Turn Your Trekking Poles into Snowshoe Poles

 Hiking in the winter can be exhilarating and give you a whole new view of your favorite trails. Hiking in the snow is quite different, however, then hiking on dry land conditions. Hiking sticks provide critical support like adding stability and preventing a slip or fall. Using trekking poles with snowshoe baskets in the winter gives you the same benefit and helps you glide across snowy terrain a little easier.

Benefits of Snow Baskets on Trekking Poles

Snow baskets are a must have any time you are hiking on snowy terrain. These large powder baskets keep you afloat just like snowshoes keep the deep winter snow from swallowing you up. If you do take a spill in the snow, your pole can help you right yourself quickly. Using a set of trekking poles with interchangeable accessories like snow baskets, mud baskets, boots and tips allows you to adapt your hiking poles to any environment. 

You gain the most benefit from a good set of trekking poles that come with interchangeable accessories.  You may see some snowshoe poles that come with snow baskets although they may be designed with just two collapsible sections. A three-section collapsible pole is less cumbersome to pack and carry when not in use.

Cascade Mountain Tech Trekking Poles Come with Snow Baskets

Cascade Mountain Tech offers one of the widest selections of high-quality trekking poles that come with interchangeable baskets for use in a variety of terrains and weather conditions. Our 3K carbon fiber trekking pole features a quick locking mechanism for easy height adjustment, is durable and super lightweight. Replacement pole sections and parts are available to save you money and all trekking poles come with a one-year manufacturer’s warranty. 

Cascade Mountain Tech helps you to enjoy the outdoors all year round, safely and with comfortable, high-quality gear.  We offer a wide selection of durable camping and hiking gear including lightweight, foldable camping chairs, camp bedding, coolers, accessories and more. Contact us to learn more about staying safe when hiking in the winter with quality hiking gear such as trekking poles with snow baskets.

5 Important Tips for Hiking in the Winter

 Hiking in the winter can be fun, although hikers should venture out into a winter wonderland with both the beauty of snow-covered trees and the challenges of cold-weather hiking in mind. There does not have to be deep snow on the ground in the middle of winter for cold weather to be a real threat and danger to hikers. To have a more pleasant cold-weather hike, follow these most important tips for maximum enjoyment and safety. 

1) Wear and Pack Proper Cold-Weather Clothing and Gear

You should always dress in multiple layers when hiking in the winter, with your base layer being a wicking fabric that will pull sweat away from the skin and help to keep you dry. You will still sweat when hiking in the winter and moisture that cannot escape can freeze and cause hypothermia. Heat management is important because you want to stay dry and not sweat as wet clothes will make you feel cold. 

Follow the 3-layer principle of having at least 3 layers with your base layer in a wicking fabric, avoid cotton clothing as it takes a long time to dry when it gets wet and it can leave you feeling cold, wet and miserable. This first layer transports moisture away from your skin and helps to regulate your body temperature to keep your base layer dry. 

The mid-layer should have insulating properties like fleece or a down jacket.  Make sure the top-layer provides protection against wind and rain like a light windbreaker or a water-resistant outer shell.  Always pack some emergency jackets and layers in case some layers get wet. 

Always wear a hat when outdoors in the winter, as you lose a lot of precious body heat when you do not keep your head covered.  While it is important to keep your head warm, it is critical to protect your feet when hiking in the snow.  Make sure that your hiking boots have sufficient insulation and are rated for -40°F.  Some good wool socks should help to keep your feet dry and be sure to pack an extra pair. Cover your mouth, nose and ears and use hand warmers and toe warmers to keep your digits toasty especially if you frequently have cold hands and feet. 

2) Keep Your Water Warm

You can boil your water in the morning, put it in a water bottle with a Koozie or foam sleeve wrapped around it to take with you on your hike.  Keeping your sealed water bottle inside your jacket should keep it from freezing.

3) Break Trail with Caution 

When you are the first person on the trail after a snowfall, creating a path through the snow is called breaking trail. You should have an idea of how much snow is on the trail before you set out to hike and keep in mind that forging through deep snow can slow you down.  Make sure you have the proper footwear accessories like snowshoes and trekking poles with snow baskets. 

4) Protection – Eyes and Skin

Just because it is not summertime, don’t think the sun’s rays cannot be harmful. Do not forget to pack the sunscreen as the sun’s glare reflects off of the shiny white snow. You should also protect your eyes from the sun and the wind, with a good pair of sunglasses or goggles. 

5) Prepare for Shorter Days and Colder Nights

Keep in mind that the days are shorter and night fall will be upon you much quicker than in the summer months. Always be aware of the usable daylight hours and carry a flashlight or headlamp with extra batteries. If camping overnight in the winter, warm camp bedding is critical. Always use a sleeping pad under your sleeping bag and go with a mummy sleeping bag rated for 10° colder than what you expect needing. 

