Hiking Staffs

Denis showed far more discretion than many of us, including myself, often show - refusing to "hijack the hijack" of a thread (tip up carry) by getting into a discussion of the merits of various types and varieties of hiking staffs. So here is that thread.

I have used one type or another of hiking staff for well over twenty-five years when hiking and climbing and I have found them very useful, depending upon the particular circumstances.

I have used everything from a slightly modified shovel handle to a set of Leki collapsible poles that cost around ninety bucks. I could probably open a hiking staff museum with the stuff I have lying around.

Best potential weapon - the 6' shovel handle - basically the classical quarter staff.

Most versatile - the top of the line collapsible pole. It can be easily collapsed and stowed away in the pack if it gets in the way, as when doing technical routes.

What has been your experience with hiking staffs? Which is the very best?

We could probably do a similar thread on canoe paddles for our northern friends.....

I got a pair of fiberglass? ski poles from a yard sale. They came with a pair of skis that I used to make a dog sled. I cut the basket off of one pole for summer use and use the other in snow time. I guess they are about armpit height and seem to be the right length for me.
leo

I haven't used a variety of styles, but as I mentioned I find my simple wooden staff to be very useful. I use a staff that's just a couple inches shorter than I am and is around 1" in diameter (a bit more at the top, a bit less at the bottom).

I find one of the biggest advantages to the simple staff is the fact that there isn't a dedicated hand grip area; the length of the staff between the ground and your hand is infinitely variable without having to do anything other than shift the position of your hand.

There are many situations - crossing a fast stream, walking along a narrow board-walk or a narrow path across a steep grade, going up or down a steep hill - where holding staff somewhere other than the position you'd normally hold for hiking along a flat trail is advantageous.

Similarly, I've used it to help other people up a step grade by holding on to one end and getting them to grab the other so I could pull them up.

I think it's in these type of situations that the staff shines; that and when you & a buddy are crossing a stream and get to recreate the Little John v. Robin Hood scene .

While I had been considering something collapsible that I could stow away if I wanted to and would be easier to transport in a full vehicle, the above reasons make me think my no-cost wooden staff is worth sticking with.

A nice length of sturdy hardwood for a staff or walking stick is a Real good Idea when one is out galavanting the bush,aside from all of the above uses,A Cold Steel Bushman(mentioned because I have&use one) can readily attach to,giving you a grand boost of confidence especially when your ears are seeing something,your eyes haven't yet!A hardwood staff can be feathered for dry tinder if need be also,Wood has endless possibilities!

I'm always on the hunt for the perfect hiking staff. The older I get, the more inclined I am to use one.

I prefer natural materials. (High tech poles have so many benefits but they've never felt quite right to me.) My usual choice is something temporarily foraged from the bush, but in fall and winter that can be diificult because of the rain and snow.

I've got an old rake handle but it's a little too thin for my liking On advice gathered here, I just picked up a wooden shovel handle to try on my next trek.

Thanks for the on-going wisdom sharing, gang!

I have a few pair of hiking poles, some date back to the 1990s. Leki and Komperdell. None have ever failed. My faves are some ultralight poles that REI sold under its brand but were made by Komperdell. I keep a couple old pair in the car.

They've apparently been eclipsed, as products often are, by advances in materials and engineering. Here are some of the latest marvels -- which are shock-corded instead of having locks. A friend used a pair of these in the Alps in September. Problem with them is they can't be adjusted, while I like to shorten poles on steep inclines and lengthen on declines.

http://www.rei.com/product/813391/black-diamond-ultra-distance-z-pole-trekking-poles-pair

By the way, REI is presently doing 30% off many of these poles and walking staffs.

A couple days ago I place an order for this Leki "Wanderfreund Speedlock Walking Staff." I have a history of knee and ankle injuries and keep a similar staff in my car in the event something should happen while away.

http://www.rei.com/product/812554/leki-wanderfreund-speedlock-walking-staff

I plan on using this newest walking staff around my neighborhood on dog walks. It can function as and looks much like a cane but also has utility if swung as a baseball bat. There've been a lot of muggings around here lately and off-leash dogs can be an issue.

I have a mean swing.

I like this tracks pole - Sherlock I believe
Hiking staff

Adjustable, wood knob, good length.

Shovel handle with a friction tape grip.

did someone say hiking staff?

mine is a 6 ft x 1 1/2" piece of wax wood with - starting at the bottom and working up - a copper tip - since replaced with rubber - manila rope, paracord, leather grip - courtesy of the boy scouts - manila rope, ranger bands, capped off by my pink flamingo ( legs broke, no longer manufactured, now have a rooster ).

wax wood go here: hiking staff wood

martial artists use it. stout but flexible.

the rope is woven around the staff and quite attractive.

also use black diamond treking poles, depending on anticipated use.

photo at mt. whitney summit with sequoia & kings canyon national park back-country ranger rob.

LOVE the pink flamingo!

Now that's a hiking staff, bsmith!

Like others here I have used a hiking staff (NOT poles) for more years than I want to count. I have used all sorts of them, wood, bamboo, metal, fiberglass, etc. I carry them while hiking, hunting, and working in the field. I use it for stability, to set up my pack as a rest (see The Complete Walker), for photography (as a length marker), as a jacob staff for precise compass work and as a monopod for my camera. Plus probably a hundred other things. One of those don't leave home without it tools.

