The Great Adventure

Having powerful thighs from over 28 years of cycling, as far as hill climbing is concerned, I have never thought poles necessary. I have vaguely pondered the purchase of a single pole to assist me on steep descents, where an additional prop is often an advantage, but have never followed this through.

The occasional people I meet on my walks using trekking poles I have always considered as somewhat odd. My reaction is caused by the fact that I tend to meet them walking on flat paths where I can see no reason for their use.

However mindful of the additional weight I will be carrying and having been struck in the many trekking photographs I have viewed by the number of people using poles, I have decided to investigate them. I am particularly interested in their use as a balance aid whilst ascending hills. Will they be a wise move or a hindrance ?

I was discussing my trip with a walking friend and he was of the view that trekking (on trail) in the states will probably feature well defined paths, completely unlike the typical Welsh windy path (if such a thing exists) where we both agreed poles would either just get in the way or I would end up spearing an unsuspecting victim.

Searching around on the web, I came across Peter Clinch's excellent Poles page which I think sums up their advantages/disadvantages very well as well as providing guidance as to their correct use. A more mischievous article written by Rick Bolger of Slackpacker.com decrying their use is here .

At the end of the day there is no clear consensus. The decision I have come to is that I would feel more comfortable having the poles with me, although I suspect I will only use them on unstable ground or whilst descending/climbing. 

As far as trekking poles are concerned the name is Leki and I have decided to purchase their Super Makalu Cortec Anti Shock poles. They retail at approximately £38 each but again searching around on the web I have ordered them from Gear Zone for £29.50 each which is quite a saving.

Why these ? Well they are light, long (140cm) have a Cortec handle which incorporates cork (thinking hot hands) and have an angled offset handle to aid planting of the pole and reducing the load on the wrist.

Additionally they have built in shock absorber (that can be deactivated) and replaceable tungsten carbide tips. 

For those of you anxious to learn more about the differing types of Leki poles more information is here.