Hiking/Walking sticks. 'Oh the places you'll go'

[Ever (Zombiepreparation)]

I had my walking stick for around 35 years. Found it. Just found it, in the Tucson desert. A rib of a dead sun bleached saguaro it looked to be. But no main cactus carcus in sight though. Perfect size perfect weight perfect feel.

And oh, the places we went together. Some of my fondest adventures and memories are where we went together. It was a porous, lightweight, and strong as anything it was used for. But unlike solid wood eventually began to not retain its surface, splinters not smooth able, and I gave it back to the outdoors.

I loved that stick and our travels together.

Always kept an eye out for another branch to make into another walking stick. Nothing turning my head enough to fit my bill without more work than I was willing to put in, nor was need a motivating factor as I was entering 'old' without transportation to go to a place for even short hikes.

Then... need arose. 👵 I entered 'elderly' and began noticing bouts of walking instability that using a cane wasn't addressing. Except when I turned a knee or pulled a muscle I didn't need a cane yet. But walking around the neighborhood lessoned because I never knew if instability would show up.

What to do... what to do...


Last week my mind drifted to hiking down the Kiabab and how I mostly hiked not looking at my feet. As a matter of fact whenever I hiked with my walking stick... uhh... for walking the neighborhood could a walking stick help with bouts of instability, thereby making longer walks less vulnerable? Maybe building back up a bit of deteriorating stability muscle?


And I thought What if.....

[Ever (Zombiepreparation)]

What if I could buy one?

Well, duh, of course you can, all the way from fancy-schmansy high tech hiking poles down to, well, what I bought, a cheap finished branch with a loop handle.

It arrived in three days.

Yuk. Hated the finish. Can't feel wood. On the other hand, let's see if better stability with a stick is even feasible before I go any further.



SHAZAM! We're a Go for stability!


Now what? Upgrade? I'll ask YouTube.


btw, YouTube knows Everything about homemade stick stuff! I learned to wrap the cotton twine that I had (etc.) around the stick that gives my hand greater purchase and I don't touch the applied yuk finish.

Then another wrap farther down the staff for a different hold. Then a third one even father down for just carrying it on stable terrain.

And then I stumbled onto the following video I wanted to share about senior need and walking sticks. Could it Be any more relevant to my need! 😅

It's titled 'SILVER WOLVES NEED WALKING STICKS' (with me and my own demographic being the Silver Wolves. 👏

[Ever (Zombiepreparation)]

The end of this chapter is that this idea I had from a memory I had is a complete success. So maybe I'll get another year or two on my feet before the next chapter in my life needs different measures. Plus, the feeling of hours meandering around the neighborhood is nothing less than a joy. (Apparently the work I did with the wrapping is not terrible because I've had a couple of compliments on the stick itself 😎 )

[Ever (Zombiepreparation)]

So let's talk about walking/hiking sticks.

Everything is open: diy, favorite stick, ready for purchase sticks. Where- what- when- how- who- personal stories- stories heard- adventures- how many- woods- wraps- collect- shapes- alternate uses-

You know, everything. 👵

[NT2C]

I have a few different hiking staffs that are, essentially, the same.  They're all made from hickory, one from a young hickory tree I grew myself from a hickory nut found at a roadside rest stop on one of my journeys, I think in the midwest somewhere.  A disabled friend took it (with my permission), finished it as a staff, and presented it to me as a birthday gift one year.  I had thought he wanted it for himself.

All of my canes (more about them later), staffs, and walking sticks sport rubber tips and reflective tape, the better to be seen at night or in low visibility and to gain traction on slippery surfaces like tile floors.

Most are made from natural materials (gave the majority of my metal ones to my wife) and are/were finished with a lacquer or shellac of some type.  I agree with you Ms. E, that the finish does not feel good in the hand (especially when the hand sanitizer you just used tries to dissolve it) but I'm a lazy old cuss at heart and just let it wear off naturally from use.   

