O Lay Hee Hoo
When I was in my teens and twenties and thirties I used to watch those guys with their fancy walking staffs, on the same forest trails as myself, and wonder why? Too much Tolkien? See any Dragons about, Mate? The REI group, space blankets, freeze dried food packets, and women companions who did not shave under their arm pits.
A lot of those guys watched Star Trek and belonged to the Society For Creative Anacrochism. (sic)
To me, a staff was like a Pith helmet, useful but few really worked them out and had any business with one. I remember being in Joshua Tree National Monument (It's a National Park now) climbing a mountain on a permanent trail.
This was before the skateboarders in neon day-glow tights had the highway blocked, berfore the Quartz Crystal Crowd and all the climbers going over the same steps, every handhold published in a book. Basically, it was the high desert before too many people had found it.
I met two hikers on the trail, and one had a walking staff. They stared at me warily. I'm not sure why. I don't remember if I was armed or not, which was illegal, or maybe it was just the look in my eye and the Panama campaign hat a Marine had given me. I was a desert Loon.
They set out on the trail and I bounded across country to the summit. When they arrived, there I was, sitting quietly, meditatively, as if I'd been there for hours. Smartass.
I'm older now, and I'm wondering if a staff might spare the busted disks in my back. It won't be a carbon fiber aircraft aluminum take down staff with compartments for matches, a compass, knife, first aide, and a microwave dish that cooks the bacon in camp before you arise in the morning. I did see some of those for sale as I researched walking staffs this afternoon. (except for the bacon) And I saw many hand carved staffs worth anything from 30 to 300 bucks. But I did not see much data on staffs other than length and where to find Diamond Willow.
Diamond Willow is protected in Montana, and might be protected in all the lower 48. I had some- my first walking stick experience. It was given to me, and I learned my first lesson about walking sticks; if you save portions of the bark and areas of permanent injury on the stick, you will add beauty and character. I didn't know that and carved down to heart wood. Oh well. There weren't any diamonds on the wood anyway. They probably came from a species of willow and in an area that contained true Diamond Willow, but this wasn't it. It turns out Diamond Willow is actually a number of fungi species injuring many different kinds of Willow, leaving marks that are attractive when re-finished.
I'm not sure that was understood when 'Diamond Willow' was protected. We're actually protecting fungal injury to willow plants. And if left alone and uncut, the inner beauty will never be seen by man or beast, but instead a ugly twisted lichen encrusted plant in a swamp.
I had a choice of cutting my willow to fit me or give my oldest son a stick. He got the stick. What was left was too thick for me and after refinishing I gave it to a friend.
So I haven't actually tried a walking stick yet. I have about ten pieces of timber around the house now, cut from Chokecherry. It's tough stuff and I hope it works. My wife is thrilled by the mess. She walks by the pile every night when she gets home.
"Why don't you strip the floor, and refinish that?" She asked, "That's wood, too."
Obviously, she has little artistic sensibility and working knowledge of the outdoors. A ski-pole girl.
So, I have some debarked chokecherry branches. I notice the balance can be changed by removing material and in how the wood was initially cut. A bottom heavy balance would be no good for walking long distance, as you must swing more weight upwards with each stride, but it seems to hover over the ground and plants well. I wonder if someone more 'stove-in' than myself, who does not hike far, would be better off with this type of balance? I'm heading for the fat end on top, bottom end skinny. This swings easier but you must take more care in putting the tip down firmly if you intend to put weight on the staff, while climbing, for instance.
One of my future staffs seems to balance well right in the middle. Is this of martial arts usefullness? I'd like to know. There are many here, such as Yvsa, who have experience with walking sticks- please let me know what you've found. I realize Rusty is master of the weighted cane, but I intend to actually walk and not just stave in heads or car doors; though a staff could do those things as well.
I see there is the possibility of having more than one hand hold on the staff for different purposes.
In my search I came across people using pool cues for walking sticks. That next to the ski pole or high tech rod leaves me flat.
No, no hi tech for me. I'm going to be one of those Forest Loons now, with a khukuri by my side, perhaps a 41 mag, and a walking stick.
