Walking Poles - I hate myself just thinking of them!

[Tarrel]

I took one with me when I did Scotland coast to coast. It was one that doubled as a photo monopod, which was useful, but the Number One main use for it was during river crossings. Grip it with both hands, face upstream and wade across crab-style. It turns you into a tripod, with much greater stability and less chance of getting a ducking with all the consequences of wet clothing, wet kit and hypothermia.

Also, I'm not that confident on steep descents. The pole made me feel safer and speeded me up when coming down steep, slippery slopes.

Finally, a lot of single-skin "tarp-tent" style shelters can be erected with just a single walking pole, saving weight and achieving the holy grail of backpacking (and bug-out bags), i.e. multi-purposing.