[pct-l] 45 Uses for Trekking Poles on the Trail

[Eric Martinot]

Upon my completion of the entire PCT last week in Ashland (OR Section B,
but no sign of Reese Witherspoon on the trail filming Wild), I thought
to offer the following to the PCT community. This is not to say that
everyone should use poles (HYOH, YMMV, etc), and many through-hikers
don't.  Indeed, times were when I didn't want to use poles either, being
so exhausted that even small pole-swinging energy seemed too much, or
just tired of the things.  But mostly poles became a natural extension
of my body, an integral and indispensable part of me. And as with most
hikers, I found many uses!  And can attest to all of these personally
except those with (*).

--Eric / Double Zero ("because one zero is never enough")

P.S. I started the PCT in 1997 so it took me 17 years to hike the whole
trail, although I only hiked 9 of those years. I consider myself a
"Multi-Year Through Hiker" (MYTH) because "Section Hiker" to me just
doesn't convey the requisite dedication to the endeavor of finishing the
whole trail, a goal I set after hiking that very first section in 1997
and falling in love with the trail.


45 USES FOR TREKKING POLES ON THE TRAIL

SPEED, ENERGY, EASE (THE USUAL)

Get less tired when your feet can just focus on powering ahead and don't
have to do the continual work of stabilizing yourself side-to-side that
your arms and poles do instead.

Establish a more regular cadence and rhythm that keeps you at a constant
pace even as you're getting tired -- your feet follow the cadence set by
your arms.

Reduce wear on your knees from the constant jarring of multi-mile
multi-hour downhill sections, by absorbing some of the energy of each
step down with your arms and body.  (And 17 years later my knees thank
me.)

Hands feel better, less bloated, when kept at a higher level than
hanging by the side, and also more active, hour after hour. 

Put power into pole plants to push yourself along when very tired at the
end of the day.  ("Balance of power" shifts from legs to arms.)

Keep balance when walking on slippery or submerged rocks across a stream
or when fording deep swift water (most valued of all uses to me). Also
when crossing stream on a log using high-wire balance (looks good,
anyway).

Semi-pole-vault across narrow deep streams without rocks to step on.
(Easier than a run-and-jump approach.)


TRAIL INDIGNITIES ("WHAT'S IT REALLY LIKE TO HIKE THE PCT?")

Push away bushes overgrowing the trail, sometimes with both arms
extended ahead. (Sometimes just to be able to see where you are going.)

When trail is overgrown and bushes are soaking-wet-dripping with dew in
the morning, hold poles outstretched to shake off dew before passing, to
reduce getting drenched. (Only works for short sections otherwise a
loosing battle.)

Swing up poles to clear away spider webs across your trail. (Whether
real, imaginary, or figurative.)

Swat those huge ugly 5 oz. bugs that circle around you at 50 mph, to
convince said bug to circle around someone else. (Actually did connect
with one in midair.)

On narrow eroded trails with a steep drop-off on one side, especially
when overgrown or covered in snow, pole plants serve to continually
probe the downhill side of the trail as you walk, to continually (but
without conscious thought) confirm to your brain the edge of
terra-firma, so as to avoid slipping off into the void. 

Push yourself up to get over a log blocking the trail, and ease yourself
down the other side, or simply stabilize a step-over. (One early season
after a windy winter, encountered and actually counted 800 logs across
the trail in northern Oregon over a 3-day period of hiking.)

When stepping down into a morass of broken pine tree branches from atop
a log blocking the trail, or when wading through said morass on the
ground to get around a fallen log, use pole to judge depth of morass to
solid footing below, so  foot doesn't plunge deeper than expected,
potentially leading to disabling injury.

Swat your legs to futilely push away biting flies in northern Washington
before they have a chance to bite your exposed legs. (Shorts were a
mistake that drove me to tears.)

Push away all those trail-crowding Poodle Dog bushes in California
Section D to avoid getting too much of their nasty toxins on your
clothing.

When inquisitive and swarming wasps/bees (encountered rarely but
particularly in CA Section N north of Belden) start to congregate in
large numbers on your blue Nalgene water bottle caps or your clothes
drying on bushes (seemingly very selective), inconveniently only midway
into a lunch break, use a pole to jar the item slightly, such that the
wasps/bees fly off of it momentarily without feeling threatened, so you
can then grab said item(s) along with pack and run down the trail
without being stung. (One hiker who just grabbed items with wasps/bees
still on them was indeed stung.)


SNOW

Measure snow depth for reporting trail conditions on PCT-L, or bragging
to friends how deep the snow was, or deciding whether yes, its really
necessary to stop and put on those gaitors.

Allow a much faster pace of travel when walking on slippery or packed
snow so effort and time is not wasted by the feet on balance -- the feet
slide and go wherever they go, and the arms/poles keep it all together
and moving forward. (Great fun.)

Use pole to chip away at offending ice or snow to open up a clearer
path, such as in and around streams or other obstacles.