And I do own a Pith Hemet. You just never know when you're going to run into one of those Goddurned Dragons.
munk
When I was in my teens and twenties and thirties I used to watch those guys with their fancy walking staffs, on the same forest trails as myself, and wonder why? Too much Tolkien? See any Dragons about, Mate? The REI group, space blankets, freeze dried food packets, and women companions who did not shave under their arm pits.
A lot of those guys watched Star Trek and belonged to the Society For Creative Anacrochism. (sic)
To me, a staff was like a Pith helmet, useful but few really worked them out and had any business with one. I remember being in Joshua Tree National Monument (It's a National Park now) climbing a mountain on a permanent trail.
This was before the skateboarders in neon day-glow tights had the highway blocked, berfore the Quartz Crystal Crowd and all the climbers going over the same steps, every handhold published in a book. Basically, it was the high desert before too many people had found it.
I met two hikers on the trail, and one had a walking staff. They stared at me warily. I'm not sure why. I don't remember if I was armed or not, which was illegal, or maybe it was just the look in my eye and the Panama campaign hat a Marine had given me. I was a desert Loon.
They set out on the trail and I bounded across country to the summit. When they arrived, there I was, sitting quietly, meditatively, as if I'd been there for hours. Smartass.
I'm older now, and I'm wondering if a staff might spare the busted disks in my back. It won't be a carbon fiber aircraft aluminum take down staff with compartments for matches, a compass, knife, first aide, and a microwave dish that cooks the bacon in camp before you arise in the morning. I did see some of those for sale as I researched walking staffs this afternoon. (except for the bacon) And I saw many hand carved staffs worth anything from 30 to 300 bucks. But I did not see much data on staffs other than length and where to find Diamond Willow.
Diamond Willow is protected in Montana, and might be protected in all the lower 48. I had some- my first walking stick experience. It was given to me, and I learned my first lesson about walking sticks; if you save portions of the bark and areas of permanent injury on the stick, you will add beauty and character. I didn't know that and carved down to heart wood. Oh well. There weren't any diamonds on the wood anyway. They probably came from a species of willow and in an area that contained true Diamond Willow, but this wasn't it. It turns out Diamond Willow is actually a number of fungi species injuring many different kinds of Willow, leaving marks that are attractive when re-finished.
I'm not sure that was understood when 'Diamond Willow' was protected. We're actually protecting fungal injury to willow plants. And if left alone and uncut, the inner beauty will never be seen by man or beast, but instead a ugly twisted lichen encrusted plant in a swamp.
I had a choice of cutting my willow to fit me or give my oldest son a stick. He got the stick. What was left was too thick for me and after refinishing I gave it to a friend.
So I haven't actually tried a walking stick yet. I have about ten pieces of timber around the house now, cut from Chokecherry. It's tough stuff and I hope it works. My wife is thrilled by the mess. She walks by the pile every night when she gets home.
"Why don't you strip the floor, and refinish that?" She asked, "That's wood, too."
Obviously, she has little artistic sensibility and working knowledge of the outdoors. A ski-pole girl.
So, I have some debarked chokecherry branches. I notice the balance can be changed by removing material and in how the wood was initially cut. A bottom heavy balance would be no good for walking long distance, as you must swing more weight upwards with each stride, but it seems to hover over the ground and plants well. I wonder if someone more 'stove-in' than myself, who does not hike far, would be better off with this type of balance? I'm heading for the fat end on top, bottom end skinny. This swings easier but you must take more care in putting the tip down firmly if you intend to put weight on the staff, while climbing, for instance.
One of my future staffs seems to balance well right in the middle. Is this of martial arts usefullness? I'd like to know. There are many here, such as Yvsa, who have experience with walking sticks- please let me know what you've found. I realize Rusty is master of the weighted cane, but I intend to actually walk and not just stave in heads or car doors; though a staff could do those things as well.
I see there is the possibility of having more than one hand hold on the staff for different purposes.
In my search I came across people using pool cues for walking sticks. That next to the ski pole or high tech rod leaves me flat.
No, no hi tech for me. I'm going to be one of those Forest Loons now, with a khukuri by my side, perhaps a 41 mag, and a walking stick.
And I do own a Pith Hemet. You just never know when you're going to run into one of those Goddurned Dragons.
munk
