Trekking Poles

[BCHoyt]

I have never had the chance to try out trekking poles while hiking or hunting but my hunting partner swears by them, says its like 4X4 for people. I figured with just having knee surgery that any extra help while on the trail or in the bush cant hurt, so I ordered up a set of Black Diamond Alpine Carbon Cork trekking poles.

Once they arrive and Im able to get back on the trails Ill do a more first hand review on them. How many of you guys use them?

[khoffnbud]

yes, they are fantastic, wish i had started using them years earlier. takes alot of the load off the knees i find but i think i like them more for the extra balance and stability when hiking with a pack on gnarly terrain

[Rattler]

If I'm backpack hunting I don't leave home without them. Currently using Leki ultra lite quick lock poles and they have been great so far...

[Krico]

Great with a heavy pack in the mountains, and in stream crossings.

[Tīɡ]

Very good for stability in steep or uneven terrain, also a great help with a load on your back. I used black diamond trails, had them for about 5 years now and still going strong.

[Ranger95]

Very good for stability in steep or uneven terrain, also a great help with a load on your back. I used black diamond trails, had them for about 5 years now and still going strong.

What he said - black diamonds are great!

[srupp]

Hmm 2 knees,1 hip needing replacement..these poles are amazing highly recomended by those of us that dont just use them we need them.
Srupp

[Paulyman]

Use them, they're awesome.

[Sitkaspruce]

Easton Hike Carbon 3, will not leave home without them!!

Cheers

SS

[BCHoyt]

Cool... Im happy I ordered them now.... Like I said Ill do a review on them once I get to try them out..

[Ovis17]

Must have gear. Worth their weight in gold on a backpack/high mountain hunt. Just stay away from the Outbound telescopic poles. I've gone through two sets on my last two sheep hunts.

[Whonnock Boy]

If you're on a mission to get somewhere, they're great! Otherwise, I tend to leave them in the pack. It's always nice to know that they're in there.

[Big Lew]

I've never used 'store bought' hiking poles, but have used homemade ones for years.
When I first started serious hiking and back packing I wondered why most of the older
folks were using them (I actually thought they were weird pansys, lol) but after a couple
of nasty falls I realized those oldsters knew what they were doing, go figure. I progressed
to packing very heavy loads in steep terrain and was never without stout hiking poles.
They actually will be the difference between injury or a safe trip, and you'd be surprised
at how often they come in handy for other uses as well.

[huntcoop]

Do they make any that have a threaded mount on top for a camera or spotter?

[jtred]

They really do make quite the difference in nasty stuff with a heavy load. I always use two while packing in or out but only one while actually hunting, if you practise with one they make a great monopod for shooting off of or glassing with binoculars. Makes a very stable platform for binoculars or a camera. While hunting the other pole is strapped to my pack in case I get an animal that needs to be packed out. Combined with a siltarp and a few willows you have a pretty good temporary shelter and I've built a sweat lodge with hiking poles/siltarp/rocks while on longer trips to get clean.

[avadad]

I love my Black Diamonds…Awesome if you need to make a beeline across a salal covered slash among many other uses, really help make a difference when your tired as well.

[Brez]

I have Black Diamonds as well and won't even go for a mountain trail walk without them - load or no load. It gives the upper body a bit of a work-out as well as the old knees a break. having said that, I don't think that I would spend that money on poles again. I have used cheap Walmart/Canadian Tire ones and they work as well and if you break or lose one, it won't kill you.

[caddisguy]

I started having sporadic knee issues in late summer 2013. I've been x-rayed and tested for various auto-immune diseases, but nothing ever came of it... figured it's use and abuse... maybe straining combined with lack of hydration. Sadly things have been getting worse so I'll have to follow it up with the doctors. Some mornings I can't even sit on the can swiftly. I'm only 33.

I am highly considering some poles, as I do a lot of hiking and climbing in the Region 2 jungles... going downhill, over top of logs, keeping balance on one foot while the other sinks into the moss... all that awkward twisting and turning... things get pretty sore sometimes.

[.30-06 camsavbc]

I personally would not go into the backcountry without a hiking pole of some kind, even a fallen branch I pick up as a make shift pole. I have Komperdell TI-7 Light with a shock absorber and of course it is adjustable (extended for downhill and shortened for uphill and collapsed for steep, straight up climbs). Your arm should always be at 90 degrees at your elbow to prevent excess stress on your arm, wrist and shoulder. This is my 3rd pole in 30+ years of serious backpacking and I felt I deserved a top of the line pole in my older age. It has a lot of benefits that have been mentioned here already so I won't repeat them.

When I am backpacking or hunting I always bring the same gear regardless of length of hike so I won't be one of "those" statistics and a hiking pole happens to be one of them. My pole mostly ends up attached to my pack when I hunt as I hold my rifle or shotgun when I am hunting and use the butt to steady myself (without a round chambered of course) to help prevent a fall which is inevitable on the island.

You could drill a hole in the top of the handle of any pole and epoxy a brass threaded adapter for a camera or "Y" saddle to steady your rifle.

[BRvalley]

big fan of my black diamond poles, have the opportunity to use most of the models out there and black diamonds are my favourite, my set isn't the lightest but they are tough


Do they make any that have a threaded mount on top for a camera or spotter?

I bought a monopod hiking/shooting stick from wholesale, you could thread off the shooting V and thread on a camera (no quick release mount)...but overall it was a crappy product, about as rigid as a pool noodle for hiking, lasted a few weeks

[BCHoyt]

Well I definately am happy that I ordered them!

[Salty]

Got some last Christmas Outbound brand nothing real fancy but they work and they don't weigh much. Most packs these days have pouches for them as does my Eberlestock x2 day pack my poles live in the pack quite out of the way. I don't use them most of the time and ususally just use one when still hunting through the jungles here makes for safer surer movement around sink holes, loose rocks etc and still very quick to shoulder the rifle. But for a deer in the pack or other heavy load using both of them is a god send.

[The Hermit]

Have you had a chance to use them? I'm planning on buying a pair and interested to know what you think of them.

[Clint_S]

I've never used 'store bought' hiking poles, but have used homemade ones for years.

DITTO.
I can't understand why someone would pay for one of these things. My knees are so shot I can't hardly walk downhill without an aid but why you would buy something that is free.
Sort of like the bottled water craze to me.
Go for a walk, cut a staff, your done. I've got one in the back of my truck, one up where I look for sheds, one on a trail I hike often. I found it, I cut it, I personalized it with cord wraps or carving and when it wears out or I just am done using it there are a million others waiting to be had.
Made from all natural renewable products right here in good old BC.

[GOLDEN TOP SNIPER]

i used them at at every opportunity now . i dont have them handy but im sure there Black Diamond flip locks .. they work great . adjust on the fly when your going thru different levels of steep up and down . i have rigged up a hands free rifle sling now so its hanging from shoulder to hip . ready to rock .

[Barracuda]

I actually don't like them

[BCHoyt]

I love em... Its like having 4X4 while hiking... I wont go on any hikes now without them..

[Barracuda]

should be able to do it on two legs without the use of crutches

[Fred1]

should be able to do it on two legs without the use of crutches
ya or 6.5lbs guns and gortex... HAHAHAHAHA!

[swampthing]

My grizz draw is a backpack hunt. If I go this spring my 50 year old knees will appreciate the treckin poles I have been using for 4-5 years now. I have some leckis and they really do help old knees. They double as shooting sticks too.

[RiverRunner]

Black Diamond Ultra Mountain FL z pole.

game changer....

if not using... They're nearby strapped to the pack.