9 Steps to Adjust Your Hiking Poles

For both hikers as well as backpackers, hiking poles are an essential and important tool as it helps to dig into the uneven grounds with its sharp pointed metal tips and also gives more stability to the hiker on the trail. Hiking poles are also designed to bear the weight burden of the packing around a huge backpack. It is very essential though to use hiking poles in the right way in order to gain maximum benefits out of them.

Improperly adjusted poles can prove harmful for the health and as they can cause soreness and muscle pain. It is thus important to adjust them the right way. The following given steps will teach you how to adjust your hiking poles in the correct manner:

The first step is to place your hiking pole on a counter like flat surface and then read the measurements on the bottom half of it. You must clean the poles from the bottom tip so that they can pole and be placed smoothly.

There are two main ways to adjust your poles. The first option requires you to twist the poles in 2 different places. One way is to loosen it and the other way is to tighten it, whatever be the requirement. The second option requires you to flick open a lever with your thumb and move the pole to the required position before closing the lever. If you wish to opt for the first option, then you will have to check which way the pole twists to tighten and which way it twists to loosen.

The next step is to unlock the bottom and the top sections of the pole by opening or twisting the lever and then move the lower section of both your poles to adjust them to be right under the maximum length.

Next you need to lift off the right hand pole from the counter and wrap the hand strap around your right hand and hold the pole in such a way that the arm is at a 90 degree angle from the body.

Now either flip the lever closed or twist to tighten it so that the right pole is locked.

Now check the measurements at which the right pole has been adjusted and then use the same measurements for the left hand pole as well.

The next step is to hold both the right hand and the left hand pole together so as to ensure that they both are of the same height.

Now you need to place your hands through the wrist straps in a downwards direction so that the strap comes at the base of the hands and in a way that is supports the wrists. The wraps can be adjusted according to the instructions of the manufacturer.