My canes are martial arts combat canes, carried as a medical assistive device no authority can deny me its use.  I can legally take it to any place where weapons are prohibited, even on aircraft and in courthouses.  I may have to forgo one of my firearms and my knives, but I never have to forgo my cane and it is a very potent weapon.  As one cane master I've seen videos of says, "It's a 4' cudgel you can take anywhere!"

These canes are designed with grip areas carved into them to aid in using them for striking or hooking.  The crook is large enough to go around an arm, leg, or neck and comes to a point for use in pain compliance.  They are strong, made from a dense hardwood grown in Indonesia and southeast Asia.  I have one next to every door into my house and one in every vehicle.

[12_Gauge_Chimp]

Haven't had a need for a walking stick or cane just yet (given my crappy knees it's only a matter of time before I need one), but Ever's story of finding a walking stick on a hike reminds me of when I was a kid and I made one out of a big tumbleweed.

I forget what happened to it, but I'm pretty sure it ended up in the garbage after I forgot about it. Keep in mind I was around 11 or so when I had it and was easily distracted.

Now that I think about it, even at 37 I'm still kind of like that (my sister calls it my ADOS or "Attention Deficit-Oooh, shiny").

[Blast]

I've been using the same persimmon-wood walking stick for 15 years. It was harvested as a sapling from a friend's woods, sanded, coated with several layers of boiled linseed oil, then wrapped with waxed twine where I grab it. It has been literally hundreds of miles with me up mountains and across rivers. I keep thinking I need to decorate it with woodburnings but I never do. Persimmon wood is very dense and tough, so it weighs a bit more than other walkingsticks. So be it. It has saved me from multiple falls...and a few wild pigs.
-Blast

[Ever (Zombiepreparation)]

I've been using the same persimmon-wood walking stick for 15 years. It was harvested as a sapling from a friend's woods, sanded, coated with several layers of boiled linseed oil, then wrapped with waxed twine where I grab it. It has been literally hundreds of miles with me up mountains and across rivers. I keep thinking I need to decorate it with woodburnings but I never do. Persimmon wood is very dense and tough, so it weighs a bit more than other walkingsticks. So be it. It has saved me from multiple falls...and a few wild pigs.
-Blast

👵 memories

A 'more than one' wild pigs? Whoa. Have only seen them in documentaries and other stuff like that but I can tell them's some dangerous critters.

How do you use the stick with such aggressive beasts?

[Ever (Zombiepreparation)]

Haven't had a need for a walking stick or cane just yet (given my crappy knees it's only a matter of time before I need one), but Ever's story of finding a walking stick on a hike reminds me of when I was a kid and I made one out of a big tumbleweed.

I forget what happened to it, but I'm pretty sure it ended up in the garbage after I forgot about it. Keep in mind I was around 11 or so when I had it and was easily distracted.

Now that I think about it, even at 37 I'm still kind of like that (my sister calls it my ADOS or "Attention Deficit-Oooh, shiny").

That tumbleweed w-stick, how'd you do that? They used to be around lots when I was a kid but I can't remember their spine, or limbs(?).

btw- I have ADOS too. 😏

Outdoors has provided me with lots 'Oooh, shiny' moments that my w-stick helped manage. 😄

[12_Gauge_Chimp]

Haven't had a need for a walking stick or cane just yet (given my crappy knees it's only a matter of time before I need one), but Ever's story of finding a walking stick on a hike reminds me of when I was a kid and I made one out of a big tumbleweed.

I forget what happened to it, but I'm pretty sure it ended up in the garbage after I forgot about it. Keep in mind I was around 11 or so when I had it and was easily distracted.

Now that I think about it, even at 37 I'm still kind of like that (my sister calls it my ADOS or "Attention Deficit-Oooh, shiny").

That tumbleweed w-stick, how'd you do that? They used to be around lots when I was a kid but I can't remember their spine, or limbs(?).

btw- I have ADOS too. 😏

Outdoors has provided me with lots 'Oooh, shiny' moments that my w-stick helped manage. 😄

It was the big middle piece and I had to snap off the smaller outer bits in order to get to the middle bit. It wasn't very long (maybe four foot in length I think ?), but it was perfect for Young Chimp who wasn't much taller than the stick.

