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Stuart in the Mountains

Lightweight Trekking Poles

By Stuart Morris

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Lightweight Trekking PolesFind Lightweight Trekking Poles with the features you're looking for.

How Much Lighter are Lightweight Trekking Poles?

Trekking Poles are an under appreciated piece of backpacking gear. They aren't something that you'll find in the average backpacker's gear collection, but in certain situations they can be indispensable, and your knees will thank you for using them after a long day on the trail. And just like any other piece of gear, there are the light trekking poles and the heavy trekking poles. A quick glance at the list of trekking poles shows that there is, for example, the Black Diamond Contour Elliptic Shock Poles, which weigh in at 664 grams, or 1.5 pounds. Then there is the Black Diamond Ultra Distance Z Poles, which weigh a mere 270 grams, or .6 pounds....
  • Black Diamond Contour Elliptic Shock Poles - 664 grams / 1.5 pounds
  • Black Diamond Ultra Distance Z Poles - 270 grams / .6 pounds
If you have to carry trekking poles, you might as well be carrying the lightest trekking poles, and the Black Diamond Ultra Distance Z Poles are a great deal lighter than the competition.

Common Features of Light Trekking Poles

There's only so much innovating you can do with a straight piece of metal that you poke the ground with, but if you take a look at the list of trekking poles you'll see that there is actually quite a difference in weights, despite the fact that there aren't all that many trekking poles on the market.
  1. Carbon Trekking Poles - Innovative materials are usually good for a significant weight savings, and light trekking poles are no exception. Though carbon is a bit more prone to breaks in some situations than the more common aluminum trekking poles, the weight saved by switching to the lighter material is usually significant.
  2. Fixed Length Trekking Poles - Most trekking poles, even most of lightest trekking poles are collapsible and expandable, which makes them easy to travel with and suited to a wide variety of heights. But all that extra material weighs something, and going without makes for some significant weight savings. A quick look at the list of trekking poles shows that your options are limited for fixed length trekking poles, but they are out there.

Drawbacks of Light Trekking Poles

Carbon Trekking Poles do offer some small disadvantages, as carbon is a bit more prone to breaks than the more common aluminum trekking poles, but it's not a large difference, and the weight savings are going to make the trade off worth it for most people. Fixed length trekking poles are lighter still, but something to keep in mind is that you'll be stuck with one length if you plan to use your trekking poles as tent poles for a tarp tent. If the poles are a workable length, and they usually are, then this isn't a problem, but it's something to keep in mind when considering fixed length trekking poles.

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