Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Do Poles matter?

I'm thinking of purchasing some hiking poles for our trip to Whitney next week. These are those poles with shocks in them. I have really bad knees from a skiing accident a few years back. I heard the poles can help with this, however, I have second thoughts as the poles are $140.. Does any one know if the poles are really worth it?

I have been using trekking poles for many years now and thay are definitly worth it especially if you are older or have bad knees. They are of some benefit on the way up but where they really help is on the way down when the knees are taking a pounding.

Regarding the expensive "shock absorbing" poles, in my opinion they are more of a marketing gimik. You can get a decent set of poles for 40 or 50 bucks that will do just fine.

Being in my early 20's I am not ready for poles yet. My knees are strong and I don't really feel any need. I have talked with REI and others about them but have decided to wait.

However, some of my hiking friends (40 + years) feel they can't do without them, especially on the way down hill. So to each his own. But I sure would like to try some first before laying out the big money on poles with Shocks.

http://www.whitneyportalstore.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=001997

http://www.whitneyportalstore.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=001889 Look at the information by spanky bob about Sausage fingers, heavy backpacks and trekking poles.

I've been using a pair of Leki Super Makalu's for 4 years and love them. They save my tired, inflamed knees on the downhill. Also, you can use your arm strength for a boost on the uphill. The amount of compression from the shock absorbers is not near enough to throw you off-balance and it is adjustable. In fact, the poles let your arms help with keeping your balance on uneven ground. I weigh 235 and put my weight on these poles many times every hike. They have held up perfectly.

Another option would be to rent them so you can try them first. I know that Sport Chalet rents them for about $4/day. Not sure who else rents them.

You can rent hiking/treking poles at REI. I use them most of the time . Great for downhill especially on those big steps. They also can save your tail if you get off balance carrying a heavy pack. They save alot of energy going uphill as well. Not everyone likes to use them as you can see but after many years of abuse to my knees from dirt bikes , working construction, and miles of hiking I swear by them.WS

I fall into the 40+ crowd and hiked and backpacked for 2 yrs with cheapo poles from second hand store, like $2.50 or something for some old aluminum ski poles. Those worked well enough for me to decide to spend the extra $ on Leki Super Makalu's. The trekking poles are the way to go with a load on my back, they help in so many ways it is hard to overstate the benefit of using them.

I am in the older crowd & I use hiking poles all the time now. They really are a help on the descent and you can actually use them to accelerate on the level and on the climb. Every once in a while they get in the way when you want to use both hands and both feet during a difficult scramble. I find them very handy and helpful for creek crossing and beaver dam transistions.

I bought the springloaded type and feel that this feature may cost more than it is worth.

I wouldn't hike without them. It is like having 4-wheel drive.

Like many others, I've gone through an evolution of use....using none, ski poles, cheapest adjustable, adj/with springs. I'm not convinced the springs have made much difference. I've probably 60 days on them.

I noticed that Wal-Mart had non-spring type, 3 section for $10/each. Pretty cheap way to find out.

I feel that thy are important to have on the back side of the ridge past Trail Crest as there are plenty of places where you can step wrong. I bought a pair of extendable poles at Target for $20 each. I don't remember seeing any at Wal Mart, but maybe I did not look in the right place.

Trekking poles rule the world. I use Leki Super Makalus. They rock. The shocks do make a big difference on downhill sections as they allow you to ease down otherwise jolty steps. They are also great for steep uphills, almost like your own set of handrails to push up on. They also assist you in crossing streams; assist keeping your balance if you slip on the trail; they are great if you are using a tarp shelter as you can leave the tarp poles at home and save weight by using your trekking poles; I've had rattlesnakes bite my trekking poles and venom dripped off the end cup so they can help in snake encounters; if you ever did twist your ankle they are great first-aid crutches to help you get out; they make good swords for sword fighting in camp. If you have bad knees I think they are the only way to go.

If you want a pair of Leki Super Makalus (the best poles IMHO), call the Whitney Portal store first because when I was there they were selling them for $30-40 cheaper than other retail outlets. And this is coming from someone who works part-time at REI. Shhhh... don't tell.

Add a pair of off-road biking gloves or padded weight lifting gloves with your hiking poles. The added padding around the grip absorbs shock and reduces chaffing.

Good knees or bad, trekking poles do a couple of other important things.
1. Help to give the upper body a bit of a workout which you can vary in intensity by your
own design.
2. They transfer the weight of your arms to the ground every time you plant the pole thus helping to conserve your energy and lighten your overall load.

One other thing, they can save your butt from taking a fall and I can testify to that simple fact. I don't leave home without them. My wife says I look rather silly using them in the mall but heck, I don't care, I love the things.

I loaned a pair to my college age son on a hike and he didn't want to use them but I told him to be open minded and try them. By the time the 5 mile hike was over, he didn't want to give them back. Oh yeah, the only way to go.

i went thru the same debate earlier this year planning a whitney trip. i usually hike with my daughter's "girl scout" staff. i like having a strong stick for helping with balance, getting up and down from the recline position (of which there will be many going up whitney), or for poking away bugs or webs or flipping over rocks, whatever.

for two extended hikes before whitney, I used both spring poles and non-spring poles. I found the shock absorber types much easier and friendlier on the arms. plenty firm enough when you needed it. i used the same $129 leki core-tec super makalu. the non-shock poles felt stiff and inflexible after using the shocks.

so my plan was to buy a pair for whitney. the night before we did mt. baldy, another training hike, i got a set from sport chalet. I got home and when I adjusted the shocks, I found one of them was broken. it was too late to return them and we were headed to baldy at 5 am, so i was going sans pole. i took the girl scout stick and never missed the poles. in fact, i received so many nice compliments from other hikers on my hiking stick that it made me feel like some contrarian carrying a torch for the old ways. i loved it.

so having hiked all spring and summer with my daughter's sturdy stick, including the baldy summit, I decided to eschew the hiking poles and take the stick up whitney. no regrets about it. wish I could post a picture of me and the stick on the summit but i'm a little low tech in that department.

as mentioned in other posts, i think a stick or poles are very helpful for balance. and i thought it might be very handy if someone were to get off-centered from AMS. on the other hand, our two best and most fit hikers don't use them. two others swear by poles. there are times in the flat when sticks just seem to get in the way, or you constantly need to adjust the height as you go up and down. this thread can go on forever and there is no right or wrong.

i'm 49 and as you can tell, i'm a stick man. course the stick got awfully heavy on the way down after outpost...

I just got back from climbing in Europe and it always amazes me that the majority of European hiker/climbers seem to use poles while the majority of Americans don't. I'm a confirmed pole afficionado and even managed to convert my wife on this trip ("why didn't you get me to use them sooner?" was her comment). I figure if they're good enough for Reinhold Meissner, first person to climb Everest without oxygen, they're good enough for me. It is like taking several pounds of weight off each step. I second the motion to try some ski poles as a cheap way to see if you like poles and to forgo the shock absorbers (why add the extra cost, weight and complexity?).