[pct-l] Adding to the 45 plus Uses for Hiking Poles on the Trail

[marmot marmot]

I think sign for mtn lion should be banging poles together while yelling at full voice while picking up a large rock.  Worked for me Marmot

Sent from my iPhone

> On Oct 27, 2013, at 6:29 PM, "JPL" <jplynch at crosslink.net> wrote:
> 
> I sent my REI Komperdell poles off to be repaired last week.  I've had them 
> about about 15 years.  The paint has all long ago worn away.  The lock 
> mechanisms on one of the joints wasn't holding.  I imagine the other three 
> aren't far behind.
> 
> -----Original Message----- 
> From: Susan Alcorn
> Sent: Sunday, October 27, 2013 8:25 PM
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> Subject: [pct-l] Adding to the 45 plus Uses for Hiking Poles on the Trail
> 
> PEOPLE category: Depending on how high you hold them above your head, 
> indicated what kind of animal you just say. Up high is a deer, close to your 
> head is a bear--haven't developed one for mountain lions.
> 
> TRAIL INDIGNITIES: Move pole side to side like a windshield wiper in front 
> of face to keep black flies, mosquitoes, etc. out of your face.
> 
> ANIMALS: Use to push stubborn rattlesnakes off the trail, or to plant an 
> object (the pole) between snake and person wanting to get by safely.
> 
> ENTERTAINMENT: Twirl like batons like cheerleaders do.
> 
> Happy trails,
> Susan Alcorn
> 
> Shepherd Canyon Books, Oakland, CA
> www.backpack45.com and backpack45.blogspot.com
> http://www.examiner.com/hiking-in-san-francisco/susan-alcorn
> 
> 
> 
>> 
>>> On Oct 26, 2013, at 9:44, Eric Martinot <eric at martinot.info> wrote:
>>> 
>>> Upon my completion of the entire PCT last week in Ashland (OR Section B,
>>> but no sign of Reese Witherspoon on the trail filming Wild), I thought
>>> to offer the following to the PCT community. This is not to say that
>>> everyone should use poles (HYOH, YMMV, etc), and many through-hikers
>>> don't.  Indeed, times were when I didn't want to use poles either, being
>>> so exhausted that even small pole-swinging energy seemed too much, or
>>> just tired of the things.  But mostly poles became a natural extension
>>> of my body, an integral and indispensable part of me. And as with most
>>> hikers, I found many uses!  And can attest to all of these personally
>>> except those with (*).
>>> 
>>> --Eric / Double Zero ("because one zero is never enough")
>>> 
>>> P.S. I started the PCT in 1997 so it took me 17 years to hike the whole
>>> trail, although I only hiked 9 of those years. I consider myself a
>>> "Multi-Year Through Hiker" (MYTH) because "Section Hiker" to me just
>>> doesn't convey the requisite dedication to the endeavor of finishing the
>>> whole trail, a goal I set after hiking that very first section in 1997
>>> and falling in love with the trail.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 45 USES FOR TREKKING POLES ON THE TRAIL
>>> 
>>> SPEED, ENERGY, EASE (THE USUAL)
>>> 
>>> Get less tired when your feet can just focus on powering ahead and don't
>>> have to do the continual work of stabilizing yourself side-to-side that
>>> your arms and poles do instead.
>>> 
>>> Establish a more regular cadence and rhythm that keeps you at a constant
>>> pace even as you're getting tired -- your feet follow the cadence set by
>>> your arms.
>>> 
>>> Reduce wear on your knees from the constant jarring of multi-mile
>>> multi-hour downhill sections, by absorbing some of the energy of each
>>> step down with your arms and body.  (And 17 years later my knees thank
>>> me.)
>>> 
>>> Hands feel better, less bloated, when kept at a higher level than
>>> hanging by the side, and also more active, hour after hour.
>>> 
>>> Put power into pole plants to push yourself along when very tired at the
>>> end of the day.  ("Balance of power" shifts from legs to arms.)
>>> 
>>> Keep balance when walking on slippery or submerged rocks across a stream
>>> or when fording deep swift water (most valued of all uses to me). Also
>>> when crossing stream on a log using high-wire balance (looks good,
>>> anyway).
>>> 
>>> Semi-pole-vault across narrow deep streams without rocks to step on.
>>> (Easier than a run-and-jump approach.)
>>> 
>>> 
>>> TRAIL INDIGNITIES ("WHAT'S IT REALLY LIKE TO HIKE THE PCT?")
>>> 
>>> Push away bushes overgrowing the trail, sometimes with both arms
>>> extended ahead. (Sometimes just to be able to see where you are going.)
