Trekking Poles

[MuleyFever]

Good deal on carbon Komperdells on Massdrop right now.

 

[mcseal2]

I bought two pairs of the Costco poles in about February of this year. One for me, one for my girlfriend. We've been using them for backpacking since then in off-trail, steep terrain here in the Sierras. I don't really have any complaints with them at all. There's a bunch of reviews and info on them between a few popular backpacking forums. It's my first time using poles, and I figured for $30 they'd be worth the experiment.

Seems like some people don't like the configuration of the carbide tips and the nuts for the locks sound like they don't last forever. Replacing the nuts with nylocks and epoxying in some new tips when/if these fall out is pretty simple and not a concern for me. Costco has an excellent return policy also I suppose, although that seems like more work than just modifying them.

I pulled my IT band pretty bad several weeks ago, and having a trekking pole to put weight on for the rest of the trip was a life saver. They've been really helpful for crossing small streams and with some loose sidehills too. I won't typically carry them on flat-ish day hikes on developed trails, but they're always going with me for steeps, off-trail, or anything where I'm carrying some weight.

I've started experimenting with tarps vs. a tent now too, since these work great for pitching a tarp. I'm going to start practicing shooting with the wrist strap around the foregrip of my rifle also.

I think cam locks are generally more reliable than twist locks, and most of the more expensive ones have threaded tips to make it easier to replace them when they wear out.

My thoughts were that I wanted to start with something cheap and see if I liked using poles, and what features I'd want. If I wanted something more expensive after that, these would be good spares to have at the price point. I don't really see much value in the more expensive ones for my needs after using these, even if I have to buy a new pair every year or two. I'm likely to lose one or two in that period of time anyway.

If you at packing 2 poles you can use the wrist lanyards hooked over the opposite pole to make a V shooting rest too, more of a bipod.

 

[Elkoholic87]

Think I may end up buying the Pure Outdoor Carbon Cork poles. They seem like an excellent value considering they are carbon and have cork handles. Anyone use these? The reviews seem to be solid. $37.74 shipped seems dirt cheap for what you get.
Just ordered them. Seems like a good deal.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[sodaksooner]

I have some REI branded Carbon ones(got em cheap on a sale). Have had no issues. They retail for like $139, I think I paid $89 for them. Super light, don't slip. Have used them quite a bit and no issues.

 

[xziang]

I too have some black diamond aluminum flip lock ones. I like them they have the cork handles too. (cabelas bargain cave special)

First year I used the cabelas 9.99 aluminum ones and they worked and actually saved my ass on a slippery log. Now I use the black diamond all the time hiking in and out. During the day or when I'm moving with bow in hand I just grab a stick. Always seem to be forgetting the stick when I take a break and have to find another. (always glad it wasn't a trekking pole)