Last Year | Not Yet Reviewed | Accessories

The popular twist mechanism can be both an unobtrusive and an immensely frustrating method of securing the length of poles. When moist or dirty the expander in the mechanism can fail to grip and will either lock shut or open, leaving you with a pair of poles that either won’t secure or won’t release. Worse still, the adjustment can even ...

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Pacerpole 3-section Carbon (2013)

£87.00

Even the field of trekking poles is subject to some wild and dynamic thought. The Pacerpole 3-section Carbon is a prime example of this. Boasting an ergonomically shaped handle that forcibly alters your angle of grip, these poles aim to improve a number of aspects of the way you walk. In Pacerpole’s own words, “You need to reinforce your muscles’ ...

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Black Diamond Ultra Mountain FL (2013)

£119.00

In the same style as the Leki Microstick Carbons, the Black Diamond Ultra Mountain FLs use an internal plastic-coated tensioning cord with a folding design, which Black Diamond has branded ‘Z-Pole’. Unlike the Lekis, however, they come not only with a sprung pin, but also with an external clip fastener to adjust and secure the overall length of the three ...

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Leki MicroStick Carbon (2013)

£125.00

For ease of use and clarity of design, the Leki MicroStick Carbon is a top choice. The slender 3-section poles collapse side by side to an eminently stowable size, while clicking them into their full length is an efficient and pleasing process. The lower two sections are joined by a plastic-coated inner tensioning cord. Once slotted into one another the ...

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Mountain King Supertrekker Compact (2013)

£60.00

An on/off switch for an in-built shock absorber sounds complicated and temperamental. Luckily it isn’t. The Mountain King Supertrekker Compact’s stand-out feature is turned on as standard. Deactivating it is as simple as tightening the twist mechanism of the middle pole a quarter of a turn beyond the locked position. This means that you can choose a cushioned effect (think ...

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Fizan Compact (2013)

£60.00

The weight (316g) is the big thing here. The Fizan Compacts are the slightest poles in our test and they should appeal to anyone keen to save every gram they can on the hill. The good news is that they offer this weight rating without appearing to sacrifice comfort or strength. This is achieved through an aluminium alloy construction and ...

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ViewRanger (2012)

£10.00

The ViewRanger app turns your smartphone into a GPS navigator for considerably less cash than a dedicated GPS receiver. Available for most Apple, Android and Symbian operating systems, the app is free to download and includes unlimited access to web maps and satellite photos from Bing and OpenStreetMap. These maps can be used with your smartphone’s GPS receiver for real-time ...

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TrackLogs (2012)

£12.00

TrackLogs mapping is supplied in CD-ROM format – there’s no direct download option. However, what you can do online is order a customised 1:25,000 or 1:50,000 map centred around your choice of location and choose the size of the area covered. Prices for these start from £12 for a 60x60km 1:50,000 map. There are also digital versions of standard 1:25,000 ...

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Mapyx Quo (2012)

£1.10

The basic Mapyx Quo software is downloadable direct from the firm’s website at no charge. Once you have this installed on your PC, you just pay for the mapping that you need as and when you need it. £1.10 gets you a 40x40km square of 1:50,000 mapping, with prices increasing for 1:25,000 or larger areas. A free 1:1,000,000 map is ...

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Anquet Maps Mac (2012)

£13.99

This software has been created specifically for use with a Mac and an iPhone. The iPhone app is £13.99, and with the free Mac software downloaded you can select your own customised area of mapping, pay for it (the National Parks package at 1:50,000 is £15, for example) and transfer it to your iPhone. This software is Mac-only, but if ...

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Garmin GB Discoverer Regional Series (2012)

£80.00

To address the obvious, this is not a cheap option. 1:50,000 mapping of all the UK National Parks will set you back £80, while a map of the entire UK at the same scale is a steep £200. But you’re not just purchasing the software – you’re buying into a system. The mapping has been designed for use specifically with ...

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Memory-Map (2012)

£25.00

Memory-Map’s software can be installed on your computer via direct download or by purchasing a CD-ROM complete with map credits. It’s only PC-compatible, which is frustrating for Mac users. Alternatively, install the Memory-Map App straight to your GPS-enabled smartphone. All that’s required then is to simply purchase mapping by the square, tailoring the area covered to your needs. The app ...