This Popular Piece Of Hiking Gear Can Instantly Upgrade Your Outdoor Excursions

Let's be honest: It takes a certain type of person to look cool using hiking poles. Skiers undoubtedly look cool with ski poles, as they carve up powder and race down hills. Hikers, poking at rocks as they lumber up a trail, may not. Legions of hikers have recoiled at the sight of hiking poles, praying they never have to use them. Many dismiss them as unnecessary. After all, if you're in good health and know how to pack, won't they just add extra weight? Sure, they might work for novice hikers, older hikers, and hikers with mobility issues, but shouldn't the goal be not to use them? 

Naturally, all these critiques are groundless, and a pair of metal poles is absolutely a valid form of hiking equipment. Hiking is one activity that doesn't have to look cool. It's not like aluminum poles have loud motors, burn chemicals, play annoying music, or get thrown away after one use. They're harmless and inoffensive. Plus, mocking poles is a bit snobby — and might be considered ageist and ableist as well.

Hiking poles can also radically enhance your hiking experience, especially on hills and mountains. Properly used, these simple implements will launch you over rocks, ease you down inclines, and vault you over streams. Seasoned users included them in our ultimate guide to packing the best hiking gear, and there are other motivators to use them as well.

People have always traveled on foot, and staffs and walking sticks are probably as old as humanity itself. They've always been handy for leaning on, testing uncertain ground, and setting a walking pace. If it's good enough for the likes of Gandalf and Merlin, how bad could a hiking aid be? Poles have always been essential for cross-country skiing, propelling winter sportists across the snow, and archaeologists have found primitive ski poles dating back 5,000 years. In short, people like these tools and have used them pretty much forever.

Modern hiking poles are crafted from lightweight metals like aluminum, titanium, or carbon fiber. They bear ergonomic handles, which are made from soft, grippable material like rubber or cork, and their bottoms end in some kind of tip. Often, this is a dull plastic cup, which can be removed to reveal a sharper point. The plastic prevents you from scratching the ground or rock, while the spike helps hikers dig into difficult ground. When choosing a pair of poles, be sure to purchase ones that are appropriate for your height, allowing you to bend your arm just 90 degrees when it hits the ground.

Unlike a single medieval staff, a pair of hiking poles is designed for symmetrical movements that help you balance and evenly distribute your weight, which is helpful for your joints and muscles from getting overworked (and therefore injured). While they generally make inclines easier — and safer — experts believe that the poles actually give you more of a workout, burning 20% to 40% more calories on the trail. And as we all know, hiking is the cheapest, healthiest exercise there is, so if you're looking to optimize your workout, you actually might want to grab a pair of poles.

While the name theoretically says it all, hiking poles can be used for plenty of other purposes as well. Some trekkers only whip them out for the steepest ascents. The heaviest pair will weigh about 22 ounces, about the same as a large coffee in a paper cup, so you can justify strapping them to your pack without worrying about extra weight. Other hikers carry them for emergencies; a sprained ankle or banged knee can really slow you down, which can lead to a dangerous situation. Using those added supports has no doubt saved lives in the wilderness — and at least reduced pain and further injury.

Hiking poles can also be used around a campsite. You can hang your hat on the handle or rest a pole between branches and use it as a drying rack. If you're careful (and have a pole made of fire-safe material), you can use a hiking pole as a fire poker, shifting logs in mid-burn. Most ingenious of all is the ultra-light backpacker tent that uses hiking poles to keep it upright. However, you might use a regular stick, but a hiking pole can often substitute.

Finally, in a worst-case scenario, hiking poles can serve as a deterrent. Most trails attract kind, healthy people, but there's always the chance you'll need to deter a wild animal or, in some cases, another person who you don't want following you. Naturally, most hiking poles aren't designed to be used as weapons. Still, their presence may scare off an assailant, and there's a growing trend of "tactical sticks" that do, in fact, serve defensive purposes if needed. This is just one way to help you feel safer while hiking alone.