1 Pair (2 Poles) Anti Shock, Adjustable, Collapsible Climbing Poles for Trekking or Strolling, Light-weight Aluminum Sticks for Males, Ladies, Seniors, Youngsters & Kids, Backpacking & Tenting Gear

Great product. Reasonably priced. Excellent customer service.
I purchased these for a trek I’ll be doing in Peru this coming fall, so haven’t put them to the ultimate test, but I have starting using them on my hikes around where I live.Purchasing: These are as advertised and seem to be a very good value. Lightweight and packable! They come with an extra set of rubber tips (necessary if you’re hiking historical sites) and a pair of snow tips. They arrived on time.Receiving: READ THE INSTRUCTIONS. I didn’t and ended up doing what a lot of people do when they don’t read the instructions … the poles came completely apart. If this happens, the instructions tell you how to solve the problem and there is a video link in the instructions, if you would rather watch than read. Once you realize you need to grasp the poles and not the rubber connection segments, then it’s easy to loosen, adjust and tighten. What’s nice is that it is easy to adjust your poles while you’re hiking and the terrain changes.Using: I haven’t used them a lot, but they are light-weight and very sturdy. Easily adjustable for all body heights.But, the best thing I can say about this product is the owner’s emphasis on customer service. Prompt responses, and a genuine desire to make sure you are a satisfied customers customer. Something that is lacking in today’s world.UPDATE: I’m in peru and have completed all my hikes at Machu Picchu (including wayna picchu) and I wouldn’t have been able to complete this steep, slippery hike without this pole — just used one for this hike. The Cusco and Pisaq hikes were easier with the poles and the tips lasted much longer than I expected. Also, they collapse down to a very packable size.

