Quote:

"A single trekking pole is the best compromise to me between extra weight, and extra stability."

Another example of "what's right for me might not be right for you". I like a single trekking pole in some specific situations: snowshoeing when there's a lot of vegetation to go through, for example. If *just* for stream crossing, a single pole might be good in some situations.

For me, however, carrying two poles is a fundamentally different thing than just one. It alters how I hike much more significantly. After some sort of knee issue in my 40's (I forget details now), I've been a two-stick hiker ever since. For all the reasons that Wandering Daisy listed. She mentioned being more like a 4-legged animal off-trail, but I would add that this is valuable on-trail too. With two poles, I can look around a lot more when I hike, presuming that the trail isn't super rough. And FWIW, both of my trekking poles are used as tent poles at night, so some weight offset there.

They're also quite helpful in snow, of various types. Quite a number of times I've appreciated having poles at the ready to fend off somebody's "oh, he's never like this at home" dogs, which IMO is perhaps the biggest animal danger to be faced in the back- (or front-) country, apart from homo sapiens. But if snakes bother you, on (normally very rare) occasion a pole can be helpful there too. But in the case of snakes, a single pole is fine. For dogs, I've really (really) appreciated having both poles deployed in several instances.

When I first switched to using two poles I was concerned about never having either of my hands free. In my case, at least, I've become pretty good about doing just about anything I need with a pole hanging from my wrist with the strap, or quickly tucking one or both poles under an arm.

I'm NOT saying that being a two-stick hiker is right for you or for anyone in particular, just adding some thoughts on the 'pro' (vs. 'con') side.