I *did* find them useful in the snow on my Winter Skills course as they helped me transfer a lot of my weight to my upper body as I traipsed through deep-ish snow.
Next step, add skis to spread your weight our more, reducing the surface pressure so you don't post hole. And then progress to skiing, which is a rather wonderful way of getting around snowy terrain of the not fearsomely steep variety :-)
On the drive up to the Ben Lawers range there was a distinct lack of snow. I was getting worried that there wouldn't be any at all. However, there was plenty of the stuff. I've never seen so much snow in my entire life ever! It was brill.
When it snows at home, we get about half an inch which then freezes and the whole transport system stops. Pah! I want *proper* snow.
Judith (Posting when I should be packing..... but have given up with the 45 litre sack. I need some /serious/ planning to camp out of a 45 litre sack. Now I just need the discipline not to take any extras to fill the extra 20 litres. Oh, and I could do with deciding where I'm going in the morning.)
A fair bit fell this year, but there was a bit much wind for it to settle well a lot of the time. Still, much better than the previous couple of years and I had some fun out on the planks.
However, going overseas is a Cunning Plan.
Pete. -- Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/
On the whole I am not a pole person, but I take one when I am expecting to be tired on steep downhill sections.
How do you carry them (or it) before you're tired enough to need them? I have one that I bought because you never find a stick when you need one to get through a stream with a bit too much water in it, but I don't like using them for their design purpose. -- Rudi Winter, Aberystwyth, Wales
I like having them available, for balance on rough descents, probing in boggy areas and stream crossings, assistance from the arm muscles for steep ascents and nettle and bramble clearance on rural rambles. But I also like to be able to stow them on the pack, without stopping or taking it off, so as to have hands free on easier terrain or when scrambling. Fortunately a friend devised a way of doing just that.
That looks really clever, but doesn't it get in the way when you get into slightly scrambly terrain, especially downhill? I mean, the last thing you want to happen when you're standing on an exposed piece of rock is having something unbalancing your pack by giving it a push from below... -- Rudi Winter, Aberystwyth, Wales
That looks really clever, but doesn't it get in the way when you get into slightly scrambly terrain, especially downhill? I mean, the last thing you want to happen when you're standing on an exposed piece of rock is having something unbalancing your pack by giving it a push from below...
If anything's really problematical you're generally better off doing it facing in, in which case end of problem. If something's going to get in the way going down then a rucksack is perfectly capable of doing that all by itself IME! ;-/
Pete. -- Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/
How do you carry them (or it) before you're tired enough to need them?
Lash them to your pack. If it doesn't have anything where you can attach stuff then sew some on, or get someone else to if you don't feel your needlework is up to it.
Quoted message said:
I have one that I bought because you never find a stick when you need one to get through a stream with a bit too much water in it, but I don't like using them for their design purpose.
Part of the design point is extra stability.
Pete. -- Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/
On the whole I am not a pole person, but I take one when I am expecting to be tired on steep downhill sections.
How do you carry them (or it) before you're tired enough to need them? I have one that I bought because you never find a stick when you need one to get through a stream with a bit too much water in it, but I don't like using them for their design purpose.
Get a rucksack with side compression straps and wand pockets. One side of my sack has the tripod on it the other has the poles when I don't need them. If your sack has ice axe loops you can carry poles in them after a fashion - put the bottom end in the loop and twist it round a bit to tighten the loop (move the pole as the hands of a clock) then fasten the shaft with the top strap.
-- Phil Cook looking north over the park to the "Westminster Gasworks"
On the whole I am not a pole person, but I take one when I am expecting to be tired on steep downhill sections.
How do you carry them (or it) before you're tired enough to need them? I have one that I bought because you never find a stick when you need one to get through a stream with a bit too much water in it, but I don't like using them for their design purpose.
It depends what type of rucksack you have. If I'm using one of my larger sacks then usually the collapsible pole can be attached using the compression straps and patch pockets (or if I'm going to be using public transport e.g. a telepherique or train I'll try to put them completely inside the pack), if I'm using my smaller pack which is a tear-drop with a zip-fastener opening I simply slot the poles down into the pack on one side and zip up the closure around them so that protrude out of the top.
