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My walking stick is my pal
by Darrell HookeyOur mind's eye sees a walking stick in the hand of a happy hiker as they whistle through a picturesque landscape.
But few people would consider buying a walking stick, or scouring the forest floor for one, without the prompting of a twisted ankle.
That's a shame. Nature walks are to be enjoyed by all the senses. And there is nothing like a wooden walking stick to send gentle signals from the ground to the finger tips. Sometimes the wump of a stick hitting the ground, tapping out a cadence, is the only sound you will hear.
This tempo announces to the forest the purpose of your walk. Digging in every step, stick in the right hand at a backward angle as the right foot hits the ground, is a workout.
Yet a stick tossed forward, slipping in the fingers a couple of centimetres as the opposite foot hits the ground only every other time, is a pleasant stroll.
A close look at the art of walking with a stick finds references in the earliest of writings ... the earliest of cave drawings even.
Today, walking sticks have gone high-tech as extreme hikers wring every advantage out of their equipment. And the technique of walking with a stick is the subject of chat rooms and letters to the editor of walking magazines. The tasks that can be performed with a walking stick grow in number as more people discover, and appreciate, this age-old tool.
It will become even more popular as the "Boomers" hobble from the more strenuous sports and take up hiking as a way to keep active. Even if they only want a walking stick to chase away the neighborhood dogs or to help with stretching exercises, they will find it adds pleasure to a pleasurable pastime.
But despite its new popularity, we still can't decide what to call it and how tall it should be.
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Lord Baden Powell called his walking stick a "staff" and determined it should reach a Scout's nose.
This revered builder of men never felt a Scout was properly turned out without his staff at his side with carvings on it representing his achievements becoming "a record as well as a treasured companion".
Illustrating his own scouting handbooks, BP (as he was affectionately called) often showed a staff in the hands of his future leaders.
BP was well-acquainted with the practical uses of a staff from his British army days fighting in Africa.
His writings tell Scouts their staffs are useful for "making a stretcher, keeping back a crowd, jumping over a ditch, testing the depth of a river, keeping in touch with the rest of your patrol in the dark" and many other feats.
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Standing on the sales floor of Coast Mountain Sports you can see walking sticks are big business.
A display stand holds 15 different models to choose from ranging in price from $70 to $200.
But they don't call them "walking sticks" here. Instead, they are called "hiking poles". And they are adjusted to be gripped with the elbow at a 90 degree angle.
And these hiking poles come in pairs for even more support. "Animals walk with four legs," explains the salesman.
David Gendron demonstrates: Placing his left foot out front, it is joined by the pole on the right. The leg remaining in the rear completes the tripod with obvious support all around for the hiker.
But do not try to memorize the technique of walking with two poles, he warns. There will be poles and legs flopping everywhere as you will actually forget how to walk. Just start walking and don't think about it and you will do fine.
It is worth the effort and the price. Hiking poles take 30 percent of the weight off the backs of hikers. Over an eight-hour hike, that means 250 tons of stress has been removed from the knees and lower back.
For those obsessed with ultra-light backpacking (you can actually buy hollow-handled tooth brushes), or for those who aren't in the best physical condition, the idea of feeling only 14 kilograms of that 20-kilogram backpack is enticing.
Gendron points out one other advantage to hiking with two poles: It gets both arms moving along with the legs for a better cardio-vascular and upper body workout. Besides, he asks, "why have two hunks of meat hanging around doing nothing on a hike?"
But not many people come into Coast Mountain Sports looking for hiking poles. Gendron calls it "add-on" sales. After showing a customer hiking boots or a backpack, he asks "Do you use hiking poles?" If the answer is "no", he will point out all of the reasons he will never hike without them.
Gendron sells a lot of hiking poles.
The list of features of a particular model borders on the ridiculous ... until you look at the reason behind each bell and each whistle.
Many of the models of hiking poles have shock absorbers to reduce stress on the wrist and elbow. They have irregular tips for a sure grip on rock and ice and are made of carbide (the metal used for drill bits). And yet they are designed to break in order to protect the more expensive tempered aluminum alloy shaft.
To keep this from happening too often, many have "baskets", which are like skirts mounted just above the tip to prevent the pole slipping between cracks in the terrain.
Some grips are made of cork for sweaty hands and some are angled for a more natural and comfortable fit. And straps allow the hiker to let go at any time when their hands are needed for some other task.
One feature the serious hiker can't do without is the adjustable height. The hiking poles can be shortened for climbing up hills, lengthened for going down and one of each for traversing a hill keeping the hiker walking straight.
The other bells and whistles you can include with your poles are bells (to keep bears away) and whistles (to communicate with your hiking partners).To Page 2
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