Time to get trekking poles. What do I look for?

[James holden]

imagine this situation … yr suddenly jumped by 10 ninja bears …

if you have an aluminum pole you whack a bear and all it does is bend … and you become human sashimi

however … of you have one of those fancy snap at the slightest touch carbon poles … you can whack a bear … and yr left with a deadly sharp spear tip …

then you can kill all the said bears with yr fencing moves … and with some ultralight BPL instant rice make bear sushi …

i wouldnt worry about getting impaled by carbon poles … lol

[Travis Leanna]

Eric, that's not funny. That exact scenario happened to me last year, except there were 12 ninja bears and two shattered trekking poles just couldn't handle them all. I narrowly escaped serious injury because I was able to parachute off the mountain with my Trailstar shelter.

[Everett Vinzant]

I'm taking my marbles and playing somewhere else…

Where there aren't any ninja bears ;)

[Steofan M]

I have an old pair of Leki twist-locking anti-shock poles that I have used for while now. I'd love to replace them with something lighter but the Leki's just won't die. Anymore I just take one pole along and find a stick for the short end of the tarp. Two poles are just too heavy, and sometimes it seems like two poles just get in the way.
Go with Roger's advice: something light and easily stowed. I'd also look for something that will fit your budget AND is easily returned if you don't like it.
Carbon, metal or wood: I've seen them all break.

[Robert Cowman]

Just saying but don't they make Supercar's out of Carbon Fiber like Aston Martin's, Zonda's and a Koenigsegg's. Has to be better than metal in some applications. My GG LT3s have never failed on me, same with my REI peaks and they have been through a lot.

[Andy F]

I like the Black Diamond Flick-Lock poles without shock absorption (aluminum Trailback model or something like that). They're 20 oz a pair, but the weight on my arms causes no complaints.

[carl becker]

I just started using poles. I purchased a pr at REI, anti shock aluminum twist lock. I did not like the weight or anti shock and returned them for the much lighter GG LT4 with straps $$$. The GG have a style of twist lock that I much prefer, clean and simple. I usually keep the poles at one length while hiking then adjust them for use with the tent. No problems so far. Being two piece they are a bit long and will not fit in my 34L pack if I where to use air travel. They do fit in a large suit case though. For as many times as I swing these when hiking miles I want lightness and strength. I do carry a bit of tape and knife to repair items. Some tarps like the MLD Solomid only require one pole for setup. The Tarptent Sublite uses two.

[Javan Dempsey]

Carl, you'd have to put your poles in check baggage regardless of length unfortunately. Which makes TP usage a PITA with all the baggage allowance restrictions these days, not to mention the aggravation of having to deal with check baggage even if you don't mind paying for it.

I'm heading to Peru in Nov, and I'm probably just going to leave the poles at home unfortunately, since I have layovers in Columbia, and I don't want check baggage loss or delay to screw up my trip.

[Anonymous]

No question I'd tell you to buy Leki's.

I'd get more into it, but everyone would call me out for my opinion on it.

There's a reason why 90% of the Thru-Hikers on the AT use Leki's….

[John S.]

Leki has had a larger presence for years. More stores carry Leki, but it's not because Black Diamond isn't a great pole.

I think overall those people are misinformed about flick lock poles. I've seen several converts to flick lock, but have never seen a convert to twist locks from a person using flick locks.

[Kendall Clement]

Personally, I really like my BPL Stix. Just my 2 cents.

[Jim Colten]

Let me start by repeating MY opinion that there's no perfect gear solution for ANY use.

I've used twist lock poles and they were fine except for cold weather … difficult (some times impossible) to operate wearing gloves or mitts and I don't want to grab aluminum tubes with bare hands at 0F.

I own a pair of aluminum BD flint locks and they are clearly superior to twist locks in cold weather.

I also own BPL Stix and they are wonderful! But they're not long enough should I ever choose to get a TT Sublite and I'd prefer that they be longer when using a Jay Ham designed tarp. And then there's the difficulty of flying with them.

I've handled Titanium Goat adjustables and would prefer a stiffer pole. Haven't handled GG LT4's but reports seem to say they're a bit breakable.

Which brings me back to … there is no perfect piece of gear.

edit: But there's absolutely no way you should ever want shock absorbing poles, never! (he writes with a wink and a smile).

[Rusty Beaver]

Very helpful!

Jim,

You mention the Tigoat poles not being as stiff as you'd prefer. Perhaps this could be a boon for me with wanting to do everything possible to minimize problems with my susceptible ligaments. For kayaking, I purposely use a paddle with a flexible shaft for these very reasons. The extra flex takes much of the jar/shock off. Maybe a more flexible pole would work in the same way. Thoughts…anyone?

[Javan Dempsey]

Rusty, I don't find my goat poles very jarring. There is some vibration because of the flexibility, but as Chris mentioned before, the CF seems to handle that softly.

I find them more comfortable in that respect than the Komperdells I had before.

Here's a pic as to the strength of these poles btw:

http://www.titaniumgoat.com/files/Pole-bend.jpg

As to the issue of the twist-lock being tough to manipulate in the cold, the goat poles expanders are manipulated by twisting the pole sections themselves, which really isn't hard in gloves unless they're slippery or something.

