 Sorry, I gave up.
Smoking, that is. I still have thumbs.
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 Oh well, I'll just have to leave it hanging out of my stupid face forever then.
BTW, what kind of stick is best?
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A sticky one?
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pointed or not?
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pointed!
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Good. Well, I think we've cleared that up.
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 my leki is affectionatly known as the sheep stick and was bought purely to defend against attacks from sheep on the north pennines. Those ones with the evil looking eyes. ueeeerrghh. I find shouting 'mint sauce' doesn't work anymore.
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Sheep. Always looking for a fight.
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damn straight.
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If only the off licence would just refuse to serve 'em, there'd be less of it, I tell yer!
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 I blame the parents...
that means yew...
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 I show no favour, having two sets of Komperdell poles, one with anti-shock, one without. Here's a site oft times refered to online which may prove of some use:
a href="http://www.trekkingpoles.com/whatare.htm" target="_blank" class="TrekPoles">TrekPoles
It includes a Forum and FAQ section also.
Another interesting site (NO..not those in SE Asia) from up Scotland way with plenty of Why's and Where For's:
a href="http://www.personal.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/poles.htm" target="_blank" class="PetesPoles">PetesPoles
Although you may be expending more energy using a pole, I believe the payback in relief to joints, whether on the flat or incline is worth the extra effort. Imagine a cross-country skier without poles assisting forward motion and the extra burden placed on the legs..you get the picture!
More Later.
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 Stouffer, it's the new mlenyum. Thing to shout nowadays is "Rogan Josh"
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TrekPoles<a/>
PetesPolesYou try to make a contribution and you make a fool of yourself (not so very hard to do in my case) Try, try again
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 There's a lot of good advice in Pete's poles.
Based on his advice I bought a pair of cheap poles (£20 from Craigdon) a few months ago to see how I get on with them - they work well for me.
Try buying the cheapest poles you can get and try them out in different situations for a few months. The you can decide if they're for you and if you want to spend loads of spondoulies on fancy spring loaded poles with moulded hand grips, built in compass, GPS and hydration packs!
Happy poling!
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 Funnily enough, I still use my trusted thumbstick made for me by a good friend from Hazel and antler.
It is surprising the number of people I meet who comment on it and ask me where I got it from and if they could get one.
I try to explain to them that whilst similar in intent, the use of my stick is slightly different from the way they are using their poles.
My stick is useful for balance when ascending or decending rough terrain, but judging by the way I see most people using poles on the flat, I would say that the use of either has subtle differences.
I also use mine as an extention of singnals to my dogs!
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 I bought some Brasher compact poles in the winter, mainly to stop me killing myself doing solo river crossings in Scotland. Very good for that (it can be a bit hairy with a big pack on and only your legs to balance with...!).
I experimented using them as walking poles and found that in some situations they are a real help. Definitely read the info on the sites wiz mentioned to ensure you use the poles properly -- many folk don't. In my experience, going up and down steep ground the poles are a real help. I got achy shoulders a bit but my knees/legs were happier little beasties than without the poles. On hard paths and (usually) on level ground they are more of a hindrance to me.
The Brashers are good, btw. I got them cause I wanted to be able to pack them fully inside a rucsack (for the plane) and also cause I'm only 1.71m tall so don't need longer ones. Short = less weight.
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 My knobbly stick was made for me by a shepherd working on the Cnewr estate and has a nice bit of horn for a handle.
It's better balanced and more comfortable than a trekking pole, but sadly doesn't have the "tripod" attachment for my camera that my pole does, neither does it have the ability to fold up into itself - but it's much better for whacking over-inquisitve farm animals with.
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