Use pole to probe depth of snow bridge over creek before walking across.
(Still nervously no matter how deep.)

On steep snow traverses, with or without uphill ice-axe in hand, the
downhill pole serves the very important function of keeping the body at
the correct angle to the slope to minimize the risk of slipping sideways
and sliding off the trail or just falling down.

If sliding sideways off a steep trail without an ice-axe in hand, pole
handles with hands together provide a larger object to punch into the
snow to arrest slide, provided conditions are not icy. (*)

Use one pole with special "Whippet" end to provide self-arrest in lieu
of (or in preference to) an ice axe. (*)


EMOTIONAL AND MENTAL

Legs and arms swinging simultaneously can create a zen-meditative state
with exquisite body-mind balance. (Actually the main reason I started
using poles.)

The power, protection and larger "physical swath" brought by poles can
engender a "Master of the Universe" attitude to help cope with being
absolutely alone in a huge wilderness.  (OK, whatever gets you
through...)

When cowboy camping (no tent or tarp), place poles lengthwise alongside
sleeping bag to ward off evil spirits and strange animals.  (Very
effective, and surprisingly works just as well as a tent for these
purposes.)

Stomp ground hard with both poles in tandem as you walk to vent anger
when something has enraged you, possibly the insects, or perhaps the
trail builder's notions of what constitutes the best route, or
whatever/whomever else you blame for your misery of the moment. 

Increase significance of gesture when praying for even a single day
without rain, hands outstretched to the sky, in carefully chosen moments
while traversing the state of Washington.


CAMPING

Use to hold up a tarp in lieu of having a tent or dedicated tarp poles.
(A nice example of "multi-functional" equipment use but a pain to
re-adjust pole length every day--I prefer to carry dedicated
carbon-fiber tarp poles, perhaps to the horror of ultra-lightists.)

When cowboy camping in a bivy sack with mesh over head for bugs, make
tripod with poles and a stick from which to hang cord to hold mesh above
face. 

When bear bagging using the counter-balance method, use pole to hook the
loop of cord you have carefully made near the bottom of the food sack,
to pull down the sack.

To stretch out your sleeping bag as horizontal as possible to have it
dry in the sun without putting on ground or bush, and when two
suitably-spaced anchor points are not available, anchor one end of pole
on ground and tie sleeping bag between other end of pole and a bush or
branch. 


PEOPLE

Use to wave to someone else far off by waving poles over head.

Write messages in sand or snow on the trail for those following behind
you.

When stopping to chat with a passing fellow hiker, lean on poles to rest
feet.

Impress passing day hikers with your "professional approach" to hiking.
(Not that impressing is needed, but sometimes it feels good.)

If hitchhiking to a resupply town, poles serve as one more visible sign
to potential rides that you are a real hiker in need of a short ride
rather than a homeless person or worse. (Signs with "PCT Hiker" also
recommended by many.)


ANIMALS

When hiking at night in dense forest around sharp turns where your
headlamp may not be visible from a distance, click poles together to
give extra warning to a bear that you are coming.  (Singing probably
works better, but sometimes when I sing while night hiking, it makes me
feel like I'm simply succumbing to fear of the dark rather than
providing an effective warning to bears.)

Allow yourself to maintain the fantasy that if a mountain lion attacks,
you will have the time and presence of mind to yank off the rubber tip
of a pole (which I use to avoid clacking noise in contact with rocky
ground), collapse the pole to a stronger, shorter length, and then use
the sharp tip to stab lion like a spear during the attack.  (*) (Good
luck. But a better use of your brain is to be rationally clear that no
hiker on the PCT itself has ever been injured by a mountain lion
according to what I've read, and there should be no worries as long as
you don't appear as prey, such as as run away or crouch down.)

Use to poke at mountain lions who may be prowling around menacingly
outside your tent. (*) (This was an actual self-video story by one PCT
hiker during the 2013 season, who survived intact a scary night in her
tent with a pair of lions outside for some time.)

Swat away a charging snake.  (*)  (Apparently, someone actually did
this.)

Normal use makes sharp thuds in the ground (with rubber tips on) that
continually warn snakes of your approach better than just footfalls. 
(Speculative, maybe I saw very few snakes in the desert because the
snakes just didn't like me.)


HIKE DANCING

Enhance "hike dancing" with music along the trail, swinging arms/poles
and moving body rhythmically from side to side, especially on rocky
downhills where going around obstacles timed to the beat is akin to
slalom skiing, and pole plants become part of the dance. (It's not
always about getting from A to B. Make sure to do this in ultra-light
trail running shoes for "quick feet" rather than heavy hiking boots!)


END-OF-HIKE COMPLETION

Wave outstretched poles high into the air in a victory gesture when
completing the entire trail.  (For many, this will be at the Canadian
border, but for me was near Callahan's in Ashland after hiking my very
last sections, Oregon Sections B and C, in mid-October. Imagine, Oregon
Section C without a single mosquito! Spectacular!)