I find that I maintain a slightly more upright posture using two poles under a heavy pack. Mine have the angled grips, which I think is useful.

I do make measurably better time swinging my poles along in a good, steady, rhythmic upright stride, rather than the classic heavily laden, hunched over plod, thumbs typically hooked under shoulders traps. Your mileage may vary.

We've seen a lot of fads and fashions, pushed by marketing hype, in outdoor sports, as well as many front-country poseurs in designer labels. But don't let that put you off occasionally trying new things. Some are actual improvements, not just fads and hype for the gullible. For me, dual, three piece, angled grip have long since proven themselves superior to their single ski-pole predecessor and my collection of hiking staffs before that. For you, they may not work. But maybe something else will.

Jeff

Packrat

My Black Diamond poles also have the "flick-lock" system and I find it works really well.

I really like the poles, but as I said above I only use one as a walking stick and on the theory that three legs are better than two in tricky spaces.

I had the opportunity to do one particular stretch of the Appalachian Trail twice, and the second time I had a trekking pole with me. It made for a better and safer trip.

The particular part of the trail I'm referring to is in the Shenandoah Valley and the terrain is rocky with most of the stones being, as best as I can describe them, about the size of your average spiral sliced ham lol. A good portion of the rocks are loose and tend to shift when you step on them. Due to the terrain, the first time through I made extremely slow time fearing at every step I'd either twist an ankle or fall.

I had a map and compass, and could have taken another route, but that would have had me walking through neighborhoods on one side or walking through private farmland with No Trespassing signs on the other. Neither option really appealed to me.

On the second trip through, I had a trekking pole, and it helped immensely. I was more confident and I covered the trail in better time, allowing me more time at the destination. When the pole wasn't needed, I could easily attach it to my pack.

Anything can be a fad, useful or not. Either way, I don't care what people think of me for using a trekking pole. And truthfully, I don't care if anyone uses them because they are popular. Those people don't affect me one way or the other.

I also have two 1 liter Sigg Bottles in Neoprene covers strapped to my backpack and a fadtastic Camelbak with a clip on bite-valve to boot. I find these items useful, but I'm sure someone somewhere will have something smarmy to say about them.

But really... Who cares?

I never thought much of trekking poles - until I was a few days into my "trek of a lifetime." The plan was to walk from the end of the road in Jiri up to Kala Patar (Everest basecamp) and then back to Lukla for a flight out to Katmandu.

I can tell you that after my second 1,000 meter decent (right after a 1,000 meter ascent) my knees were crying out for help, and the poles made a HUGE difference.

Currently, if I'm going out for a dayhike, even over moderately rough terrain, I'll leave them in the car. However, if I'm carrying a heavy backpacking pack I find them very useful for maintaining balance, even on easy terain. Even though my arms are more tired than they would have been without, I am usually less fatigued as my core muscles have had to expend less effort keeping me fromm falling over - once you start to lose your balance, it takes a lot of effort to stay up with a heavy pack.

One time I try and use them no matter what is if I'm carrying my son in his backpack carrier. If we're on a trail and he's on my back, I'm using the poles. I just have no interest in finding out what kind of injury he'll get if I fall while carrying him, and I'm less likely to fall if I'm using the poles. Of course, if we're just walking around the mall or on a paved path at a park, I agree that poles would be rediculous.

Finally, I have found that using two poles reduces strain much more than using just one. When I've gone out with just one pole, the stresses on my body (and specifically my knees) become unequal, and lead to additional aches and pains at the end of the day.

Hope this helps. If I was going out on a multi-day backpack trek over rough terrain, I'd absolutely bring poles along.

I always carry some sort of hiking stick(s) with me when elk hunting. Not only does it help with the hike, but if done right it's a great support from which to shoot (as opposed to off-hand). Two sticks crossed make a great expedient bi-pod.

I use two trekking poles on almost every trip. There will always be the occasional fruitcake that makes jokes about hiking with poles.

i have never understood why two poles..a single walking stick seems to work just fine and leaves one hand free.transfering weight from legs to arms does not make alot of sense as legs are made to carry the weight and arms are small and weak in comparsion..a stick to help in odd spots where the footing is tricky or as a aid in high step up..but just walking along with poles like your on XC ski's======??