-- o/ \\ // |\ ,_ o Mike Clark <\__,\\ // __o | \ / /\, "A mountain climbing, cycling, skiing, "> || _`\<,_ |__\ \> | immunology lecturer, antibody engineer and ` || (_)/ (_) | \corn computer user"
I like having them available, for balance on rough descents, probing in boggy areas and stream crossings, assistance from the arm muscles for steep ascents and nettle and bramble clearance on rural rambles. But I also like to be able to stow them on the pack, without stopping or taking it off, so as to have hands free on easier terrain or when scrambling. Fortunately a friend devised a way of doing just that.
That looks really clever, but doesn't it get in the way when you get into slightly scrambly terrain, especially downhill? I mean, the last thing you want to happen when you're standing on an exposed piece of rock is having something unbalancing your pack by giving it a push from below...
If you ever try ski-mountaineering and end up climbing with two full length skis and poles strapped to your rucksack, you'll have a different perspective on what is tolerable when standing on exposed rock!
-- o/ \\ // |\ ,_ o Mike Clark <\__,\\ // __o | \ / /\, "A mountain climbing, cycling, skiing, "> || _`\<,_ |__\ \> | immunology lecturer, antibody engineer and ` || (_)/ (_) | \corn computer user"
I like having them available, for balance on rough descents, probing in boggy areas and stream crossings, assistance from the arm muscles for steep ascents and nettle and bramble clearance on rural rambles. But I also like to be able to stow them on the pack, without stopping or taking it off, so as to have hands free on easier terrain or when scrambling. Fortunately a friend devised a way of doing just that.
That looks really clever, but doesn't it get in the way when you get into slightly scrambly terrain, especially downhill? I mean, the last thing you want to happen when you're standing on an exposed piece of rock is having something unbalancing your pack by giving it a push from below...
No, of course not, the poles are shortened to minimum length and are close to your back. They don't extend below the bottom of the rucksack: I thought the last photo showed this pretty clearly... (you can click on the photos to get a better display). It is *much* better that trying to scramble with poles dangling from your wrists :-)
On Fri, 26 Aug 2005 12:30:40 +0000 (UTC), [email hidden] (Rudi
Winter) said:
Quoted message said:
On the whole I am not a pole person, but I take one when I am expecting to be tired on steep downhill sections.
How do you carry them (or it) before you're tired enough to need them? I have one that I bought because you never find a stick when you need one to get through a stream with a bit too much water in it, but I don't like using them for their design purpose.
I have ice-axe loops on my rucksacks so I can usually lash the poles onto the pack using them. I do have to remember not to take anyone's eye out when I swing the pack off my back though!
Lash them to your pack. If it doesn't have anything where you can attach stuff then sew some on, or get someone else to if you don't feel your needlework is up to it.
On the big (70-ish litre) pack it is sort of ok using an axe loop and the criss-cross stretchy cord on the back of the pack. It isn't exactly straightforward to fiddle the pole in or out of that construction, although it tends to slip down quite a bit by itself over time.
On the 25l pack, there are just no two points sufficiently far apart to avoid the pole dangling about and slipping down sooner or later.
Thanks for everyone's suggestions. I think some more experimentation will be needed. Will post lab report on completion! -- Rudi Winter, Aberystwyth, Wales
If anything's really problematical you're generally better off doing it facing in, in which case end of problem. If something's going to get in the way going down then a rucksack is perfectly capable of doing that all by itself IME! ;-/
I think you have a point there... -- Rudi Winter, Aberystwyth, Wales
Having been very wary of getting these things but eventually took advice here a bought a pair of Black Diamond.
Unfortunately my previous view that they were an extra burden to cart along on a tour were confirmed in a recent 8 day trek in the Jotunheimen and I gave up on them.
Maybe you should have gone for something lighter. My alpkit poles only weigh 220g (less than half my old Lekis), so although they normally remain strapped to the rucksack, the extra burden is so small as to be irrelevant.