>>> 
>>> When trail is overgrown and bushes are soaking-wet-dripping with dew in
>>> the morning, hold poles outstretched to shake off dew before passing, to
>>> reduce getting drenched. (Only works for short sections otherwise a
>>> loosing battle.)
>>> 
>>> Swing up poles to clear away spider webs across your trail. (Whether
>>> real, imaginary, or figurative.)
>>> 
>>> Swat those huge ugly 5 oz. bugs that circle around you at 50 mph, to
>>> convince said bug to circle around someone else. (Actually did connect
>>> with one in midair.)
>>> 
>>> On narrow eroded trails with a steep drop-off on one side, especially
>>> when overgrown or covered in snow, pole plants serve to continually
>>> probe the downhill side of the trail as you walk, to continually (but
>>> without conscious thought) confirm to your brain the edge of
>>> terra-firma, so as to avoid slipping off into the void.
>>> 
>>> Push yourself up to get over a log blocking the trail, and ease yourself
>>> down the other side, or simply stabilize a step-over. (One early season
>>> after a windy winter, encountered and actually counted 800 logs across
>>> the trail in northern Oregon over a 3-day period of hiking.)
>>> 
>>> When stepping down into a morass of broken pine tree branches from atop
>>> a log blocking the trail, or when wading through said morass on the
>>> ground to get around a fallen log, use pole to judge depth of morass to
>>> solid footing below, so  foot doesn't plunge deeper than expected,
>>> potentially leading to disabling injury.
>>> 
>>> Swat your legs to futilely push away biting flies in northern Washington
>>> before they have a chance to bite your exposed legs. (Shorts were a
>>> mistake that drove me to tears.)
>>> 
>>> Push away all those trail-crowding Poodle Dog bushes in California
>>> Section D to avoid getting too much of their nasty toxins on your
>>> clothing.
>>> 
>>> When inquisitive and swarming wasps/bees (encountered rarely but
>>> particularly in CA Section N north of Belden) start to congregate in
>>> large numbers on your blue Nalgene water bottle caps or your clothes
>>> drying on bushes (seemingly very selective), inconveniently only midway
>>> into a lunch break, use a pole to jar the item slightly, such that the
>>> wasps/bees fly off of it momentarily without feeling threatened, so you
>>> can then grab said item(s) along with pack and run down the trail
>>> without being stung. (One hiker who just grabbed items with wasps/bees
>>> still on them was indeed stung.)
>>> 
>>> 
>>> SNOW
>>> 
>>> Measure snow depth for reporting trail conditions on PCT-L, or bragging
>>> to friends how deep the snow was, or deciding whether yes, its really
>>> necessary to stop and put on those gaitors.
>>> 
>>> Allow a much faster pace of travel when walking on slippery or packed
>>> snow so effort and time is not wasted by the feet on balance -- the feet
>>> slide and go wherever they go, and the arms/poles keep it all together
>>> and moving forward. (Great fun.)
>>> 
>>> Use pole to chip away at offending ice or snow to open up a clearer
>>> path, such as in and around streams or other obstacles.
>>> 
>>> Use pole to probe depth of snow bridge over creek before walking across.
>>> (Still nervously no matter how deep.)
>>> 
>>> On steep snow traverses, with or without uphill ice-axe in hand, the
>>> downhill pole serves the very important function of keeping the body at
>>> the correct angle to the slope to minimize the risk of slipping sideways
>>> and sliding off the trail or just falling down.
>>> 
>>> If sliding sideways off a steep trail without an ice-axe in hand, pole
>>> handles with hands together provide a larger object to punch into the
>>> snow to arrest slide, provided conditions are not icy. (*)
>>> 
>>> Use one pole with special "Whippet" end to provide self-arrest in lieu
>>> of (or in preference to) an ice axe. (*)
>>> 
>>> 
>>> EMOTIONAL AND MENTAL
>>> 
>>> Legs and arms swinging simultaneously can create a zen-meditative state
>>> with exquisite body-mind balance. (Actually the main reason I started
>>> using poles.)
>>> 
>>> The power, protection and larger "physical swath" brought by poles can
>>> engender a "Master of the Universe" attitude to help cope with being
>>> absolutely alone in a huge wilderness.  (OK, whatever gets you
>>> through...)
>>> 
>>> When cowboy camping (no tent or tarp), place poles lengthwise alongside
>>> sleeping bag to ward off evil spirits and strange animals.  (Very
>>> effective, and surprisingly works just as well as a tent for these
>>> purposes.)
