There's nothing like a good wooden walking stick, is there? It's a completely different feeling from using a pair or metal or carbon fiber hiking poles. Wood is far more resilient. It won't break if you get it caught in some roots or you slip and lean on it real hard. It's biodegradable, and a hand-crafted walking pole is easily 50% less expensive than a pair of Leki or Black Diamond hiking poles.
There's also an emotional bond that hikers form with a wooden walking stick that is very different from using a pair of collapsible metal poles. I used wooden staffs for years, especially growing up, and they saw a lot of backpacking miles in the hills of Pennsylvania.
Walking sticks are not for everyone, certainly. They don't fold up easily when you need to scramble and depending on their weight, they can use up more energy on a high mileage day. But they are tops if you need to do a lot of stream crossings that have rocky bottoms or traverse boulder fields of talus that will snap a metal or carbon fiber pole in a second.
Every spring, I make a point to re-read The Complete Walker
In it, Fletcher describes his fondness for the bamboo staff that he hiked the length of California with and it's utility in marshes and bogs, as a makeshift fishing rod, tarp anchor, tent pole, camera monopod, and rattlesnake probe.
Fletcher always inspires me, so I went down to the basement and dug out my old Brazos Walking Stick, made from the wood of the Sweet Gum tree. The bark on the sweetgum is gray and deeply furrowed, separated by narrow scaly ridges. It's a handsome stick and I plan on using it again this year.
What about you? Have you ever considered switching back to a wooden walking stick, instead of aluminum or carbon fiber hiking poles?
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Sir
My wife likes to hike during the day when I am working. She is concerned about her security on the trail. Can you direct me to a durable hiking stick with a self defense tool attached to it.
Thanks
Bob Hazard
whitefoot@ca.rr.com
Actually, I'd recommend that she learn how to use a light saber. They're really the best defense on the trail and the most merciful because they self-cauterize the wounds you inflict on other people.
I used a bamboo staff for decades, inspired long ago by the very first edition of "The Complete Walker." I still have the bamboo staff I've used for 15 years (the previous one, my first, finally broke). A couple of years ago a friend gave me a staff made from yucca wood, and I like it even better than bamboo. It's actually lighter and a little more springy than bamboo, yet every bit as strong. It's a wonderful staff that I hope is my last.
My only complaint with wooden walking staffs is that they're not so great in the snow, especially deep fresh snow, unless you somehow rig a basket on to the bottom end. On a recent backpacking trip to California I bought a collapsible Komperdell metal walking staff because it fits into my luggage, and I like it fine. It'll be my winter staff in New England because it has a basket.
I still have the stick I cut myself the first summer I worked at Girl Scout camp… in 1970. It is willow, smooth skinned and tough as nails. I miss using it.