So, you have chosen your poles, adjusted them correctly, and are ready for your first outing — but you would like a briefing first to make sure you know how to walk with your hiking poles? That is exactly what we are here for!
Have the many benefits of walking convinced you to give it a go? Are the advantages of trekking poles catching your attention? Have you finally chosen the poles best suited to your activity and are ready to put them to use? To make the most of their many benefits, it is important to use them correctly — both for comfort and stability (and therefore safety), and for performance and endurance.
While walking with poles is not complicated, it is important to develop the right habits from the start! So, when heading out hiking with poles for the first time, it is perfectly natural to wonder whether there is a particular technique for walking with hiking poles, whether there is a better way to use them, and whether there are mistakes to avoid. The answer is yes! There are indeed different techniques and methods depending on personal comfort, but above all depending on the terrain ahead. Ascents, descents, traverses or obstacles — in this article, we share all our useful tips for walking properly with hiking poles wherever you are.
Walking with poles on flat terrain
The first thing to do before setting off is to correctly adjust the length of your poles. Once you are ready to go, with the pole perpendicular to the ground and your back straight, check that your arm forms a right angle at the elbow. All good? Then slip on your wrist straps — off you go!
There are different techniques for walking with poles — you can move using both poles in a mirrored fashion, either simultaneously or in an alternating pattern.
We personally recommend using your poles in an alternating manner, especially on flat terrain. This way, you can maintain a good rhythm, and it is also the most natural method. You move right arm / left leg, then left arm / right leg, exactly as you would walk normally. The poles then become an extension of your arms — after a while, you will even forget they are there.
In both cases — simultaneous or alternating technique — we prefer to plant our poles slightly behind us, so as to gain propulsion. If you genuinely find it more comfortable to plant your poles in front of your body to "pull" yourself forward in a sense, make sure you never plant them directly in front of you, but to the sides, so they do not get in your way. Otherwise, you risk hitting your poles, injuring yourself, or even falling — but above all, you will be hindered and slowed down by them. Which is the exact opposite of what you are trying to achieve.
A valuable aid when walking uphill
If the climb is gentle and short, do not adjust the length of your poles. If you start adjusting them for every small change in terrain, you will never get anywhere. Bear in mind that compromises will be necessary — the height will not always be ideal, and if your arm does not form a perfect 90° right angle every single time, it is not the end of the world. If the climb is steep over a long distance, then it is worth adjusting the length by shortening the poles.
If the climb is steep over a short distance, you can remove your wrist straps and grip your poles below the handle, at the collar, if your poles are equipped with one. This is obviously not ideal, as you will not have the support of the strap to relieve your hand and wrist, but for a short stretch it is an excellent alternative. Here too you can choose to use your poles in an alternating or simultaneous fashion, especially when the climb is steep, to double the pushing power.
Protecting your knees on descents
On descents, poles are primarily used to hold the hiker back and provide greater balance. They allow for more confident movement and a greater sense of security, especially when the slope is steep, uneven or strewn with obstacles. They are also very effective at reducing the impact of the slope on the joints (especially the knees) and the thigh muscles (quadriceps), which is no small thing.
Bear in mind that the first thing to do before heading into a descent is to remove your wrist straps so you are not held back in the event of a fall, and therefore risk injuring yourself. Once the straps are off, change your grip by holding the handles directly, or better still, by resting the palm of your hands on top of the poles.
On descents too, you can choose whether or not to adjust the height of your poles depending on the gradient and the length of the slope, and then decide whether to use your poles one at a time in an alternating fashion, or both together. Moreover, if the slope is very gentle, over a long distance, and the terrain is not rugged, you can just as well choose to stow your poles in your backpack or clip them to your hip belt.
Walking on a traverse
On a traverse, as on a descent, you should remove your wrist straps to minimise any risk of getting caught or injured. You can grip the lower pole at the handle, or rest your palm on top of the handle (depending on which is most comfortable), and grip the higher pole below the handle, at the collar.
For greater comfort, if the traverse covers a fairly long distance, you have the option of adjusting just one of the two poles — that is, shortening the higher one by a few centimetres. Then advance carefully.
Using trekking poles to get over an obstacle
Another situation you may encounter is crossing an obstacle: a river, a fallen tree trunk or a large rock, for example. In such cases, poles are very useful for improving your balance and provide great reassurance. They also reduce the risk of slipping or falling. To cross an obstacle, there are two techniques available to you:
- You can plant your poles over the obstacle and pull yourself up. But as we mentioned above, we prefer the pole to act as a propulsion tool, so it is better to go with the second option.
- Plant your poles at the base of the obstacle and then cross it. If the obstacle involves a descent, you can lengthen your poles, and in that case, remove your wrist straps and change your grip, exactly as you would for a descent.