Be sure to pack according to your trip specifics and how long you will be gone. Follow these tips for a safer hike in winter months, always pack your essential emergency kits and be sure to let someone know where you are hiking and when you plan to return.

Cascade Mountain Tech for All Your Camping Gear 

Cascade Mountain Tech cares about your safety when hiking anytime of the year.  We offer camp bedding including mummy sleeping bags, sleeping pads and the Adventure Blanket.  We carry foldable, packable lightweight camping chairs made with quality materials for durability and a wide selection of hiking trekking poles and accessories. 

Cascade Mountain Tech offers high-quality hiking and camping gear built to last in any season. We believe in helping everyone to achieve outdoor adventure. Contact us with any questions about your hiking gear for more information on how to stay safe when hiking in the winter.

How to Find the Best Camping Chair for Your Trip

 It is not too late to get another camping trip in, as long as you pack enough gear to keep you warm on a chilly night like a quality mummy sleeping bag and plenty of warm clothes. If the overnight temperature is a little too chilly for you, maybe you just want to take a day trip hiking part of your favorite trail. Whether you are planning for a short day trip outing or an overnight adventure, you are going to need a place to sit down and relax and take a load off. Also, try our adventure pack blanket for extra warmth.

One thing you do not want to forget are comfortable camping chairs so you can stop to take in a beautiful view, give your muscles a rest or relax around a nice, warm fire.  When planning for your next camping or hiking trip, remember to pack some lightweight, comfortable camping chairs to enjoy your outing to the fullest. 

Choosing the Camping Chairs Fit for Your Outing

With so many choices of portable camping chairs, you can choose the chairs with the right style and features to suit your outing.  If you are hiking the trails and weight is an issue, pack light with lightweight, foldable, backpacking camping chairs.  If you are going to be camping on the beach or somewhere in the sand, you want to get a camping chair with sand feet so you do not keep sinking into the sand.  

Cascade Mountain Tech offers some great quality, lightweight camp chairs perfect for backpacking or camping in any environment.  Known for high quality products, Cascade Mountain Tech offers a wide selection of lightweight camping chairs with many styles and features to choose from. 

Lightweight Backpacking Camp Chair - for the weight conscience backpacker, this collapsible chair weighs under 2.5 lbs., holds up to 250 lbs., and fits into a convenient carry case. 

Ultralight Packable High-Back Camp Chair – the perfect chair for many occasions, the high-back camp chair is comfortable, lightweight, and easily collapses to fit in a convenient carry case.  This chair weighs only 3 lbs., 4 oz. and holds up to 250 lbs. 

Low Profile Camp Chair – a low-profile chair is great for outdoor concerts, the beach or camping trips. With the carrying weight of 7 pounds, this is a nice chair to take from your car to your destination but isn’t something you want to go backpacking with. 

Ultralight Packable High-Back Camp Chair with Sand Feet – this lightweight and durable camp chair is perfect for the beach, outdoor concerts, camping trips and more. Weighing only 3 lbs. 4 oz., this comfortable, high-back chair is built with durable aluminum holding up to 250 pounds.

You can have confidence in the name Cascade Mountain Tech and the one-year manufacturer’s warranty that comes with every camp chair. Whether you need low-profile, high-back, or super lightweight, we’ve got the camping chairs for any outdoor adventure.  Check out all our products for quality camp bedding including mummy sleeping bags, a wide selection of hiking trekking poles, super coolers and more.

Cascade Mountain Tech has high quality, comfortable camping chairs, trekking poles and durable gear for any hiking or camping adventure.  Our quality gear is perfect for the experienced outdoor enthusiast or the beginning hiker. Contact us with any questions and to learn more about our lightweight, packable camping chairs.

How to Get the Most Benefit from Your Trekking Poles

 If you are somewhat new to hiking you may be wondering if it would benefit you to use a hiking stick or a pair of trekking poles. Even experienced hikers accustomed to hiking without trekking poles will be convinced of the benefits when they are used correctly. Unfortunately, many hikers on the trails may not be fully utilizing the features of their trekking poles to realize the maximum benefit provided. 

When used correctly, trekking poles significantly alleviate the strain to your legs and back, shifting weight load from your legs to your upper body. This takes a lot of strain off your knees and ankles and is especially beneficial when trekking downhill. The most obvious benefit of using trekking poles is the increased support and balance when crossing rugged terrain, streams and rivers or when carrying a heavy backpack.  

By using your arms during your hike you will burn more calories, use your core muscles and improve your workout. In order to realize all these benefits, trekking poles must be used correctly.