My preference is for wood but I do have an aluminum one (a custom Crawford Survival Staff, without all the extras (like the knife). that I like very much because it will collapse (22 inches max) and go in my luggage for trips and where I might need to pack it up (climbing, etc.). It is much easier to carry in the car as well. It is a superb tool and finds use more often than most because of travel restrictions.

My all time favorite is a hickory one made from a tree from the Andrew Jackson (Ole' Hickory) estate. It is a little short (I like a 6 foot staff, this one is only 5), but I have used it for almost 30 years. I recently replaced the old crutch tip foot with a stainless steel spike/rubber foot from Lee Valley woodworking. I had colored tape on it for measuring and as a reference in photographs, but as I refinish it I am going to change that to different color wood stains.

My martial arts staff is a 6 foot chunk of Ipae made for me by my son. Although I have used it a few times, it is a little heavy for most field use (although it would be VERY hard to break.

I don't like poles (although my wife does) because they take two hands (Have to set one down to do anything and hard to use as a support for shooting) and are not instantly adjustable for length as Denis noted.

For around town, I carry a cane by Canemasters - provides lots of the same assistance and does not look so out of place (old grey guys are often seen with canes).

Respectfully,

Jerry

BSmith's gets my vote - love it!

Now need to find some wax wood....

During a trek down the Pariah Canyon a few years ago with my missus, we took some Leki poles and found them to be very useful for supporting the weight we were carrying. The flash flood that took everyone (including Rangers/some local hikers) by surprise brought the poles into their own, especially when navigating post flood and avoiding (mostly) the settling silt which acted like quicksand. The very deep hole that I wondered in to and spent some very long seconds finding my way back to the surface also wrecked the poles. The fine silt worked it's way into the spring mechanism and I was never able to get them to work again, although I never threw them out as they are a reminder of that eventful trip.

thanks! it was a work in progress for a while but i'm very happy with it now.

thanks, i did too.
it broke its legs in transportation and i had to retire him. i have a rooster up there now until i can find another 'pinky'.

i might mention that fellow hikers have recognized the staff many, many miles from home. not me, the staff.

thanks!

you can find for purchase online, just search wax wood staff. about $20.00.

or, try martial arts supply stores near your home. they are known as a "bo". if you can see in person before purchasing, you avoid the possible 'not straight' issue.

totally agree.

and that's why i changed over to trekking poles for some of the hikes.

Around here at least, I've found decent staffs are pretty easy to find along maintained trails & camp-sites. You get the little saplings that grow for a little while and then get cut down as they start encroaching on the trail / site.

Personally, I found one I liked and held on to it instead of trying to forage for one every time I wanted to use one. I've had the same one for quite a while now, but its not really finished or anything. I just found one I liked and cleaned it up (took the branches & bark off, cleanly sawed the ends). One good thing is if you decide the one you picked doesn't quite work for you can just grab a different one and not really be out anything but a little time. The same holds for if/when you loose or wreck it somehow.

My favorite for a long time was one I found along the trail - a nicely ergonomic handle and just the right height. Another foundling was the mop handle I found on the beach at San Miguel Island. I really needed that one - I had banged up my wrist a few days earlier, the trails were wet and slippery, and I really could not chance a slip and fall.

One thing to be said about the adjustable hitech poles - their smaller diameter makes a significant difference when fording fast flowing streams. They are definitely easier to maneuver and place. The other situation where any stick, any stick at all, really shines is in rattlesnake country. I just whisper the famous Indiana Jones line - "It looks dangerous, you go first" - and away we go, my stick leading the way.

I gathered a bunch of nice branches of vaying sizes and did the same thing - trimmed, debarked, and cleaned up all the edges. We used them with the Beaver Scouts to make hobby horses, that they could either use as a hiking stick or toy. I keep eyeing the one I made for myself as a sample, because I really like the staff. It's the perfect height, weight and thickness. I may just disassemble it one of these days. (The horse head is made out of an old wool sock and cotton batten, and is a little too big for the end of a hiking staff for my liking.)

I didn't use hiking sticks for years. After my first down/up of the Grand Canyon I started using them. I like the novelty of a wood staff, (something about the my imagination of being a 12th Level character in a Sword & Magic movie)but I find wood staffs are not my style. I didn't like how I could collapse a pole with just downward pressure until I found Black Diamond poles with their FlickLock mechanism. Love em. I'm also a trail runner too, so being able to collapse and strap to or shove in a pack for a small, light footprint means something to me.

This thread has inspired me to make myself a hiking staff for Christmas.

I found a great branch a couple of years ago but used it to make a hobby horse at Scout camp. It 's been collecting dust so tonight I put it out of it's misary by cutting the head off of it.

The horse head was made out of a cotton sock, so I left part of it on there, thinking that it could make a good bit of tinder. It's held in place by a dab of glue and about 10 feet of twiney rope, which I also left on. I unwound part of the rope and re-wrapped it around:

-6 strike anywhere matches, sealed in a ziplock bag
-2 condoms (it's a prototype. I'll probably swap these out for something more dependable)
-1 good wire saw
-about 4 feet of duct tape'

Just below this rope, I wrapped 3 feet of leather lace and then secured a bear bell in a little mess bag to the rope, and silenced it with a toonie (Canadian $2 coin).

This weekend I'll add some paracord (to hide the duct tape, make it even more robust kit-wise) and some beads to pretty it up.

It's only half done, but my son likes it so much that he wants to kill his hobby horse now too.