Roy Klebe sells hiking staffs and medallions to affix to them at HikeAmerica.com. I happened upon his site this morning. Here’s the back story.

In 1988, Roy Klebe discovered a long standing tradition in Europe of collecting medallions on hiking staffs. After his hiking trip in the Swiss Alps he was inspired to introduce this unique tradition to the U.S. He now produces these hiking staffs and medallions in Germany and Austria and imports them to the U.S. under his brand name – Hike America.

Roy has medallions for parks across the country, including many in Northern California such as Big Basin Redwoods (shown at right) and Calaveras Big Trees state parks. Here’s a map of all the U.S. states.

These struck me as interesting for traditionalists who eschew fancy-schmancy hiking poles but might like the idea of a nice long stick to shoo off the rattlesnakes. They range from $20.95 to $30.95 and the medallions are $3.60 apiece.