Now it'd probably be more like a cane instead of a walking stick since I'm a good bit taller now than I was back then.  

[Ever (Zombiepreparation)]

I have a few different hiking staffs that are, essentially, the same.  They're all made from hickory, one from a young hickory tree I grew myself from a hickory nut found at a roadside rest stop on one of my journeys, I think in the midwest somewhere.  A disabled friend took it (with my permission), finished it as a staff, and presented it to me as a birthday gift one year.  I had thought he wanted it for himself.

All of my canes (more about them later), staffs, and walking sticks sport rubber tips and reflective tape, the better to be seen at night or in low visibility and to gain traction on slippery surfaces like tile floors.

Most are made from natural materials (gave the majority of my metal ones to my wife) and are/were finished with a lacquer or shellac of some type.  I agree with you Ms. E, that the finish does not feel good in the hand (especially when the hand sanitizer you just used tries to dissolve it) but I'm a lazy old cuss at heart and just let it wear off naturally from use.   

My canes are martial arts combat canes, carried as a medical assistive device no authority can deny me its use.  I can legally take it to any place where weapons are prohibited, even on aircraft and in courthouses.  I may have to forgo one of my firearms and my knives, but I never have to forgo my cane and it is a very potent weapon.  As one cane master I've seen videos of says, "It's a 4' cudgel you can take anywhere!"

These canes are designed with grip areas carved into them to aid in using them for striking or hooking.  The crook is large enough to go around an arm, leg, or neck and comes to a point for use in pain compliance.  They are strong, made from a dense hardwood grown in Indonesia and southeast Asia.  I have one next to every door into my house and one in every vehicle.

When I read about your canes I went straight to YouTube to check this out! OMG, what a terrific idea! 😎😎😎

[NT2C]

I have a few different hiking staffs that are, essentially, the same.  They're all made from hickory, one from a young hickory tree I grew myself from a hickory nut found at a roadside rest stop on one of my journeys, I think in the midwest somewhere.  A disabled friend took it (with my permission), finished it as a staff, and presented it to me as a birthday gift one year.  I had thought he wanted it for himself.

All of my canes (more about them later), staffs, and walking sticks sport rubber tips and reflective tape, the better to be seen at night or in low visibility and to gain traction on slippery surfaces like tile floors.

Most are made from natural materials (gave the majority of my metal ones to my wife) and are/were finished with a lacquer or shellac of some type.  I agree with you Ms. E, that the finish does not feel good in the hand (especially when the hand sanitizer you just used tries to dissolve it) but I'm a lazy old cuss at heart and just let it wear off naturally from use.   

My canes are martial arts combat canes, carried as a medical assistive device no authority can deny me its use.  I can legally take it to any place where weapons are prohibited, even on aircraft and in courthouses.  I may have to forgo one of my firearms and my knives, but I never have to forgo my cane and it is a very potent weapon.  As one cane master I've seen videos of says, "It's a 4' cudgel you can take anywhere!"

These canes are designed with grip areas carved into them to aid in using them for striking or hooking.  The crook is large enough to go around an arm, leg, or neck and comes to a point for use in pain compliance.  They are strong, made from a dense hardwood grown in Indonesia and southeast Asia.  I have one next to every door into my house and one in every vehicle.

When I read about your canes I went straight to YouTube to check this out! OMG, what a terrific idea! 😎😎😎

You can play with one at lunch. 

[Ever (Zombiepreparation)]

I have a few different hiking staffs that are, essentially, the same.  They're all made from hickory, one from a young hickory tree I grew myself from a hickory nut found at a roadside rest stop on one of my journeys, I think in the midwest somewhere.  A disabled friend took it (with my permission), finished it as a staff, and presented it to me as a birthday gift one year.  I had thought he wanted it for himself.

All of my canes (more about them later), staffs, and walking sticks sport rubber tips and reflective tape, the better to be seen at night or in low visibility and to gain traction on slippery surfaces like tile floors.

