you walk more upright which keeps your lungs able to expand more.  And no sausage fingers!

Especially with a heavy pack the difference for me is staggering.

If you stash them just watch out for marmots chewing the straps. 

just use your stick clip as a staff

I always use 2 trekking poles. I've even found them very helpful when boulder hopping with a heavy pack (Cirque of the Towers, Wind River Range). Keeps my legs happy longer and leaves more energy for the climbing. I often use one trekking pole and an ice ax when mountaineering. Flick-lock is the only way to go. 

Haven't seen someone recommend this yet but seriously the best deal on trekking poles.  Costco has carbon fiber flick lock poles for 30 bucks.  They are lighter than my 100+ dollar Black Diamond poles.  I took them on Rainier recently and they worked great and shaved like 10 oz off my pack weight.  This weight was promptly replaced with sour patch kids and Swedish fish.  

I can't speak to there longevity but i've got friends who have had them for years and have had no problems.  Costco has an amazing return policy so there's that if there ever is an issue.  Just get them.  I for one don't get excited spending 200 bucks on poles.  I'd way rather spend that on something else.

I use them whenever I'm carrying a pack. I had a bout with foot pain that was cleared up once I started using poles.

Also good for moving rattlesnakes out of the trail and stick clipping.

I also love my poles. I have a few types, having scavenged some from REI garage sales over the years and a few other places. I got my first pair at a walmart in Hawaii for a hiking trip and really liked them but quickly realized that the cheap ones are really heavy. It doesn't seem like much but lifting them over and over and just carrying them starts to add up. Plus the nicer ones have better grips and hand/wrist straps. One of my REI sets was a set of carbon fiber twist locks and I really liked those, although I eventually broke one by getting it lodged about 8 inches down between a couple rocks and falling sideways - it cracked. I also managed to bend an aluminum ski pole once during a crash... I think mostly I'm just clumsy and these help mitigate those tendencies. I've got a friend who somehow managed to slip and break his wrist while hiking on a pretty reasonable trail and I think if he'd had poles it would have prevented the whole thing. 

None of the ones I have are flick-lock but the twist locks I've got have an annoying tendency to slip and not grab when you are trying to shorten them. As such I've got to play a game of trying to pull the lower pole against the inside of the upper pole to get the twist to engage, and it's worse the further down you go as they get narrower towards the bottom. I've got to start higher up then slide the pole up once I've got it underway. Flick-lock is probably way better at avoiding this, although I wonder how the friction locking mechanism holds up over the long term? Anyone got any real life feedback on that? 

I became annoyed with above hassle on changing lengths and opted for a very light non-adjustable carbon set of black diamond Z poles. I found them on steep and cheap for $60 a few years back. They are my current go-tos and I take them just about everywhere except for one particular crag that is really bouldery on the approach. They are light enough that my desire to avoid lugging excess weight and junk on the long approaches I might actually want them on doesn't make me leave them in the trunk. 

greggrylls wrote:

Haven't seen someone recommend this yet but seriously the best deal on trekking poles.  Costco has carbon fiber flick lock poles for 30 bucks.  They are lighter than my 100+ dollar Black Diamond poles.  I took them on Rainier recently and they worked great and shaved like 10 oz off my pack weight.  This weight was promptly replaced with sour patch kids and Swedish fish.  

I can't speak to there longevity but i've got friends who have had them for years and have had no problems.  Costco has an amazing return policy so there's that if there ever is an issue.  Just get them.  I for one don't get excited spending 200 bucks on poles.  I'd way rather spend that on something else.

have a link to this? I searched their site(quickly) and they didn't come up...

I couldn't find them either on the website.  I find the costco website to be hit or miss with these "seasonal" items.  They were in store in my costco location last time I checked about 2 weeks ago.  As most other stores follow the same timeline for switching out products it's worth checking your local costco.  

Here is the same pole on amazon.  

https://www.amazon.com/Cascade-Mountain-Tech-Carbon-Trekking/dp/B007E0ZBZI

Edit:  Whoops that's the twist lock version 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00XM0YGW8?ref=emc_b_5_i

This is the same pole I got at costco. I like the cork handles.  Now i'm questioning my memory but i'm pretty sure they were 29.99 at costco but it's possible they were 39.    

Matt Westlake wrote:

 Flick-lock is probably way better at avoiding this, although I wonder how the friction locking mechanism holds up over the long term? Anyone got any real life feedback on that? 

Matt,

After a while (months), the Flick-Lock will not cam as tightly and the pole will start to slip. The camming/clamping is adjustable, so you open the lever, tighten the screw to the point where there is some resistance to closing the lever, then they are good-to-go for a few more months. So you can make sure the poles don't slip or collapse when you are hiking and putting weight on them.

