17 Hiking Pole Buying Tips.

A hiking pole, walking stick or trekking pole, is simply a wood, aluminum or composite rod similar to a ski pole. Hiking poles transfer some of the load that your legs would normally carry, to your arms. But as you'll see this can add up even after a couple of miles and help you go further, faster, with less pain than without them.

The poles offer several advantages and some disadvantages...

On the plus side they:

1. Provide extra stability and balance on uneven surfaces and when crossing streams.

2. They can help you "catch" yourself if you stumble.

3. They can help with knee pain.

4. They can help "rest" your arms and increase overall endurance.

On the down side:

1. A hiking pole keeps your hand occupied, and can make it harder to do other things.

2. If you're hiking through "tight" areas like scrub-brush or thickets a hiking pole can get easily entangled.

3. Can require some training so that you get the most out of them.

If you're looking to get a hiking pole because of knee pain, it's a good idea to consult with a doctor who may refer you to a physical therapist who can give you ideas and exercises to strengthen your knees. Strengthening your muscles and tendons will not only provide your knee with more stability and endurance, but the conditioning should help with pain also. Low-impact strengthening is usually a better idea than high-impact strengthening as increased impact can aggravate knee pain especially as body weight increases.

Shock-absorbing insoles can make a big difference in avoiding foot fatigue and possibly knee pain if impact bothers you. When I used to wait tables I could spend 12 hours on my feet with Spenco Insoles made of Sorbothane and my feet wouldn't even be tired. However, before I had the insoles they would start to bother me after 5-6 hours of walking on the hard tile floors or carpeted concrete. They were more than worth the $12 I paid for them at the time.

Hiking Pole Tips:

1. Angled grips can make long days easier when your wrists get tired, although if you're using the pole correctly this won't be as much of an issue.

2. Carbide hiking pole tips will last longer than steel tips. Make sure they're replaceable. Also get some rubber tips for hiking in sensitive areas (to avoid scaring rocks, and aiding erosion) and to protect your other camping gear and hiking equipment from scratches or punctures.

3. Replaceable baskets are also a good idea if you hike over soft ground or in the snow. Smaller baskets won't snag as easily, but bigger baskets stop the hiking pole from sinking as much.

4. Avoid or at least carefully consider "twist-lock" designs on a collapsible hiking pole as they can slip. Having to constantly adjust slipping poles can be a hassle. The hiking poles I mention below use a better design.

5. Poles with lower grip extenders make adjusting your grip position easy for steep ascents or any other time you want to cinch down your grip, or just change your position.

6. Shorter trekking pole length for ascending will help to keep you from tiring as quickly, and a longer pole length makes descents easier.

7. Go as light as you can afford especially if you're covering long distances. Every ounce makes a difference when you're carrying something in your hand for hours at a time. But if you're just trying out hiking poles for the first time, or if you only go on short day hikes lighter poles won't be as noticeable.

8. Adjust the pole so that when it's in your hand and touching the ground your elbow is at a 90-degree angle. This is an approximate length to start with, you might want to adjust it slightly up or down for your comfort from there.

10. Two poles provide more balance, more power, and take more weight off your knees than does using one pole alone. But if you have to keep one hand free for some reason, one pole is better than none.

11. Collapsible hiking poles make stowage easier when your hiking through areas with thick vegetation, or climbing up and over boulders.

12. Get poles with wrist straps. Your hands should come up underneath and through the wrist loops, with your palm resting on the strap. Lightly grip the handle to form a loose letter "O". Since your not having to hold the hiking pole in a death grip to keep your hand from slipping down the pole you'll save your wrists from fatiguing as easily. The lighter grip will also help you to avoid blisters. The exception to using a light grip is when you are descending a steep hill or when you need more control.

13. On flat surfaces each hiking pole should swing with the opposite leg just like in normal walking.

14. Using hiking poles will decrease the weight on your knees by at least the weight of your arms, more if you actively weight bear through the pole using the wrist strap. So, depending on your weight this should be between 10-25 pounds per step. Not too bad, especially if you also reduce the weight of your backpack.

15. If your stride measures 2 feet, and you save your knees 10 pounds of stress per step, you'll be saving your knees from at least 26,400 pounds per mile (2,640 steps x 10 pounds).

16. Using hiking poles will increase your speed and endurance, but keep in mind you'll also burn more calories because you're using your upper extremities, so you might want to pack a little more camping food.

17. Two section poles are usually lighter and stronger than three section poles, but three section poles collapse down to a smaller stowage size.

Recommended Hiking Poles

I recommend each Black Diamond hiking pole below. One of the best features about them is that they have a very good locking mechanism to secure the pole sections in place once they're extended. If they ever do come loose just tighten them up with a screw driver (you may want to carry one with you, just in case). It beats "twist-lock" designs that can loosen up easily and are harder to use.

I highly recommend Backcountry because of their great customer service (90% of 25,000+ customers rated them highly, and there has always been someone to answer the phone when I've called with a question). Backcountry carries a couple of great hiking poles...

The Black Diamond Gradient Trekking Poles







and Black Diamond Terra CF Trekking Poles







are two sticks you'll definitely want to consider. Actually, I'd look no further. They both offer "Flicklocks" and "Binary locking" mechanisms to prevent slippage, the ability to replace tips and baskets, carbide tips, are fairly light at just over a pound, and have a lifetime Warranty.

REI is another company I recommend. They offer a wide selection of walking sticks and their satisfaction rating is in the mid 90% after being evaluated by 100,000+ customers. If you'd like to polish your hiking pole technique, REI offers a Hiking Poles DVD (sorry they don't have a direct link) that explains 5 basic poling techniques, how to care for your sticks, and some other information.

I hope my hiking pole page has helped to make your decision easier. Please feel free to subscribe to our newsletter (above) and/or RSS feed (left side of home page) for future camping and hiking gear guides, reviews and tips.