By Dawn Hammer
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Trekking poles are a great addition to your hiking kit. They add stability — especially on uneven surfaces or when carrying a heavy load — and they reduce the impact on hips, knees and ankles, especially when traveling downhill. They’re also excellent for brushing aside overgrowth on trails, discerning the depth of snow or water and creating a lightweight shelter when used in conjunction with a tarp or tent rainfly. If you’d like to give trekking poles a try, there are several features to consider. Here are some tips to get you started.
What to know: There are three types of trekking poles to choose from: telescoping, folding or fixed. In telescoping poles, one section slides out from inside another and locks into place. Folding poles are similar to tent poles: Sections slide out of the shaft and fold for compaction. Fixed length poles offer no adjustability. Folding poles are the most compact, shortening up to 10 inches more than telescoping poles. They also offer the lightest weight due to thinner shafts, but this also results in less durability.
Materials and components: Trekking pole shafts are made from aluminum, carbon fiber or a combination of both. Aluminum is heavier but more durable, while carbon fiber is lighter but can shatter more easily. Some manufacturers offer shafts that are a combination of both materials: a lower aluminum shaft that can bear the brunt of smashing into rocks and upper portions of carbon fiber that shed ounces.
Affordable, adjustable, lightweight and not bad on the eyes — what more do you need from a pair of trekking poles? These poles are designed specifically for those of shorter stature, cutting unnecessary length and weight with range of 31 inches to 49 inches. Coming in at only 17 ounces, these aluminum poles will hardly weigh you down as you ascend up classic Washington inclines. They collapse down to 23 inches when not in use. The cork handles help keep perspiring hands dry while the easily adjustable locks allow for quick tweaks in pole height. These poles kept us upright while traversing loose rocks, post-hole worthy snow and fast-flowing water crossings. And to boot, they helped make a rock-solid pitch for our non-freestanding tent. $69.95, kelty.com.
These folding poles are ideal for any hiker who wants poles that packs small. When folded, they’re just 15 inches long and come with a carrying pouch that makes them easy to stuff in any bag without worrying about snags. The poles have a single point for adjusting the length and a push-button mechanism locks them in place — and allows for easily unlocking and folding up the poles. The cork handle is well shaped, both the grip and the top. On steep sections or large steps, it feel comfortable and stable to rest your hand on top of the pole as you descend. The poles adjust from 43 to 51 inches and weigh 20 ounces per pair. $139.95, rei.com.
This simple, single pole has a snazzy feature. Screw off the top of the handle and the pole converts to a monopod for your camera. With a low price tag, it’s an affordable addition for hikers who prefer a single pole or photographers who want to add a bit of stability to their photos. The pole adjusts simply with twist-locks. You can quickly adjust the length for your photo and then just as quickly return it when you’re ready to hike again. We like that this pole is affordable and multiuse. Ours now lives in the back of our car for any unexpected photography or hiking needs. The aluminum pole adjusts from 35 to 54 inches and weighs 10 ounces. It’s 27 inches long when fully collapsed. $24.95, kelty.com.
These aluminum poles helped carry us easily up and down trails in the Cascades this summer. They have comfortable handles with especially easily adjustable wrist straps. The poles have a sturdy feel, without feeling rigid or transmitting vibrations into your hands. The poles collapse in two places, and the shafts are clearly marked. Once you know what length works best, you can easily find it again by using the markings along the shafts. The locking mechanism have adjustable tension, to ensure you get a secure lock. They weigh 19 ounces and adjust from 39.5 inches to 55 inches. They come with interchangeable baskets for either hiking or snow. $99.95, rei.com.
Hi there! Two of our previous posts were dedicated to the work with antenna height in RTK and PPK. In this connection, it would be great to recollect what you need to consider when choosing a survey pole.
If you are looking for more details, kindly visit Telescopic Pole.
Everything seems pretty easy, but there is one tricky thing you need to pay attention to. There are different pole types: some of them are designed for GNSS receivers, others—for a variety of sight levels, such as total stations, construction or laser levels, etc.
Those designed for the equipment different from GNSS receivers usually have different mounts and graduation scales. See for yourself, if you take a pole designed for a total station, you may get a height error of 14 cm because it also considers a reflector. The fact is that the side marks on the pole are 14 cm higher than the real height—you can check this simply by measuring it using the measuring tape to avoid discrepancies. So, when choosing a survey pole, make sure it suits your needs.
And here is an overview of survey pole characteristics with our comments that will ease the agony of choice:
That’s it! Probably you already know that we have our own telescopic aluminum survey pole which is compact and lightweight. We combined the best characteristics to make the most of your surveying. If you haven’t seen it before, check this page.
And which criteria should your survey pole meet? Share them with us in the comments below!
I can recommend the Emlid pole, we have bought 3 so far. Even the supplier who sold it to us hadn’t sold it before our request and is impressed.
For us it’s very useful because it shortens down to 74 cm in seconds. Very advantageous when laying GCPs by car as it’s quick and easy to get in and out. Also convenient in difficult terrain or undergrowth.
The initial reason we got it though was that it can be packed into a suitcase for overseas projects.
The fact that Reachview has the 180 cm as default reduces one source of errors.
Contact us to discuss your requirements of Telescopic Poles. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.