Great Poles Reviewed and Compass Hacks
I really should give these five stars but lets be honest, but they are a tad heavy. I think for a day hiker or a weekend hiker (even if you are climbing low and mid altitude mountains) these would be perfect. If you are doing the PCT, going to be on the trail for weeks at a time, maybe worth paying for something lighter, but I am a bit obsessive about weight. That said, for the price, I am extremely happy with them and I have done my best to test and beat them up and they do not fail or have not so far. In fact I would not have bought any other poles anywhere because I would not invest the kind of money they cost. I am an experienced hiker, yet I have never bought into the whole trekking pole thing, thinking of them as some kind of trend more than a useful item, sometimes I use a walking stick, but for years I have used nothing, preferring not to have the weight. However, there was this one hike I was on at 7500 feet and I was on a bit of a razor back with vertical falls on both sides. I have hiked this trail a dozen times and familiar with its terrain. But a cloud came in and it began to rain very abruptly and the trail turned into a wash and what was a normal sunny day became a dangerous experience and for the first time in decades, I decided to check out trekking poles. And was happy to pay 22 bucks plus shipping.Now as to the compasses that everyone is complaining about being not accurate and popping off the poles. First off, if these poles had good liquid filled compasses in them they would cost much more. Secondly these types of compasses are very common in survival kits and emergency supplies. They are the cheapest of the cheapest compass there is and usually called “button compasses.” These are used because they are extremely compact and give you a “rough idea” of NSEW. However, there is a solution for both the accuracy and to them popping off your poles. 1) Accuracy: These compasses can be off by as much as 30 degrees in either direction. This was about how accurate all early nautical compasses were in Magellan and Columbus’s time and actually sometime after that it was very expensive to buy high grade compasses even in the early part of this century. But here is a situation where these particular compasses can save your life–you go on a hike you have been on many times, you don’t bring a compass or gps, but during the hike (in coastal areas) a thick fog bank comes in and you lose your trail or (in northern areas) a blizzard hits because you forgot to check the weather, etc. If you know there is a river or a road or a power line in a certain direction from your location, these compasses are enough to get you out of being completely lost without the sun, etc to take a bearing on. However, there is a way to make them a little more accurate: So, the first thing you must do is somehow mark your poles Left and Right, with tape etc. Then get or borrow a real compass or use the one on your iphone (make sure it is set to magnetic and not true north) and jiggle the pole compass until it is completely level so that it can come as close to it’s northerly marking. On my poles the compass on the left is more accurate than the one on the right but both can differ a bit at any time, however, when you find they generally go to the same spot, take a knife and etch in the plastic a line that represents what your high quality compass is showing as a NORTH bearing, that will give you a general sense of how to compensate and get a bit more accuracy out of them. Then repeat the same thing for the other compass. You also have to remember to be pointing the poles in rough the same direction, for instance gripped in front of you. Now you have two compasses that will give you a general bearing and you can use the two to resolve against each other, as well the lines you have cut will show their rough offset from magnetic north, gaining a bit more accuracy. 2) However, this is useless if they fly off your poles and are lost. How to keep them from doing this is very easy. You can just put a piece of tape over both of them and forget about it, but tape (even the best duct or gaffers tape) deteriorates over time. So I would recommend you take some glue (and I highly recommend gorilla glue because it is non brittle and waterproof and doesn’t dry right away) and you will see there is a small gap between the edge of the compass and the plastic housing that holds it. Take some glue, glob it on a piece of paper and then use a small nail or a needle to apply the glue inside that gap all the way around the compass. Wipe away excess, that compass ain’t going anywhere!Remember, there is no replacement for a map and a decent compass, GPS and extra batteries, etc. Never forget that a short hike that you have gone on several times can become dangerous if the conditions change. Also, NEVER go into the woods alone without telling someone exactly where you are going and when to expect you back, then do not deviate from that arranged plan. Also, wrap some duct tape around one of the poles to make an emergency snow blindness kit, by putting two pieces of tape face to face and cutting slits where your eyes go, you might save your eyes from going blind in the middle of the boonies. Be safe and enjoy your new poles!!!Quick Update: March 23, 2004. Used poles again today on very rough terrain, they held up well, very sturdy and kept locked even under pretty severe pressure. I kept the caps on the ends but was tempted to take them off as they didn’t grab all that well on the loose gravelly steep uphill desert wash we call a trail (California Angeles Forest) However, had a buddy with me and when we went back downhill in the dark with headlamps he had a knee problem that started acting up and it was starting to act up worse and worse so I gave him one of the poles and really he did need it to get down. So that was some kind of weird twist of fate where they came in much handier than normal. In the desert there is no sort of quickly makeshift walking sticks from trees or branches which I am used to from PA and MN. Finally, however, the downside of poles (and FYI these are the only ones I own or have ever owned) is that they slow you down, or they slow me down, there are now four mental operations to be made (two hands, two feet) than just two feet and focusing on foot placement. It’s true it is safer, but it does seem slower. Maybe I just need to get used to them. Finally another tip about the rubber tips, pun intended, if you really want them to stay on the ends of your poles, diagonally wrap some black electrical tape around them, attaching them to the aluminum. I think they will have a tendency to come off and get lost pretty quickly. Generally, I really think I can recommend these, I think there are times when they could save you from an injury, and maybe your life, especially if you are going into steep or unknown terrain, but for certain hikes that I am familiar with I will leave them in the car to go at a faster pace and leave the weight behind. Really can I say ANY MORE about these dern poles? Someone asked me the weight of them and I don’t have a proper scale to weigh them, maybe some one else can do that or maybe the manufacturer will actually list the weight someday in the future? OH and also these compasses functioned just fine with my jiggering, made often comparison to my Silva Ranger compass and pretty much right on with the system I describe above AND the gorilla glue has made them a permanent fixture, they ain’t flying off anytime soon, I think the handle would break or fly off first. We did some impact tests, um, like “hit against rock without damaging poles” and they both stayed on. The only way I could make these cooler is if the handles were hollow and you could fit basic survival gear inside, like tinder and a small magnesium rod. Hmmm…home project for next weekend. GOOD HIKING! BE SAFE!

ME HA GUSTADO, SE SIENTE RIGIDO Y LIGERO A LA VEZ

The walking poles were purchased as a gift, but feedback from the user is all good.