[pct-l] Hiking Poles and Ice Axes

[CHUCK CHELIN]

Good morning,

Trekking poles and ice axes are always interesting topics.  I strongly
favor using poles all the time
http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=263972, but I prefer to go
without an ice axe whenever I think doing so is justified.
http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=264671

Some experienced hikers get used ski poles from the thrift store for $5 and
have good success.  All of the name-brand pole marketers have good
products, but they have very few unique features.  I generally look at
what’s available and pick a pair that is light and – preferably – has
composite cork-like grips, and then I buy what’s on sale.  They all seem to
work OK.

The presence of a lever cam locking mechanism isn’t a buying criterion for
me.  If the poles on sale have cam-locks it’s OK; if the poles have twist
locks they are equally OK.  The reason is, contrary to what some hikers and
cam-lock peddlers, report I don’t believe ultra-tight section locking is
good practice.  I keep my locks – of whatever style – just barely tight
enough to keep the sections in place during normal hiking.  If I get out of
balance and have to lean heavily on a pole I expect it to slip – normally
2-6 inches.  It happens once every day or so.  It only takes about 15
seconds to re-adjust the pole length, and there is no associated damage to
the pole – or me.

I’ve used poles that were locked too tightly – my error in judgment -- and
instead of slipping a few inches, they failed in column loading, buckled,
and bent badly; usually near the top of the skinny bottom section.  Once on
Fuller Ridge I slipped on a flat, angled slab of rock and bent the bottom
pole 45 degrees.  That wasn’t some ratty old ski pole, or a cheap-o
discount store knock-off either, it was a quality pole from the leading
pole maker.  Sometimes a bent pole can be somewhat straightened, but it
will only be a temporary fix:  They will fail at that place again, probably
then with a complete fracture.  I have never had a slippage event result in
anything more than just a minor inconvenience.

Some people recommend using hiking pole equipped with an ice axe-like pick
above its grip.  I’m always interested in clever adaptations but, at the
very best, I believe this combination tool is a solution in search of a
problem.  Supposedly a hiker will carry this tool in lieu of one of the
hiking poles, and use it for self-arrest should the need arise.  Carrying
one conventional pole and one heaver pick-pole is out of balance at best,
and it feels strange, but there are some other problems:

The pick-pole is not a rated ice axe, and the manufacturer’s instructions
specifically state that the tool is not to be swung by the handle for
chopping footholds, etc.
http://www.blackdiamondequipment.com/uploads/black-diamond/files/MM5978_E%20Ski_Poles_IS_WEB.pdf

I sometimes hike with an ice axe and, except for use in digging a cat-hole,
the most use I give it is to occasionally whack a step in the snowpack.  Since
I want to carry a rated ice axe for chopping as well as arrest, what would
I possibly do with a pick-pole?

Apparently I’m supposed to buy a pair of hiking poles, and leave one of
them home; then buy and carry a single pick-pole, the cost of which is
about the same as a pair of hiking poles; then finally buy, and
additionally carry, a rated ice axe for chopping.  For me, that’s not going
to happen.

My final concern is about carrying an un-sheathed pick point on a pole.  An
ice axe is carried in the hand about 5% of the time over snowpack.  The
remainder of the time it safely rides on the back of the pack.  When in
hand, care must be taken not to fall on the point and hurt one’s self.
 Conversely,
the pick-pole is presumed to be carried in the hand all the time.  Its
manufacturer states in the instructions that in the event of a spill the
user should avoid “self-evisceration”.  If I ever found myself carrying a
pole with a pick I would improvise some kind of sheath arrangement to blunt
its possible damage to my precious “viscera”.

Steel-Eye

-Hiking the Pct since before it was the PCT – 1965

http://www.trailjournals.com/steel-eye

http://www.trailjournals.com/SteelEye09/