[at-l] 2 poles or one?

[Bob Cummings <ellen@clinic.net> (Bob C.)]

It really depends on your hiking style. I like to periodically kneel down to
examine the flowers, the moss, the fungi I see along the trail and I take a lot
of pictures. Any hiking pole is a bit of a nuisance. Juggling two is just too
much of a hassle.

I carry one for stability, especially on steep declines, and for self arrest as
I trip over rocks or slide on mud. Two provide even more stability, but I notice
many Leki users sort of half jogging down the trail. The sticks for them seem to
be a way to hike faster, not a way to increase stability. These folks seemed to
fall far more often than I did, but then everyone seemed to do that. I fell but
twice during my six months and three days. Once I tripped over a root. Once I
slid on a wet rock after changing boots and not realizing how slippery the soles
of the new pair were, compared to my old boots.

As for the advantage of a wooden staff, compared with the new Lekis and their
competitors? I used a pair of Lekis one afternoon and found the sharp tips far
more likely to slip on rocks than does the soft rubber crutch tip on my wooden
pole.

Only a handy tree kept me from a dunking while using some rocks to traverse a
beaver dam.

However, most commercial wooden sticks are designed more to catch the eye of
tourists than for serious hiking.. My wooden staff weighs about the same as a
Leki. I wouldn't carry any staff that weighs more 12 ounces. My staff weighs
10.5 ounces and tends to pick up a half ounce or so of moisture after a few
rainy days. The only Leki I ever weighed came in at 10 ounces, which was Jim's
experience also.

Does the shock absorber type weigh more?

Weary