How to Select a Walking Stick

Walking sticks should be small enough that you can lift them.

You’re weary, woeful and about to collapse on the last leg of your hike when, behold, you see the perfect stick on the side of the path to help you complete your journey. A walking stick provides balance, support and helps immensely during steep uphill or downhill treks. You can select a walking stick that suits you fine with a few simple steps.

Things You'll Need

• Stick selection

Instructions

1. Test the stick’s strength. This means jamming it into the ground and leaning your entire body weight on it. If it snaps, it’s not the one for you.

2. Check its height. A walking stick should ideally be held at about shoulder height. You want a stick a tad taller than your shoulder, but not too much that it’s cumbersome.

3. Make sure it has a sturdy base. This means no cracked wood, missing chunks or uneven surface. You may simply flip the stick if one side is better as a base than the other.

4. Check for knobs, rough spots or other irritants that may make holding it more of a torture than a help.

5. Try to find a stick that is already broken off a tree. This way you don’t have to hike with a chainsaw in your backpack.

Tips & Warnings

• Store bought sticks have the advantage of being fancier but you also have to keep an eye on them.

• If your stick is one that’s going to stick around, peel the bark, sand it and adorn it with designs using a paint marker.

• Found sticks that can be disposed at the end of your hike make it easy.

• If you take a certain trail regularly, you may want to hide your walking stick near the trailhead so it’s always there for you and you don’t have to cart it around. Hide it well, however.

• Walking sticks are hot items for people to steal.