2) Trekking Pole Background and Experience

Trekking poles have been a staple in my outdoor gear kit since about 1994. I have no doubts that their constant use in the past 10 years has allowed me to continue to backpack and climb relatively pain free. I played football as a lineman in college, and my knees had seen their share of abuse by the time I reached my mid-20s. In fact, during the first couple years after college, backpacking usually involved a considerable degree of pain. But after years of pole use, regular trail time, and a re-training of leg muscles, my knees now feel as good as they did when I was 18. I rarely have pain or stiffness, and climbing and backpacking poses few problems to my legs. This, despite having no anterior cruciate ligament in my right knee. Again, I largely credit trekking poles for this turnaround.

Backpacking makes very little use of upper body strength. All the years of weightlifting and upper body strength training did nothing for me on the trail. In fact, it was counter-productive as it added considerable weight that had to be pushed up the trails with only my legs. Trekking poles allowed me to utilize my upper body strength and take some of the burden off my knees and legs. This has added hours to my hiking days, miles to my trails, and certainly relief to my joints.

I have come to use trekking poles on just about every dayhike, certainly on every backpacking trip, on climbs, and for skiing. I now rely on them for my shelter pole (GoLite Hex 3), adding to their utility.

I have previously used Black Diamond poles and have become quite a fan of the FlickLock mechanism. The Terra CF poles claim a slightly changed FlickLock, and I'm eager to find out if they've improved this already stellar mechanism.

3) Black Diamond Terra CF Initial Report

Initial Report

The Terra CF trekking poles are Black Diamond's top-of-the-line product in this category. Their website includes testimonials and a downloadable manual in PDF format. The instruction manual is the same as the one that the Terra CFs ship with. While it's 10 pages long, most of it (7 pages) is the same information in languages other than English. It includes basic information on how to use the Flicklock mechanism, the Binary adjustment, cleaning, inspection, care and storage. Interestingly, the first thing I wanted to do was adjust the wrist strap, but alas, there were no instructions for that.

According to Black Diamond, the Terra CFs are "lightweight yet packed full of performance features", include "redesigned Binary and FlickLock adjustments for zero-slip on/off reliability", and the "unique grip offers better downhill palming and control". The poles are part of the Superlight Series made for "weight-conscious users who want strong, ultralight poles with a streamlined feel".

And if that doesn't give you enough information, they offer this:

"Featuring a carbon fiber midsection, the Terra CF is our top-of-line performance trekking pole. A 15º corrective angle, a non-slip foam grip with lower extension and a unique hybrid top knob grip all allow for increased downhill grip and control. A redesigned Binary adjustment is fast and simple to adjust while the time tested FlickLock adjustment has a newly engineered lever that is easier to flick open or closed. The Terra CF is the right pole for those in search of a lightweight, high performance trekking pole packed with comfortable and essential features."

Unfortunately, nowhere in the description or manual do they include anything about the carbon fiber mid-section. I was really looking forward to this, and am even more interested now, as the benefits are a mystery to me as I begin this test series. Carbon fiber is generally hailed in trekking pole use for it's lightness and "clang" dampening characteristics. The Terra CF's, however, are just as heavy as most trekking poles on the market, and at least in my initial playing around, are just as noisy.

I wrote a previous review on Black Diamond trekking poles for BackpackGearTest.org found here. One of the first things I did with the Terra CF's was to weigh them to see how much lighter they were than the Advance trekking poles that are a few years old. To my surprise, despite being part of the "Superlight Series", they were just 0.1 oz (3 gm) lighter per pole. When weighing the pieces of each pole separately, it turned out that the carbon fiber section is indeed lighter than its aluminum counterpart [1.8 oz vs 2.2 oz (51 gm vs 62 gm)], but the top handle section adds most of the weight savings back with a bigger handle, extended foam grip, and more substantial wrist wrap. With 12-16 oz (340-450 gm) poles becoming more common in the trekking pole market, the 19.8 oz. (561 gm) Terra CF's are not the lightest poles around. Finding out why carbon fiber is used in these poles and what benefits it has over aluminum will be one of the goals of my testing.

Weight is not the only thing that matters in a pair of trekking poles, however, and in features the Terra CF is certainly rich. It includes two excellent adjustment mechanisms that really make these poles a pleasure to adjust.

The FlickLock mechanism is a fantastic design in my opinion. In the past, this quick opening cam has never posed a problem. A yearly adjustment of each cam with a screwdriver determines how tightly the cam squeezes and how much force is needed to open and close the FlickLock. Proper compression is simple to determine and stays secure once set. I look forward to using this design more in the Terra CFs and to find out if it as reliable as the earlier versions.

The Binary is a new mechanism to me, and just as solid from my initial use. While most three-section poles on the market today adjust for length at both the bottom and top shafts, the Terra CFs (and all Black Diamond poles that feature the Binary mechanism) have a fixed length bottom shaft once extended and all incremental length adjustments are made at the FlickLock joint between the middle and upper shaft. This takes some of the guessing out of how long to make each section to get the desired length, and for me, makes the centimeter markings much more meaningful.

