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Walking poles?

Hi guys


We enjoy a lot of walking now and are going more to Cumbria/Lake District and my partner said they are now after some hiking poles for a stocking filler for Christmas, I have seen many on Amazon starting at £5 for a walking stick type, £10 for a walking pole that looks a little like a stick and then there is the more pricey that are about £20 each and the bottom of the stick is pointed like a ski pole, which is good, my partner is only 26 so not old, will the cheaper type be good for hiking and going up hills/mountains etc?


thanks

Comments

  • kdogg_05
    kdogg_05 Posts: 47 Forumite
    We got some £10 ones from Cotswold when we were doing the west highland way in Scotland

    They definitely did the trick, and are super handy for climbing and helping put less pressure on the knees coming down.

    BUT - if you want to be cheap cheap. . . I'd always found a stick at the start of a walk.

    And in fact I still have a stick I found on a walk 10 years ago that I use from time to time

    It has a good 'handle' and it's lighter than some of the walking poles you buy
  • ktcoil
    ktcoil Posts: 559 Forumite
    Debt-free and Proud!
    Hi Guys


    Just looking at both of these poles,


    Karrimor X Lite Carbon Walking Poles pack of two reduced from £59.99 to £23.00 at sports direct and Quenchua 1 forsclaz 550 pole from Decathlon reduced from £19.99 to £12.99 per pole so both would worth out about £24 ish.


    thanks
  • pinkteapot
    pinkteapot Posts: 8,044 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    The Karrimor ones are lighter so I'd go with those. £23 for a lightweight pair is cheap so they may not be the longest lasting poles but they'll be good to see if your partner gets on with using poles. They'll be fine for a few years and if you keep doing a lot of walking they could upgrade later on.

    Hubby used to work in an outdoor shop and tells me that over the course of a full day hike poles can take a tonne of weight off your knees!

    They make rough terrain easier as you don't have to put your hand out to steady yourself, as well as reducing impact on your knees.

    Trick is to have them shorter going up uphill and longer going downhill. Standing still, your elbows should be at 90 degrees when holding the poles, so on the uphill the poles need to be shorter and on the downhill, longer.

    I love my walking poles for hill-walking. :)
  • Why not buy them on your next trip to the Lakes. Every town has about a million outdoor shops and they all have sales all the times so you could test them out
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