Leki Corklite Aluminum Trekking Poles, Red, 67-135cm

I purchased the Corklite poles because of the cam type adjustment system. My previous Leki Super Makalus were wonderful but became annoying in that they would not tighten all the time when adjusting the length (they have the twist to tighten system). I have never used poles other than Leki and have found it to be a very high quality product. So far I love the Corklite poles. Adjusting the length with the cams is quick and very positive and the mechanism has become so small that there is no danger of it hanging up on things like clothes and vegetation. Reviews of other brands of poles said that if you ever needed to tighten the cam adjustment a tool was necessary. This could be very inconvenient on the trail. The Corklite cams have a small knurled knob and would not require a tool to adjust. The cork hand grip is slightly smaller than the Makalus so if you have big hands this might be a factor. A number of reviewers were unhappy with the "skin" material of the handstrap. My initial response to the material is that it is smooth and easy on the hands and would not be likely to cause a blister even with hard use. It will be interesting to see if it wears as well as the older heavier strap material. All in all, the Corklite poles have the quality, stability and comfort that I have enjoyed with the Super Makalus but a greatly improved adjustment system.

These are fantastic. I bought them for my thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail (May-Sept 2015) and they were magical. They stood up to day after day of abuse for almost 4 months. They're light, strong, and have a comfortable grip. One thing I will say is that I didn't feel the cork grip added anything extra. I think I would have been fine without it. So if there is a cheaper option without the cork handle I would have probably done that.The only negative thing I have to say is that towards the end of the hike both poles became extremely hard to collapse down. It was to the point where after my hike I had to mail them home because I couldn't take them on the flight unless they were collapsed. I think they got stuck because of all the dirt and small rocks that are thrown in the air. I will reach out to Leki and see if I can get them fixed. That being said, in my eyes they served their purpose well and having them fixed at this point would just be the icing on the cake.

I have been using these poles for 4 years now and they are very easy to use and pack down very small when not in use. These are very sturdy and using them in mountainous terrain they have held up well. Where they fall flat are the handles. They are to narrow and NOT comfortable. The half cork half plastic grips cause wear points on my hands and they can cause blisters. I have smallish hands but these handles are still to narrow to be comfortable. If there was a way to replace the handles these poles would then get 5 stars but the handles really degrade the whole experience and I will be looking for new options before I go up Mt. Whittney again.

These are great hiking poles. They are very lightweight yet strong, and they are easy to adjust to the proper height. The grip is quite comfortable and the strap is very soft and kind to the wrists. I've taken them on a number hikes in some pretty tough and rocky terrain and they've held up very well, and I've had no issues with them staying at the correct height. I can easily recommend these.

The poles were advertised on Amazon as Leki Corklite. What I received had a sticker on the cardboard backing identifying the poles as Corklite; however, on the side of each pole in large letters read Khumbu Lite. The Khumbu Lite is a much cheaper set of Leki trekking poles. In fact Amazon advertises Khumbu Like pole with DSS at $90.20. The poles received didn’t even have the DSS shock absorbing feature. Very cheap substitution.