Just realized I've been using my hiking poles wrong for like 3 years

Was watching some old guy shred past me on the Appalachian Trail in Vermont and noticed he was planting his poles way further back than me. Has anyone else had a random stranger's technique totally change how they hike?

3 comments

3 Comments

terryallen22d ago

You ever have one of those moments where you realize you've been doing something the hard way for years? I was using trekking poles totally wrong myself until a guy in his 60s stopped me on a switchback in the White Mountains and showed me how to angle them so they actually push you forward instead of just stabbing the ground. He had me shorten them a bit too, and suddenly I wasn't fighting the poles on steep climbs anymore. It's wild how a little tip from someone who's been at it forever can change your whole stride. What else did that old guy do that made him look so smooth?

tyler49221d ago

The pole angle thing is a game changer. Most people stab straight down and wonder why their shoulders ache. Shortening them for climbs makes a huge difference too, takes the load off your arms. The old guy probably had his straps adjusted right, that's another thing people mess up. Little tweaks like that are what separate the people who hike forever from the ones who quit after a few miles.

paige_ellis5921d ago

Right? That old guy probably could've charged admission for that little lesson and nobody would've blinked. But nah, he just casually dropped knowledge and shuffled off like it was nothing, leaving the rest of us to question everything we thought we knew about poles. The strap thing is huge too, I've seen people nearly dislocate a shoulder because they had them wrapped around their wrist like a handcuff. Little tweaks indeed, more like the difference between a good hike and a great one.