Make Your Own Trekking Poles, September 2006

Make your own two-piece trekking pole that weighs in a bit over 4 ounces.  This pdf will show you how to do it.  To see the poles in action check out my trip from Sonora Pass to Tuolumne Meadows earlier this year.

When separated each piece is about 24 inches long; when combined the pole is about 46 inches long and weighs about 4 ounces without the basket and tape on the shaft below the grip.  Longer poles will weight an additional 0.06 ounces per inch.

Left: Gossamer Gear grip, Center: Pole to pole friction connection with Velcro for redundancy, Right: Leki tip and basket.

A tight fit between the poles is achieved by placing JB Weld on the outside of the male pole (left side) then lightly sanding until the female portion will snuggly slide over.  Velcro is optional.

This approximately half ounce section extends the length of my poles by 7 inches and allows me to use my poles to set up my Tarptent Rainbow in freestanding mode.

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