The grips are another notable feature of the Terra CFs. They sport a familiar foam grip handle, with a foam extension down the shaft - another feature that seems to be common in poles these days. Where they differ is in the top. There is a broad, shaped oval of cork at the top of the handle. This allows the pole to be held from above with the cork knob in the palm of my hand. This is presumably for control on downhill use, and for that I can see it being very comfortable. I look forward to trying this out.

The shafts (with the exception of the carbon fiber mid-section) are typical of most trekking poles. I am very much interested in the performance characteristics of the carbon fiber. At this point I'm at a bit of a loss as to why this material was chosen over aluminum, and I hope to find out. As far as I know, almost all carbon fiber trekking poles on the market are entirely made out of carbon fiber. This is the first model I know of that is a hybrid of aluminum and carbon fiber and I'm interested in how the two interact.

The pole ends are also pretty typical for modern trekking poles. Two black points taper into what appears to be a tungsten tip for durability. Interestingly, no protective pole caps are included. Another noteworthy feature of the tips is that they fit perfectly into GoLite's trekking pole adapter for use as a support in shelters like the Hex 3. All trekking poles I've used in this fashion work, but there is invariably a little sloppiness. The Terra CFs fit as though they were made for this purpose - something I truly appreciate as I rely on this for a sturdy pitch.

Finally, the last feature is the 15 degree forward angle. To be honest, if the literature hadn't mentioned it I wouldn't even have known it was there. As it is, I'm not really sure if there is a bend in the poles or the grip just juts out towards the top. My older Advance trekking poles from Black Diamond have a much more significant forward bend, and they claim the same 15 degrees. I have found trekking poles with the 15 degree angle slightly more comfortable as they require a bit less wrist pronation. I don't really care if it's exactly 15 degrees or not, I just want them to perform and I will definitely report on whether they "behave" like they have the bend or not.

Test Plan

I will use Terra CF poles in the summer and early fall here in the Northwest. I will be using them in snowy conditions right away, as I have a trip planned with a number of remaining snowfields, but most use will be on trails and rock in the sub-alpine and alpine areas of the Cascade Range. Typical trips range from 1500 feet (460 meters) on valley trails to over 12,000 feet (3650 meters) on some volcano climbs. Temperatures will likely range from the mid 30s F (1-4 C) to the mid 90s F (33-36 C).

They will go on every trip with me - dayhikes, backpacking trips, climbs, and hopefully early fall skiing - as well as be used as my shelter support in a GoLite Hex 3.

Questions I Will Answer During Testing

1) Do the poles have the same toughness and build quality of the previous Black Diamond poles I've used?
2) Does the use of a carbon fiber midsection effectively reduce "clanging" and vibrations?
3) Does carbon fiber and aluminum work well together? I have not seen or heard of many hybrid poles, but by featuring a carbon fiber midsection, the Terra CFs use both.
4) Does the new grip improve comfort and use? Is the palm top of the grip too bulky? Effective?
5) Does the nonslip foam extended grip increase versatility? Is it useful for quick terrain changes where a full-on length adjustment isn't warranted, but a shorter pole is temporarily desired?
6) Does the Binary lower pole adjustment mechanism work as well as the bomber FlickLock mechanism?
7) Has the slight change to the FlickLock mechanism improved it? Weakened it?
8) Does the paint chip and peel on the Terra CFs? While there are obvious cosmetic reasons to note this, I've found that chipping paint can affect a pole's ability to smoothly adjust as well.
9) How do the Terra CF poles feel? How is "swing weight"? Do they stash quickly and easily? Can they handle multiple tasks on a trip (i.e. go from trekking poles to shelter poles to climbing poles to ski poles all in one trip) and handle them well?
10) Are they an effective shelter support?

4) Tester Background and Contact Information

Name: Curt Peterson
Age: 33
Gender: Male
Height: 6'3" (1.91 m)
Weight: 270 (122 kg)
Email address: curt<at>boopants<dot>com
Location: North Bend, Washington, USA

I live in the Cascade foothills, just 20 miles (32 km) from the PCT via footpaths leading right from my backyard. Most of my outdoor time here in Washington is spent on dayhikes, backpacking journeys, climbs, and ski trips everywhere from the Wilderness coast to the rainforest to the massive volcanoes to desert-like steppe.

I played football in college and often evaluate products from a big guy perspective. I tested gear for Seattle's biggest gear retailer in the mid-90s, then guided backpacking tours in Olympic National Park for a few summers. My typical pack load ranges from 12 to 19 lbs (5.4 to 8.6 kgs) and usually includes gear to keep dry in the Pacific Northwest’s incessant dampness.

I'd like to thank Black Diamond and BackpackGearTest.org for the opportunity to test the Terra CF Trekking Poles.

Read more reviews of Black Diamond gear
Read more gear reviews by Curt Peterson

Initial Report

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