REI Co-op  Walker Power Lock Staff - Single

My wife bought this walker mostly because of the comfort of the handle/grip. She likes the cane type grip and feels it is a better match to her hand. The first trip out, however, the locking mechanism on the pole would not support any weight she put on it and collapsed several times during the first 2 hikes we took. I ended up giving her one of my traverse poles to use and she returned this pole when we got home. I would not recommend getting this pole.

The people who report the locking mechanism did not work probably did not take the trouble to tighten the clamps slightly with a screwdriver. Once set correctly (even Lekis require some tightening of the clamps), they are rock solid, easy to use. I weigh 180, hike hard in rough country, and sometimes lean heavily on the stick. No slippage. I have a painful hip, and have tried using regular hiking sticks singly or in pairs. This stick works better. With hiking sticks, I often find that I use the sticks at a half-cadence -- that is, planting each side every other step, so my hands are moving at half the pace of my stride, in part because it isn't possible to coordinate the pole plant on both sides at full speed in rough terrain. This Walker stick, because it is short, light, and has a t-handle with just enough of a thumb and forefinger grip, is easy to plant every step, opposite to the bad leg, even when moving quite fast. The wrist strap keeps the stick vertical with minimal grip effort. It will of course occasionally get pushed out of position by a bush, but 95% of the time I can keep it on cadence. This makes it more helpful in unloading the painful than a stick, at least for me. I was surprised by the short height, but it works perfectly. At 5'9", I adjust between 90 and 95, and it seems just the right length to provide support with minimum arm muscle effort. It's also a bargain, and mine has held up well with quite a few miles on it.

I have had this Cork handled model but the cork hand-grip tips kept snapping off, I would re-glue with GOOP but it would break again. All else is good to go.

So I bought this item for a hiking trip to the Dolomites and a couple of weeks on the Camino. When I brought it home from the store, I had the same problem that's been described by others here.. the bottom segment wouldn't hold my full weight. I took a philips screwdriver and kept tightening the screw on the bottom clamp until it held my weight. It does what I want now. It wouldn't be bad if REI would provide a stronger clamp BUT this does work.

I took this to hike the Torres del Paine trail. Day 1, the powerlock was not effective and did not support me well . Within hours it broke at the powerlock and the problem is that the plastic lock itself covers half the barrel circumference . I made it work by jamming a hard plastic tie inside the barrel for the rest of the hike. I cannot recommend this item. In retrospect two sturdy walking poles may improve ones hiking performance.

Purchased the walking stick over a year ago use it daily, it works for me. I recently purchased a second stick and gave it to my brother who is recovering from major surgery. Upon his receiving this stick he has retired the cane given to him at Virgina Mason Hospital and has gone entirely to REI Power Lock Staff.

I've used this every day because of knee issues. I like it and it is adjustable, which is a plus. The wrist strap is very useful but could be a bit longer and made out of more rigid material.