hiking stick

[Timber338]

And thank you all for taking the time to share your experience and provide such good advice!

 

[jmden]

One thing that is tough in finding the right pole is that I"m 6'4" tall... In years past I often times will bring sticks home with me that I just picked up off the forest floor and used, and the ones that I like the best are very long, upwards of 65+ inches...

Jmden, very much like you described, reaching down while hiking down a very steep hill, and a lot of length in the pole is great to have. I definitely want to get the longest pole that I can find. I'm looking at the GL145 and a few of the others you all have mentioned. I think the #1 thing I'm looking for is durability, so I'll have to look over all these choices.

Overall it sure sounds like it's nice to have two poles... what do you guys do with the poles when you're stalking through a forest with your rifle in your hands? Do you collapse the poles and tie them onto your packs?

Most poles these days collapse down to 21" or so, if I recall. Usually fit on the side of a pack pretty well collapsed.

One of the keys to trekking poles is using the wrist loops correctly so that the loops spends a lot of time taking the weight so that your are not tiring out your hands/forearms from gripping the handle. Also, the wrist loops let you release your grip from the handle and use your hands to grab a rifle, rock, tree, etc while still retaining the pole at the wrist for quick transition back to the pole. There's a bit of learning curve (not much) but you can get to be quite deft doing things with your hands with the pole just dangling from from your wrist via the wrist loops. Limitations, obviously.

 

[Pdvdh]

Overall it sure sounds like it's nice to have two poles... what do you guys do with the poles when you're stalking through a forest with your rifle in your hands? Do you collapse the poles and tie them onto your packs?

Yup, that's what I do whenever it's so brushy that the hiking poles are more trouble than they are good. Mine are primarily used in relatively open terrain. They really help maintain balance with a heavy backpack, and in situations where a guy would be better off with 4 legs, to include crossing rocky stream-beds while hunting in mountainous terrain.

Understand that using two hiking/trekking poles requires that the rifle be fastened in, or on, the backpack, while backpack hunting. I use a Kifiru gun bearer for securing my rifle to my pack.

 

[7magcreedmoor]

One thing that is tough in finding the right pole is that I"m 6'4" tall... In years past I often times will bring sticks home with me that I just picked up off the forest floor and used, and the ones that I like the best are very long, upwards of 65+ inches...

Jmden, very much like you described, reaching down while hiking down a very steep hill, and a lot of length in the pole is great to have. I definitely want to get the longest pole that I can find. I'm looking at the GL145 and a few of the others you all have mentioned. I think the #1 thing I'm looking for is durability, so I'll have to look over all these choices.

Overall it sure sounds like it's nice to have two poles... what do you guys do with the poles when you're stalking through a forest with your rifle in your hands? Do you collapse the poles and tie them onto your packs?

Handling rough terrain as a "four-footed" critter is much better for me, as I have some problems with my back. When carrying the rifle in the thick stuff, I put the poles in the scabbard of my Eberlestock pack. If the woods are a little more open and a 200-350ish shot might be possible, I have the sticks in my left hand ready to put under the rifle for a quick kneeling or sitting shot.

 

[jmden]

Thanks Jon! I've been using the Sherlite Staff for a long time, and when I've looked I haven't found anything that adjust and locks to my satisfaction.

I also prefer a bit more height than even the staff I have offers. 57" I think. We used to use ski poles hunting winter cats, being a bit self taught am I looking at the 2 poles vs 1 in the wrong way, and what are your thoughts on length?

Did I answer your question at all in post 13? I just think you'll be much more stable with two poles vs. one and able to react to situations with two poles to keep you from stumbling/falling better than without poles and some better than with just one pole. I have kept myself from falls, some that would've been nasty, so many times just cause you can reach out with the necessary arm, plant a pole and catch yourself. You can really use these poles going up for some extra push up the hill and extend them more on the downhill to help cushion your legs/knees a bit more with each downhill step--body savers...make you more efficient. I use to blow them off and now don't go in the woods without them. I think, in many situations, most of us will have a more pleasant experience hiking/hunting with them than without them once the small learning curve is overcome. They can be a bit frustrating at first, though.

I believe the GL145 is about 57" at full extension.

 

[Timber338]

They really help maintain balance with a heavy backpack, and in situations where a guy would be better off with 4 legs, to include crossing rocky stream-beds while hunting in mountainous terrain.

