How to Use Trekking Poles Properly

Most people who dislike trekking poles are holding them wrong. Two techniques — loading the strap rather than gripping the handle, and adjusting length for terrain — account for nearly all the difference between poles that help and poles that are just something to carry.

1. 1

   Use the straps correctly, from below

   Bring your hand up through the strap loop from underneath, then close your hand over the strap and the grip. Your weight goes through the strap into the pole, not through a clenched fist. Done right you can walk with an open hand. This is the single most common mistake and the easiest to fix.

2. 2

   Set the base length by elbow angle

   On flat ground, hold the pole with the tip on the ground beside your foot; your elbow should be at roughly 90 degrees. That is your baseline. Adjust from there rather than guessing.

3. 3

   Shorten for climbs, lengthen for descents

   Shorten poles by roughly 5-10cm going uphill so you are not reaching up awkwardly, and lengthen them by a similar amount descending so you can plant ahead without stooping. Descents are where poles do the most good, taking meaningful load off your knees.

   Choosing trekking polesLocking mechanisms and adjustability

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4. 4

   Find the rhythm: opposite arm and leg

   Plant the left pole as the right foot goes forward, like an exaggerated walking gait. It feels awkward for about ten minutes and then becomes automatic. Double-planting both poles at once is useful for steep steps and inefficient as a normal rhythm.

5. 5

   Adjust for traversing and stow when scrambling

   On a side slope, shorten the uphill pole and lengthen the downhill one. When a section requires hands — scrambling, a rock step, a stream crossing on boulders — stow the poles rather than fumbling. Poles in hand during a scramble are a genuine hazard.

6. 6

   Use the right tips and baskets

   Carbide tips grip rock and packed dirt; rubber tips go on for pavement and hard slabs where carbide skates. Snow baskets stop poles sinking in soft snow, and mud baskets do the same in soft ground. These cost a few dollars and change how well poles work.

Length Adjustments