The Leki Legacy Lite Cor-Tec trekking poles are comfortable, light-weight, and strong. They have a comfortable cork grip and easy to adjust Speed Locks that hold up in rough conditions. They are more affordable light weight hiking pole option that doesn’t sacrifice strength and can quickly collapse to store in your pack in terrain where poles are not needed.
Product Overview
Leki Legacy Lite Cor-Tec
✅ Comfortable handles
✅ Mid-range price
✅ Quick and easily adjustable Speed Locks
✅ Light-weight without giving up strength
❌ Mid-range pricing is still an expensive piece of gear of anyone on a budget
- Shaft Construction: Aluminum
- Grip Material: Cork/Rubber
- Maximum Length: 53 in
- Minimum Length: 39 in
- Locking Mechanism: External Lever Lock
- Weight (both poles): 1 lb 2 oz
Similar Products: Black Diamond - Distance Carbon Z, Fizan Compact, Helinox - Passport Tension Lock, Gossamer Gear - LT5
Performance Test Results
What I Tested:
How I Tested:
I have been using these poles since 2020 hiking 14ers in Colorado, 700 miles of my Continental Divide Trail thru-hike, thru-hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, and all over western North Carolina where I now live and continue to use these poles. They have lasted through all types of terrain from deserts to forests to plains and everything in between.
I use a single-wall tent and have switched between shelters that require one or two hiking poles to hold it up. Either way, these Leki poles have never failed in any conditions, including a thunderstorm where I was set up on an exposed ridge. Even after the strong winds took out one of my tent stakes, my poles held strong while I got out of my tent to fix the stake that got blown out and every other one that was loose.
Performance
I love these poles. I have been using the Women’s specific model for the last few years which seems to be out of the market now, but I would buy the unisex model in a heartbeat if and when my current poles ever do break. I have used other Leki poles in the past, but none held up as well as these.
I bought these specific poles with nothing but pricing in mind. I knew a cheaper set would not last me a full-thru hike, but I did not want to dole out $150+ for a set of poles. The Leki Legacy Lite Cor-Tec was around the middle of the pack for pricing and was the lighter option within that price range from what was available in the store.
I was much less of a hiking/backpacking gearhead at this point in my life but luckily, I ended up with my favorite set of poles that helped me finish my triple crown and start a career in the outdoor industry as a hiking/backpacking guide.
Adjustability
There really isn’t anything I don’t like about these poles. I personally do not like to use the straps on my hiking poles, but I know that these are more easily adjustable than any others I’ve seen. Working as a backpacking guide, I’ve struggled to adjust straps that seem forever stuck where they are and no matter how hard you pull on them, you can’t get them to loosen enough to adjust the length.
The one time I adjusted the straps on my poles (directly after I was asked to write a gear review), it took only a few seconds even after 4 years of never moving that particular piece.
Durability
The tips of my poles have never been replaced and they are still in great condition. I’ve had worn-down tips on other poles that have ended up snapping in half while the tips on my Leki Legacy Lite Cor-Tec poles have held up for 4 years.
I put a lot of weight on my poles when I hike and I always use them while backpacking; I put my weight on them when I stop for a breather on the trail. I have also used them to hold up my tent when I camp and have withstood weather ranging from summer thunderstorms to winter snow.
Grip
The grip on these poles has been my favorite. At the start of a full day of hiking with poles without a cork grip and rounded edges, I ended up with blisters on my hands. I started the Pacific Crest Trail with these poles and never got so much of a hot spot on my hands or experienced any discomfort because of the material.
Lock System
My biggest pet peeve with hiking poles is the type of lock system on them. I’ve had no luck with twist lock poles because they always end up collapsing when you least want them to, and I was never able to get it tight enough to prevent that from happening. The external lever locks of the Leki Lite Cor-Tec poles are the only other type I’ve used and still have specific preferences within that.
Leki Legacy Lite Cor-Tec Poles for backpacking adventures.
Some of those locks require you to carry a screwdriver or an L-wrench to adjust the tightness of the lever lock when it is too tight or too loose. In backpacking, most of us are trying not to carry unnecessary gear while backpacking and that includes a tool (albeit small and lightweight) that will only be used for one purpose.
Without the tool, you’re left with poles that won’t support weight if you have nothing else strong enough to turn a screw on hand. All that trouble can be cut out with a pair of poles with locks that can be adjusted by hand – even with gloves on – without fear of losing a tool on the trail.
I also have a preference for telescoping/sliding poles over folding poles. I used folding poles on my thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail. Anyone who has hiked in New England knows how steep and rocky the terrain gets and it is sometimes easier to put your poles aside so that your hands remain free to grab hold of rocks and trees to steady yourself.
Hiking down the south side of Mt. Moosilauke, I decided to collapse and fold my poles part way down, and the material inside the poles that allowed it to be folded broke and was no longer usable. Thankfully I was a few miles away from Lincoln, NH where I got my first pair of telescoping poles that eventually led me to the Leki Lite Core-Tec Hiking Poles. It also cuts out a step in collapsing and setting up your poles for the thru-hiker who likes to get the miles in without a wasted second.
650-Calorie Fuel
