Trekking Poles – Lightweight 7075 Aluminum Hiking Poles

For a budget price you get a pair of 7075 aluminum poles with flip locks, cork-composite grips, padded straps, and a full set of swappable baskets and tips, adjustable across a 24.5 to 54 inch range that fits nearly anyone and doubles as support for a trekking-pole shelter. For weekend hiking or a first season of poles, they cover the function of poles costing three times as much. The compromise is hardware and mass. At 550 grams a pair they are heavy; comparable carbon poles run roughly a third lighter, and you feel that across thousands of arm swings a day. The flip-lock mechanisms are the part that fails, as the tensioning screws work loose, the cam levers get brittle in cold, and grit in the lower sections makes them slip under load. Carry the hex key. For a thru-hike, buy poles with metal lock hardware.