[Rusty Beaver]

Thanks, Javan. With that much flex, I have to wonder how much of a person's weight they can bear. Having no experience with special poles for backpacking, I don't know to what capacity or in what ways others use them. Last weekend, while climbing up or down the steeper sections of trail, I found myself bearing as much of my weight on the wood sticks as I could to take the weight off my sore knees. Seeing the amount of flex in that picture makes me wonder if the Tigoat poles would actually work in those conditions for me…particularly going down hill. I don't really like the idea of a pole bending and causing me to take a header down the side of a steep mountain. For what it's worth, I'm only 160 lbs.

Thoughts?

[David Ure]

I've broken two carbon fibre poles going down hill on scrambles. But I weigh 210.

Using BD's flicklock aluminum poles have caused me nothing more than cheer.

[carl becker]

I do take my poles in my baggage. I had to measure the suitcase to make sure these long GG poles would fit. Carry on I don't think so.

I am sure I could break any pole make with my track record ;~)

[EndoftheTrail]

An alternative to checking your entire backpack is to get a cardboard tube for your poles and knives — and just check those. Minimizes risk of damage or loss to your pack. The tubes are available at your local PO:

[Randy McDowell]

I purchased a pair of GG LT4s in April. I broke both poles coming over Muir Pass in July. GG was very reasonable with repair costs and offered great customer service. In September, I again broke both poles while in the Wind River Range(steep rocky downhills). I'm in the process of getting them repaired. I must admit, while on the trail, I was pretty frustrated with the second set of failures. However, upon reflection, I will probably continue to choose the weight of the carbon poles over the greater strength offered by other poles.

BTW-I only weigh 145 lbs. so breaking the carbon poles doesn't take a lot of weight.

[Javan Dempsey]

Rusty,

Notice in that picture that they've got the tip wedged down between two pieces of sidewalk and are bending it, not pushing it down.

My poles have supported my entire body weight with a fraction as much bend. I'm not saying they're unbreakable, but they're extremely robust. They don't bend any observable amount in regular, even extreme use. Without harping on about what I've been doing this past year (especially last winter), you'll just have to take my word for it, they're strong.

I've heard of way more failures of the GG poles than I have the goat poles for some reason, but the GG poles are also more prolific.

I weigh around 160 also for what it's worth.

[David Ure]

"An alternative to checking your entire backpack is to get a cardboard tube for your poles and knives — and just check those. Minimizes risk of damage or loss to your pack."

Nice Ben – I am going to 'steal' this idea. Muhaaaahaha.

[Rusty Beaver]

Great having so much feedback!

The Tigoat poles intrigue me but I can't envision how the locking mechanism works. Does anyone by chance have any photos of that area?

Also, could one make their own wrist straps for these poles without too much trouble?

[Eugene Smith]

TiGoat AGP's are excellent. They're very simple and robust for such a lightweight pair of poles. I like the rigidity of the poles but they have a certain amount of pliability that offers some forgiveness when I misplace the pole tips. I'm 6' and weigh 170lbs., on past trips I've relied rather heavily on my poles for days of endless turbulent stream crossings and steep and rocky descents with no complaints or fuss. In fact, on many occasions I've had my poles ripped out of my hands after catching them in between rocks and crannies. Would the GGLT4's stand up to the abuse? I don't know, I'm not convinced they would after hearing all the accounts of broken poles having to be sent back and repaired. But, like Dan mentioned, they are more abundant amongst us. Is Gossamer's carbon process different than Ti Goat? More brittle?

[Hiking Malto]

Let me start with saying that I don't believe that there is a perfect set of trekking poles and my choice of trekking poles depends on the trip.

1) I started with the REI Peak Ul Trekking Poles. I went through three sets of these and won't take them on any important trip even if they were free. One set broke on a snowshoe trip. (My fault, wrong application) and they other two screw locking system completely went out on trips. However, not all screw locking systems are as finicky as the REI poles.
2) I current take GG Lt-4's (no straps) for all on trail and most off trail trips. I love these poles and the locking system is both simple and robust. They are so lightweight that I don't even know they are there until I need them. I have also used them on trip where I run the downhills and they have been wonderful.
3) For some off trail and all snowshoe trips I use a set of AL Komperdells with twist lock. These are more robust in snow where you will often stick a pole into an air pocket next to a rock or log and go down down hard. But I also know that nothing short of a steel post will eliminate any chance of breakage. These poles are heavier than the LT-4's but I'm rarely doing over 15 miles in this type of environment.

[Hal Potts]

I am always surprised at the differing opinions about the same product that can be found on the internet. One guy hates them and wouldn't use them if they were free and another loves them.

I have owned a pair of the REI (Komperdell) Peak UL Trekking Poles for about 5 years and have never had any problem with them, other than the fact that the twist locks sometimes spin and do require a little fiddling. That can be annoying at times. They often get wedged between rocks or get so much pressure put on them that they really bend but they have never broken and have always held up just fine. I have really put them through the paces in the last five years and would have to say that I am quite pleased with their performance.

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