Understand that using two hiking/trekking poles requires that the rifle be fastened in, or on, the backpack, while backpack hunting. I use a Kifiru gun bearer for securing my rifle to my pack.

Funny you should mention this ... the basis for using trekking poles actually started last year when I was crossing a creek that was running much higher than years past... I grabbed a fallen aspen branch to help with balance... and you guessed it, I ended up falling into the creek, right at sundown. Luckily it was a warm season so ended up being not that big of a deal. But a friend that was with me had two trekking poles and he made it across just fine.

Also good to hear you use the Kifaru gun bearer. I recently upgraded to Kifaru pack and also am using a gun bearer. I'm curious if you still hunt with a sling on your rifle, or do you remove the sling and use the gun bearer exclusively?

 

[Timber338]

Handling rough terrain as a "four-footed" critter is much better for me, as I have some problems with my back. When carrying the rifle in the thick stuff, I put the poles in the scabbard of my Eberlestock pack. If the woods are a little more open and a 200-350ish shot might be possible, I have the sticks in my left hand ready to put under the rifle for a quick kneeling or sitting shot.

Gotcha, thanks for the feedback. This is kind of what I was picturing as well. Lots of places I hunt get so thick that having a pole in each hand would be awful. But very easy to stash them on or in the pack... but the poles would obviously have to be collapsible.

 

[Timber338]

I use to blow them off and now don't go in the woods without them. I think, in many situations, most of us will have a more pleasant experience hiking/hunting with them than without them once the small learning curve is overcome. They can be a bit frustrating at first, though.

I think I'm right in that transition point... Overall it's good to get this kind of feedback. I'm heading out for a scouting trip in about a month, so I'll try and get some trekking poles before then to work through that learning curve before hunting season.

 

[jmden]

Creek/river crossings...so much better with a good pair of trekking poles. I just think most folks, once they figure out how to use them right, will go farther with less energy, reduce chances of potential injuries and generally enjoy the outing more. Not always the case, but generally.

 

[Pdvdh]

I recently upgraded to Kifaru pack and also am using a gun bearer. I'm curious if you still hunt with a sling on your rifle, or do you remove the sling and use the gun bearer exclusively?

Realize I never responded to your question. I do still have a sling on my rifle, although it is rarely used. I could leave it off and remove several ounces of weight from my rifle while backpacking. I do usually remove the front of the sling from the stock when I have time to prepare for a longer range shot. As I think about this I'm undecided which way to go in the future. I recall use of the sling after we've set up spike camp and when I'm not strapped into my backpack. Either way, the sling on the Kifaru gun bearer hasn't created any conflicts while carrying the rifle strapped into the gun bearer harness.

I'm leaning toward continuing to carry with the sling attached to the rifle, so the sling is available when I'm not strapped into my backpack, as the only drawback is carrying 4-5 extra ounces of weight. Makes me wonder what others do that strap their rifles into/onto their backpacks???

 

[Timber338]

Realize I never responded to your question. I do still have a sling on my rifle, although it is rarely used. I could leave it off and remove several ounces of weight from my rifle while backpacking.

... Makes me wonder what others do that strap their rifles into/onto their backpacks???

Thanks for the reply, i remember a thread from a few years ago that somebody who was using the gunbearer said they liked it so much that they never used a sling anymore. But can't remember what thread it was or who it was that said it.

I think I'm going to leave the sling in the truck this year and just see how it goes.

 

[jmden]

Thanks for the reply, i remember a thread from a few years ago that somebody who was using the gunbearer said they liked it so much that they never used a sling anymore. But can't remember what thread it was or who it was that said it.

I think I'm going to leave the sling in the truck this year and just see how it goes.

Probably me. Haven't used a sling in years. Gunbearer is so much better than a sling for vast majority of time.

 

[Timber338]

Probably me. Haven't used a sling in years. Gunbearer is so much better than a sling for vast majority of time.

this is funny, it was you. Before you posted this I did a search and found the thread from back in 2011! That's when I first was looking at getting a Kifaru pack but with two little kids I wasn't able to afford one until now.

http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f17/keeping-rifle-dry-79412/index2.html

So it just seems to make sense to leave the sling in the truck and only use the gunbearer and only draw out the rifle when a shot is about to happen. Will leave my hands free for trekking poles too. Going to get those Helinox GL145's, but need to wait a couple of months since I'm broke from buying my Kifaru.