That's a good deal for carbon fiber poles even at the Amazon price. I own a pair of Black Diamond carbon fiber ones and really like the vibration dampening that is one of the key features of carbon fiber. Also, mine have cork handles that I REALLY like versus the rubber grips on my other pair. No more sweaty palms. 

Yea, having a pole potentially unlock or slip while you are weighting it and having the potential to send you in a surprise fall definitely played into my distrust of the adjustable style when shopping for the Z poles. With the twistlocks it always felt like a game of "is this tight enough to prevent slipping" versus "am I overtightening it and doing damage/making it more likely to slip in the long run". 

Am interested in getting a pair I can use as ski poles in the winter and cut a bit of weight off my old aluminum BD poles. But for trekking poles foam grips are a must (cork would be fine too, but at a weight penalty) as I get blisters with rubber grips and ungloved hands when I put on a lot of miles. Any recommendations? The BD Z Distance are nice enough even though they lack adjustability I can make do, but they are a little flimsy for ski touring, and lack snow baskets. Any skimo folks out there? What do you use?

Bill Lawry wrote:

Don't always use them.  But almost always use them when backpacking.  A few scenarios of use (some already mentioned) ...

• speed:  seems can get a little boost out of them akin to cross-country skiers;
• balance:  crossing creeks or on logs;
• lift: run a poll horizontally through a strap and two can, say, lift a large water jug (keep the span small-ish);
• structure:  with a large horizontal log and a pair of fully extended polls, create a kind of A-frame upon which to attach a light (e.g., Luci) - nice in camp;
• prod: in case for some reason you must move a rattle snake.

Shelter: they're the support for your UL tarp or mid.

Matt Westlake wrote:

 With the twistlocks it always felt like a game of "is this tight enough to prevent slipping" versus "am I overtightening it and doing damage/making it more likely to slip in the long run". 

That is the truth. Glad I don't deal with that anymore. And I'm surprised people still buy and sell those poles with the obsolete adjustment (twist-locks).

In addition to all the positve reasons already posted, the poles provide an excellent triceps workout, both uphill and downhill.

+1 for the Costco poles. I've been using mine for about a year during heavy pack days with long slogs. They've held up fine. And they're basically disposable for that price. Also refundable ;)

edit it to add: they do come with baskets. Four sets off tips total.

Ryan Pfleger wrote:

Am interested in getting a pair I can use as ski poles in the winter and cut a bit of weight off my old aluminum BD poles. But for trekking poles foam grips are a must (cork would be fine too, but at a weight penalty) as I get blisters with rubber grips and ungloved hands when I put on a lot of miles. Any recommendations? The BD Z Distance are nice enough even though they lack adjustability I can make do, but they are a little flimsy for ski touring, and lack snow baskets. Any skimo folks out there? What do you use?

As you point out, snow baskets are a must. Also make sure that the poles are long enough for skinning. I'm fairly tall and I use a 135 cm pole, which is longer than many lightweight trekking poles.

It's also useful to be able to grip the shaft some distance below the top when side-hilling. A bare shaft may be too slippery for that.

My all-purpose poles are the Komperdell Ultralite Carbon Vario 4 (not the "Compact"), http://www.komperdell.com/en/poles/trekking/produkt.php?id=194_2313_10. They're adjustable to 145 cm, fold down to 45 cm, very light (under 7 oz) and they come with snow baskets. They're carbon fiber except for the bottom segment, which is aluminum alloy to guard against ski edge cuts. They have a foam grip so they work fine for hiking. The main downside is that they're pricey.

A similar design but a bit heavier is the Leki Micro Vario Carbon Max, https://www.leki.com/us/trekking/poles/2658/micro-vario-carbon-max.

amockalypsenow wrote:

Tried em out, but I disliked them. I feel it's better to have strong quads and let them do the work in a controlled fashion. Poles felt worse for my knees because my quads weren't working/engaged. ymmv.

Not trying to be a dick, but you must have been using them wrong.  You can engage your leg muscles just as much as you would without using trekking poles, and use the poles for a little push off and as a way to maintain your balance.  It is when you are climbing downhill that your knees are most prone to stress and injuries.  You can take a great deal of that stress off of your knees by extending your trekking poles 5-10 cm longer than you normally would, and placing them downhill of where your feet are and take some of that weight onto your arms/shoulders.  When I first started using them I wasn't doing it correctly.  For the best effect, I would recommend to anyone that they should do a little research on how to properly use them.  Theres actually a lot more to it than you would think.

I think one under-appreciated thing may be how the straps work best.  You shouldn't have to grip the poll at all while still pushing down through the center of the poll. Some polls may allow that and lower-quality ones may not.

And there is one nuanced question:  when you are on steep terrain where slipping / falling is a real possibility, do you remove the straps from your wrists or do you stay strapped in?

nkane wrote:

Shelter: they're the support for your UL tarp or mid.

Totally left that one off.  :-)