I was introduced to trekking poles in Germany and Austria and haven’t gone hiking without them since. I recently read an article about them and how a lot of trekkers are made fun of for using them and I have to admit that I get comments here in the neighborhood about going skiing every time we’re headed out into the woods. In my opinion they’re one of the essential pieces of equipment. They increase your pace, keep the spider webs and other critters at a distance, have come in handy with rattlesnakes that ended up getting roasted (you can’t beat snake for dinner), and help with my back problems when going up or down rough terrain. Lately I’ve found another use in the woods and lakes around our neighborhood, picking up trash. We leave the house with a trash bag and the boy and I share a couple of poles and pick up the trash fisherman leave around. Another great use is collecting fishing tackle from the lakes and canals in Savannah and I’ve claimed at least a hundred bucks in lures, hooks, sinkers, and float. I can’t believe how many really expensive lures and fly’s are left in the water.
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