Black Diamond Distance Carbon Z
Carbon, Z-fold, fixed length, ~290 g/pair
4.0 on Amazon
So light and packable you actually carry them on the days you were not sure you needed them — they are fixed-length, so you must buy the right size, and carbon fails suddenly rather than gradually.
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Do not buy this if: Heavy trekkers or anyone hard on kit. Snapping a pole above Thorong Phedi is a bad day.
Not every route needs it. These are the ones where our guides would put it on your list.
Everything else we recommend in trekking poles, including the ones we think suit a different trekker.
Best overallBlack Diamond Pursuit Adjustable Trekking Poles
Aluminium bends where carbon shatters, and a bent pole still walks you down; you carry about 100 g more per pair than carbon for that insurance, and cork grips beat foam once your hands sweat.
Trekking poles, rented in Thamel
Some people find poles transform a descent and others find them an irritation to be carried; a dollar a day answers that question before you spend a hundred on your own.
Rental shops in Kathmandu and Pokhara carry this — about usd 1 per day per pair. We take nothing from that.
