Mountain King Trail Blaze
I’ve never been one for poles. Not people from Poland, walking poles. I got a pair way back when they first started on the scene donkeys years ago, tried them for a bit, got annoyed with them and they’ve been languishing in the garage ever since.
John from Ardblair gave me some hints for correct pole usage on the Arrochar meet, which opened up the possibility of having another go. I tried out some Lekis which were ok and I saw the benefits, particularly on the uphills. The Lekis were still a bit bulky for me and would probably get in the way when scrambing and the like, so based on Petesy’s recommendation, I splashed out on a pair of these lovely purple fellows.
They’re very light, weighing in at 302g on my scales and they fold down to a nice short length so you can fit them into a pocket or inside your rucksack, which is ideal for when the going gets rockier. They’re not height adjustable or spring loaded like most poles, in fact they are more or less tent poles with handles on, but they seem sturdier than you would expect and the 120cm length is decent for me.
I’ve used them on my last few trips and they’ve worked well, they were there when I needed them and tucked away when I didn’t. I’ve racked up about 30 miles with them so far and they seem to be doing fine. I do have some concerns about the longevity of the grips, given that they are quite soft, time will tell in that regard.