Well, I guess I'll always be a dumb old fruitcake then, making good fun of pencil necks struggling with trekking poles...

On a more serious note though, I had a look at Wikipedia the other day: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordic_walking
It says that Nordic walking burns 46% more calories than plain walking and also mentions "significant increases in heart rate at a given pace". Which is kind of bad for purposes of trekking or outdoor survival in my view.

OK, if your goal is fat loss then I suppose Nordic walking would be better than plain walking. It would still be an inefficient way to improve one's conditioning, though. I see very few people Nordic walking at anything approaching the intensity sufficient for any significant gains. It's also a poor way to improve upper-body strength or bone density. Maybe acceptable for sedentary old folks or the extremely obese, but other than that everybody else would benefit from a more intense, faster paced activity.

In terms of hiking though, burning 46% more calories per given distance is a major disadvantage. It means you'll need to bring more food and carry a heavier load. No big deal on a short hike but starts to become a factor on longer treks.

I admit I used to be one who would always snicker to myself at the people using trekking poles, until I finally broke down and tried it for myself. It took me a while because I just didn't want to be one of "those people", you know the kind with brand new expensive North Face jacket while skiing on the bunny slopes. But just because other people don't use their gear properly doesn't mean you should discount the equipment. Are 4x4's useless just because everyone else is using SUV's as mall-cruisers? And it's true, a lot of people I see on the trails just aren't using the poles correctly or don't know how.

Just think of the poles as the modern day equivilent of a hiking staff. In almost all the pictures you see of old time mountain men, they always carried some sort of staff with them. IMO, one staff is good, two poles are better. I started out with one pole, and really didn't see much of a benefit. But for some reason I decided I would try two, and I've found it to be much better for some reason. Can't really explain why, other than you can get into a rhythm using two poles that you just can't get with one.

The harder the hike, the steeper the descent, and the heavier the pack, that's when you'll really start to appreciate having something to aid in balance. I can't even count the number of times it's saved me from taking a really bad fall, or twisting my ankle. About the only time they become a burden is when climbing/scrambling uphill on rocky areas, in which case most trekking poles can be collapsed and stowed away, not so easy with a wooden staff. Plus in many areas it's just not possible to find a suitable branch on the ground to use, and it's illegal to cut one off a tree.

There's a big difference between using the trekking poles for a Nordic walking workout, and using one for hiking. It does burn more calories overall, but it also lessens the load on your leg, so you actually can hike farther with less fatigue. Usually your arms aren't doing much anyway when you're hiking, might as well put them to use. If you're using them correctly, you're not really giving your arms much of a workout anyway. I would say 46% increase in calorie burning is quite extreme, the numbers I've read are more like a 10% increase, which isn't much.

I know quite a few people who had the same initial impressions as I did (especially other guys). They see hiking poles as unmanly, or something only yuppie hikers would buy. But just wait until they're exhausted coming down from a really long hike, they'll grudgingly accept the poles, and by the end they'll realize how much they help.

They're definitely not for everyone though, some people just don't like the feeling of holding something while hiking. If all your hikes are on flat land or well traveled trails, then poles are probably unneccessary. But I doubt trekking poles would be so popular for so long if it was only a fad and didn't have real benefits.

I slip down on my butt a LOT less when using poles on steep downhill loose gravel slopes.

I feel a LOT more secure when picking my way down the rocky "stair-step" slopes.

My feet stay a LOT drier when attempting to cross a fallen tree over a stream.

I do find some humor in watching people carrying their poles along, pointing down and forward, but never touching the ground with them. Ditto for the folks who "tap" their pole on the ground every 7 or 8 steps. When I'm using my poles (which is almost all the time now), I use them like a four legged animal would. Animals don't skip using their front legs regularly. It's a regular pattern where all four are used in a defined sequence, left rear working with right front, right rear working with left front (ignoring loping, jumping, and pouncing movements). During steep climbing or descending this rhythm is of course broken as you pick your way through obstacles.

Trekking poles: A big YES from me.