Carbon Trekking Poles in Winter: Do They Get Brittle?

This is a super common question: “Carbon is plastic-y, won’t it get brittle in the cold?” Short answer: good carbon trekking poles are fine in winter. What breaks poles in winter isn’t the temperature—it’s side impacts, getting pinched in rock/ice, or skiing-style falls. Let’s unpack that.

1. What carbon actually doesn’t like

Carbon fiber is fantastic in straight-line loads (what you do when you plant the pole). It’s less happy with sharp, sideways hits—like jamming the pole between ice chunks and then falling on it. Winter terrain has more of those traps, so people think cold = brittle, but it’s really mechanical abuse.

2. Cold itself is rarely the problem

Most quality carbon poles are made with resins that handle typical winter hiking temps easily (well below freezing). You’re not taking them to -60°F on Everest—you're snowshoeing, hiking, or doing winter trails. That’s in the safe zone.

3. What to actually watch in winter

• Hidden holes / soft snow: pole plunges deep, basket catches, you fall → side load.
• Between rocks + ice: lower section gets pinched → crack.
• Skiing with hiking poles: fast falls + sideways load.

So winter is more “more chances to side-load the pole,” not “carbon suddenly turns to glass.”

4. How to protect carbon poles in winter

• Use larger snow baskets so the pole doesn’t dive too deep.
• Keep sections properly locked—a half-locked pole collapses and then all the force goes into one spot.
• Don’t over-extend past the max line (cold + over-extension = weaker).
• After the hike, dry the locks and tubes—freeze-thaw cycles with moisture inside can make sections stick.

5. When aluminum still makes sense

If you know you’ll be bashing through rocks, or you fall a lot on skis, aluminum is still a great winter material because it tends to bend instead of snap. But for normal winter hiking, snowshoeing, and travel? Carbon is perfectly usable and nicer to swing.

Our 3K carbon poles use external lever locks and come with baskets—swap to the wider ones for snow and you’re good.