>>> 
>>> Stomp ground hard with both poles in tandem as you walk to vent anger
>>> when something has enraged you, possibly the insects, or perhaps the
>>> trail builder's notions of what constitutes the best route, or
>>> whatever/whomever else you blame for your misery of the moment.
>>> 
>>> Increase significance of gesture when praying for even a single day
>>> without rain, hands outstretched to the sky, in carefully chosen moments
>>> while traversing the state of Washington.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> CAMPING
>>> 
>>> Use to hold up a tarp in lieu of having a tent or dedicated tarp poles.
>>> (A nice example of "multi-functional" equipment use but a pain to
>>> re-adjust pole length every day--I prefer to carry dedicated
>>> carbon-fiber tarp poles, perhaps to the horror of ultra-lightists.)
>>> 
>>> When cowboy camping in a bivy sack with mesh over head for bugs, make
>>> tripod with poles and a stick from which to hang cord to hold mesh above
>>> face.
>>> 
>>> When bear bagging using the counter-balance method, use pole to hook the
>>> loop of cord you have carefully made near the bottom of the food sack,
>>> to pull down the sack.
>>> 
>>> To stretch out your sleeping bag as horizontal as possible to have it
>>> dry in the sun without putting on ground or bush, and when two
>>> suitably-spaced anchor points are not available, anchor one end of pole
>>> on ground and tie sleeping bag between other end of pole and a bush or
>>> branch.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> PEOPLE
>>> 
>>> Use to wave to someone else far off by waving poles over head.
>>> 
>>> Write messages in sand or snow on the trail for those following behind
>>> you.
>>> 
>>> When stopping to chat with a passing fellow hiker, lean on poles to rest
>>> feet.
>>> 
>>> Impress passing day hikers with your "professional approach" to hiking.
>>> (Not that impressing is needed, but sometimes it feels good.)
>>> 
>>> If hitchhiking to a resupply town, poles serve as one more visible sign
>>> to potential rides that you are a real hiker in need of a short ride
>>> rather than a homeless person or worse. (Signs with "PCT Hiker" also
>>> recommended by many.)
>>> 
>>> 
>>> ANIMALS
>>> 
>>> When hiking at night in dense forest around sharp turns where your
>>> headlamp may not be visible from a distance, click poles together to
>>> give extra warning to a bear that you are coming.  (Singing probably
>>> works better, but sometimes when I sing while night hiking, it makes me
>>> feel like I'm simply succumbing to fear of the dark rather than
>>> providing an effective warning to bears.)
>>> 
>>> Allow yourself to maintain the fantasy that if a mountain lion attacks,
>>> you will have the time and presence of mind to yank off the rubber tip
>>> of a pole (which I use to avoid clacking noise in contact with rocky
>>> ground), collapse the pole to a stronger, shorter length, and then use
>>> the sharp tip to stab lion like a spear during the attack.  (*) (Good
>>> luck. But a better use of your brain is to be rationally clear that no
>>> hiker on the PCT itself has ever been injured by a mountain lion
>>> according to what I've read, and there should be no worries as long as
>>> you don't appear as prey, such as as run away or crouch down.)
>>> 
>>> Use to poke at mountain lions who may be prowling around menacingly
>>> outside your tent. (*) (This was an actual self-video story by one PCT
>>> hiker during the 2013 season, who survived intact a scary night in her
>>> tent with a pair of lions outside for some time.)
>>> 
>>> Swat away a charging snake.  (*)  (Apparently, someone actually did
>>> this.)
>>> 
>>> Normal use makes sharp thuds in the ground (with rubber tips on) that
>>> continually warn snakes of your approach better than just footfalls.
>>> (Speculative, maybe I saw very few snakes in the desert because the
>>> snakes just didn't like me.)
>>> 
>>> 
>>> HIKE DANCING
>>> 
>>> Enhance "hike dancing" with music along the trail, swinging arms/poles
>>> and moving body rhythmically from side to side, especially on rocky
>>> downhills where going around obstacles timed to the beat is akin to
>>> slalom skiing, and pole plants become part of the dance. (It's not
>>> always about getting from A to B. Make sure to do this in ultra-light
>>> trail running shoes for "quick feet" rather than heavy hiking boots!)
>>> 
>>> 
>>> END-OF-HIKE COMPLETION
>>> 
>>> Wave outstretched poles high into the air in a victory gesture when
>>> completing the entire trail.  (For many, this will be at the Canadian
>>> border, but for me was near Callahan's in Ashland after hiking my very
>>> last sections, Oregon Sections B and C, in mid-October. Imagine, Oregon
>>> Section C without a single mosquito! Spectacular!)
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