Most are made from natural materials (gave the majority of my metal ones to my wife) and are/were finished with a lacquer or shellac of some type.  I agree with you Ms. E, that the finish does not feel good in the hand (especially when the hand sanitizer you just used tries to dissolve it) but I'm a lazy old cuss at heart and just let it wear off naturally from use.   

My canes are martial arts combat canes, carried as a medical assistive device no authority can deny me its use.  I can legally take it to any place where weapons are prohibited, even on aircraft and in courthouses.  I may have to forgo one of my firearms and my knives, but I never have to forgo my cane and it is a very potent weapon.  As one cane master I've seen videos of says, "It's a 4' cudgel you can take anywhere!"

These canes are designed with grip areas carved into them to aid in using them for striking or hooking.  The crook is large enough to go around an arm, leg, or neck and comes to a point for use in pain compliance.  They are strong, made from a dense hardwood grown in Indonesia and southeast Asia.  I have one next to every door into my house and one in every vehicle.

When I read about your canes I went straight to YouTube to check this out! OMG, what a terrific idea! 😎😎😎

You can play with one at lunch. 

👍

[Optimist]

Years ago I was working at a remote mine way up in the mountains. I managed to twist my ankle pretty bad. Every morning I would wrap some duct tape around a post, peel it off and then wrap my ankle with it. That helped keep it from getting worse, but it wasn't getting any better. An old guy who was working there tossed me a 2x2" stake to use as a cane. It helped a lot, especially going downhill. I rounded the corners off the top to make it easier to hold. It really saved my bacon on the long hike down the mountain to the airstrip. It was super handy for testing how steady rocks were before leaping down onto them.

I wanted to take it home as a souvenir, but when it started to look like the bush plane was getting crowded I tossed it to the side.

[Optimist]

My uncle had a hiking stick with a little saddle shaped part on top he used as a monopod for his Freedom Arms in .454 Casull. I remember him hitting targets maybe the size of a dinner plate at 200 yards with it. (This was a long time ago, my memory is fuzzy, but I think that was the distance and size of the target.)

[majorhavoc]

My uncle had a hiking stick with a little saddle shaped part on top he used as a monopod for his Freedom Arms in .454 Casull. I remember him hitting targets maybe the size of a dinner plate at 200 yards with it. (This was a long time ago, my memory is fuzzy, but I think that was the distance and size of the target.)

Hickock45 could probably do that offhand. 

[Optimist]

Hickock45 could probably do that offhand. 

You know, I wouldn't put it past him. As a ~12 year old pre-youtube my mind was blown that anyone could hit a target at that distance with a handgun.

Somewhat on topic I've been thinking about checking out a used sporting goods store for collapsible ski poles. Usually I use ski poles when breaking trail for snowshoeing, but after the trail is in I don't bother. Sometimes I fall even with a trail and a pole can really help getting back up when flopping around in the deep snow.

[12_Gauge_Chimp]

I've got one of those shooting sticks with the little "V" shaped gun rests on it.

I had bought it when my oldest nephew was younger and wanting me to teach him how to shoot a rifle, but we never got around to it. So now the stick just sits in a corner of my bedroom not being used.

I never even thought about using it as a walking stick. I figured the collapsible part would fail if too much pressure was applied to it.

[flybynight]

My uncle had a hiking stick with a little saddle shaped part on top he used as a monopod for his Freedom Arms in .454 Casull. I remember him hitting targets maybe the size of a dinner plate at 200 yards with it. (This was a long time ago, my memory is fuzzy, but I think that was the distance and size of the target.)

For several years ,while hunting I carried some cross sticks. Strapped  together they were a hiking staff

[Optimist]

I am going to have to get more serious about researching the collapsible snowshoeing poles. From my limited reading it sounds like the ones that fold in half are lighter but not as adjustable while the ones that telescope are more adjustable but heavier.

It would be nice to get some I can hang from a belt as I always seem to be breaking trail somewhere and poles are great for that but then when I get back on my trail I don't need them anymore.

The Internet has gotten really bad about finding decent info with a quick google search though. So many fake review sites advertising cheap Chinese junk, while on the other had sometimes those Chinese products are actually pretty good and the same exact thing as a high-end product without the markup from a brand name slapped on them.