Walking Equipment and Accessories

Black Diamond Pursuit FLZ Trekking Poles | Review

Durable hiking poles that have some nifty design details. Read our full review of the Black Diamond Pursuit FLZ poles

These trekking poles from utah-based brand Black Diamond have a real premium quality to them. At €180 for a pair they’re certainly not cheap but you are at least getting top notch materials and a solidly made product, not to mention the converge of a two-year warranty.

Design and Performance

These are Z-poles meaning that they feature interlinked parts that can be disassembled to form a z-shape as you’re folding them up. This type of pole tends to be very handy for excursions where poles might not be required at all times as you can fold them up and stash them in the side of a hiking backpack.

Will demonstrating the z-folding style. Photos: Dave Macfarlane

Assembled, the dimensions are as followed: 43.4 – 49.2 inches (small/medium), 49.2 – 55.1 inches (medium/large. When packed up: 14.5 inches (small/medium), 16.8 inches (medium/large).

The weight per pair is 480g (small/medium), 485g (medium/large). On paper that’s light and in the hands they feel light as well. There are lighter poles, however. A pair of the Leki MCT Vario Carbons, for instance, weighs just 400g. I’d say this pair from Black Diamond is more robust, but still, I’ve been using that pair of Leki poles for over four years now and they’re still going strong.

What these poles offer that those Leki poles don’t however – aside from greater durability – is a much more comfortable grip, easier adjustment and some good eco efforts too.

The handles are made from a soft and easy to grip natural cork which I’ve found grips well even when your hands are sweaty and there are also grip extensions made from Bloom foam, an innovative, eco-friendly material derived from algae biomass.

The algae that’s used for Bloom foam is taken from harmful algal blooms which can smother and choke ponds, streams and lakes. By removing this to turn it into foam this not only helps in cleaning water sources but it also provides a renewable resource for creating various products. Credit to Black Diamond for using post-consumer recycled plastics for the straps too – and these, by the way, are also very comfortable.

I also have really liked the levers that Black Diamond have used for the Pursuit FLZ. These aren’t particularly small or light, but they are very easy to operate and, on a trip when I had cold hands, I was very grateful for this. On the subject of the levers, there’s a little tool that’s stowed inside the pole shaft that you can use when you need to adjust the tightness or looseness of the lever. It’s not something that needs to be done often, but when it’s necessary this little tool makes it easy and quick to do. With past poles I’ve tried, I’ve found I normally have to do this with a finger nail!

These also come with big snow baskets, making them suitable for winter hiking or snowshoe use too.

Overall then, the Black Diamond Pursuit FLZ is highly functional, durable and built to last. It might not be the lightest or the cheapest but it’s certainly a great quality offering with some smart design details.