How to Use Trekking Poles Correctly

Using trekking poles properly will offer the right amount of support to you and alleviate unnecessary stress to your body. Using your trekking poles properly will alleviate strain on your body and should give you added endurance, allowing you to hike further than without the support of your poles. 

Here are a few tips to get the most benefit from your trekking poles:

1)  Properly adjust the pole to your height - a proper height adjustment is with the tip on the ground and your elbows at your side with your arms bent at a 90° angle. You will want to shorten the pole length to give more leverage when hiking uphill and lengthen your poles to support a downhill descent somewhere between 5 to 10 cm or whatever feels best and most comfortable for your needs. 

Cascade Mountain Tech offers a wide selection of hiking trekking poles with quick lock or twist lock to easily adjust your pole height.  We recommend using the markers on your pole to help recall the most comfortable height position. 

2) Correctly use the wrist straps - to properly use your wrist straps, insert your hand through the wrist strap so that the bottom of the strap is loosely and comfortably hugging the bottom of your wrist.  Incorrectly using the wrist straps is a common problem even for some experienced hikers. When used correctly, your wrist strap should provide support without needing a firm grip on the handle. 

3) Learn to swing your poles with a rhythm - swinging your arms naturally as you do when you walk is the best way to get in a natural swing cadence. Most people walk asymmetrically, the left arm comes forward when stepping with the right foot and vice versa. You’ll find that once you get into the rhythm you can use your trekking poles to actually propel you forward.

You might be surprised how much more ground you can cover when correctly using your hiking trekking poles. You may save enough time to take more breaks and enjoy the view.  Packing a foldable, lightweight camping chair will add to a comfortable hike and alleviate stress on your joints when you find a spot to rest. 

Cascade Mountain Tech offers high quality camping gear that will last, with a wide selection of hiking trekking poles in aluminum and carbon fiber, including ultralight carbon fiber and 3K carbon fiber for added durability.  Our lightweight camping chairs are durable with a sturdy base and come with a full one-year warranty. Contact us with any questions on getting the most from your trekking poles and for all of your hiking and camping needs.

How Do Trekking Poles Protect My Knees and Joints?

 Hiking is a popular recreational activity for both beginning and experienced hikers and provides many known health benefits. Hiking downhill, however, has been shown to increase the risk of injury and musculoskeletal pain.  Trekking poles are known to provide stability and balance when hiking on uneven terrain or especially when crossing streams and rivers.  

In addition to increased stability and balance, using trekking poles redistributes some of your weight load from your legs to your upper body which is extremely beneficial when walking downhill.  By transferring some weight off of your legs to your arms, shoulders and back, you significantly reduce lower body fatigue and the stress placed on your lower extremities. 

Trekking Poles Reduce Loading on the Joints

Several studies have been conducted to measure the effects of hiking with trekking poles such as the study documented by the National Library of Medicine, National Center for Biotechnology Information, Effects of Hiking Downhill Using Trekking Poles While Carrying External Loads. This study was aimed at examining the effectiveness of using trekking poles when hiking downhill, both with and without carrying an external load.

The study featured experienced fifteen male hikers and measured the net joint forces at the knee and ankle, without a backpack, with a day pack weighing 15% of body weight and with a large pack weighing 30% of body weight.  Results of the study showed that using trekking poles significantly reduced peak power absorption at the knee and ankle. The larger pack weight resulted in larger power generation at the hip. 

All conditions were tested with hikers aiming for a 90° bend at the elbow with pole length adjusted for the downhill slope.  The results of this study are consistent with others that show a reduced load to the lower body could decrease muscle injury and soreness. Trekking poles are especially helpful if you have several days of back-to-back hikes planned.

Cascade Mountain Tech Has the Trekking Pole for You

Cascade Mountain Tech offers a wide selection of trekking poles, manufactured with quality materials and subjected to rigorous quality audits and testing. We have the perfect set of trekking poles whether you are a beginner or an experienced hiker. You can choose from aluminum, or carbon fiber trekking poles including ultralight and 3K carbon fiber.  

We offer many trekking pole accessories such as replacement pole sections which are great when you only need to replace one section and do not have to purchase a new pole. Our tip accessories include rubber tips, boot tips, sand, mud and snow baskets. Padded adjustable wrist straps and cork or EVA grips provide added comfort and help you walk with a natural rhythm.

Cascade Mountain Tech is an industry leader offering high-quality camping and hiking gear including trekking poles, camping chairs, camp bedding, durable rotomolded coolers and more. We believe that outdoor adventure should be achievable to everyone. Contact us with any questions on choosing the right trekking pole for you and how to best use your trekking poles to alleviate joint stress and pain.