Before the groans even start about yet another obvious straight stick project given a highfalutin’ name, let me say right now, this is a very difficult project. It requires a straight stick AND a drilled hole. Not only that, you have to find a string for a handle grip. I am sorry to throw all these technical terms at you, but this is a how to book, and sometimes you just have to be specific. The proper walking stick should be about shoulder height with an ergonomically shaped hand grip. This means whittling down the corners and adding a little hockey tape for a good grip.
You can get a double-ended screw, but a hardware store would call it a double-threaded thingamabob. Install it at the business end of your walking stick. Pre-drilling the hole helps in this installation. This will give you a good point to jab into the ground along the trail and will cut down on the wear and tear on the wood. It will also inflict nasty wounds on unprotected feet and imagined predators.
One could get creative and sand down the shaft of the stick, whittle some cool designs, maybe paint on a stripe and throw on some feathers, but we are far from the days of merit badges and moms who praise any craft no matter how esthetically suspect. What you do for decoration is a testimonial to your personal identity. A collection of these sticks by the front door, propping up a well-worn hat, and perhaps a water bottle placed on a nearby table will fool everyone. Don’t forget the dusty hiking boots casually set by aforementioned table, a well-thumbed John Muir book, and binoculars, perhaps.
Thanks to an accident of parallel evolution, this walking stick may also be used as a remote TV channel changer. It operates from any distance equal to the combined length of your arm and the stick and requires no batteries. It is strongly suggested that you change channels with a neutral disposition, as emotions and buttons seem to have an unsuccessful relationship and you might omit the screw on the end. This channel changer is way harder to lose than those darned little hand-held gizmos, but when the kids start fighting over it, your housewares should start getting nervous. There is just something about idle minds and channel surfing that brings out the rascal in all of us. So, if a fight is threatening to break out, maybe the kids should use this stick for its original purpose and get outside for a walk.
