How to make Walking Stick wood carving project

In an earlier post I showed this stick when it was collect and stripped of bark. Now that it is properly cured/dried I started to make this wooded hiking stick carving of a elk. Wood carving hiking and walking sticks take practice and you should always tried on practice walking staffs and sticks first.

  The first step when making your own wood walking sticks is selecting the wood and maybe even envisioning the end product before you cut the tree branch or sapling. Branches and roots are not things in the way but added enhancements to your own hiking stick making project. Notice the way the branch was left on when collecting the willow branch to the left. I did not think of an elf before I collected the wood to carve for the walking staff or stick. But from experience I know to leave some branches on to give design options when I started to think of how to make a hiking stick.

When I collected the willow I stripped the outer layer and did a rough sand. Then I left the wood to cure for several months (this one was actually left for a year). The shape and the under curve of the wood walking stick gave me an idea of either a deer, elk or other animal with antlers type. I did a quick search on the net and selected a elk that had a big white circle around its eye area. Collecting the wood to make hiking and walking sticks is only half the fun. Learning how to stain, inlay, rope work and carve wood to make unique walking and hiking sticks is a great hobby and a way to bring you trips home with you.

Wood carving walking sticks making beginner tips

Making walking hiking sticks is a great hobby. However, you can not always collect your own walking stick wood from vacations due to restrictions and problems bringing back long sticks on planes. First, if you are a beginner to wood carving walking and hiking stacks staffs stick with woods known to be easy to carve:  basswood, willow, butternut, aspen and similar woods. Hold off carving diamond  willows, walnut, hickory and other more difficult woods until you have some experience.

One great place to obtain reasonably price walking stick blanks is on ebay. Ask is the wood is green, air or kilm dried.  Depending upon the wood this make a big difference.  Some walking hiking stick woods when green work well, however, you may discover a cracking problem as they dry.  Also, cure your wood first before working which is explained int he how to make walking stick guides.

If you live in an area that receives heavy spring storms, look for fallen limbs and other wood in you area. If you are a beginner do not worry about the type of wood just look for ones that have the right size and shape to make walking hiking sticks and staffs. When I first started I just collected wood and experimented. I live in a tropical area (Southeast Florida) which usually means the woods are either HARD, very sappy or spongy/porous which are hard to work. However, just by trying different woods I discovered Flame Buoyant that has great color and it can be to wood carved walking hiking sticks! Is it a wood for beginners hiking stick caving - no because it's stingy. However, once you do learn to make hiking stick you are rewarded with a very strong great color hiking stick made by yourself.

Finally,m do not rush into carving wood spirits hiking sticks. Learn the basic how to make hiking sticks skills from wood selection to wood carving unique walking sticks. I know several walking stick making people who do not carve at all. They use staining, rope, inlay or other hiking stick making methods and tun out fantastic one of a kind walking sticks.

Walking hiking sticks making using paint to finish project

One area I did not cover in the How to make unique walking and hiking sticks extensively is colorizing your carved wood walking stick project.  I could barely do the paint by the numbers. However, I have learned less is better in making hiking sticks wood carving stick out. The how to make walking stick guides does cover how to make things appear older or how to use white/gray paint on beards is you desire. 

Look at the previous posting covering carving a walking stick fall leaf project. You will notice that each leaf is painted to make them stand out. Carving walking walking sticks takes a bit of guidance a some practice. The fall leaf project carving of the walking hiking stick staff  is a project designed for a beginner wood carving project using the techniques learned in how to make unique walking hiking sticks by hand.  It uses many of the guides ideas from the basic walking stick making to the wood carving.

The image on this posting shows the paints used on the fall project. Notice I using model train paint designed for wood box cards and other train wood projects. The great thing about train wood paints is the variety available and shades. The main thing I want you to remember is to SEAL your wood before applying he paint unless you want the paint to flow along the grains and into areas you may not desire. Again, practice you walking stick making on spare wood or left over wood to prevent destroying work you already completed. Use how to make walking stick guides and bonus material.

If you have a walking stick carving how to questions please post it here. Thank you and enjoy the hobby of making unique walking hiking sticks and staffs.

How to make walking sticks and staffs carving wood

    One portion of making hiking and walking sticks and staff is wood carving. Several people have requested information on how to start carving walking sticks wood spirits even before they know the basic of how to make a walking stick or staff. This is a big mistake. Wood carving images on hiking staffs and walking sticks with details takes practice.   Just like painting you need to know basic hiking stick making how to's before jumping into portrait painting.

   First you need to select the right wood and we highly suggest aspen, basswood, willow and similar wood for making your walking stick.  Stay away for hard woods at first because they require more effort to carve and more knowledge of wood grains.

  Now use practice branches smaller pieces of wood to carve basic shapes. Try to carve straight lines around the walking stick. Then do simple wood carving such as one described How to easily make unique walking an hiking sticks guides. I have seen many people trying to do more detailed wood carving then their experience and destroy great walking sticks and staffs. Making hiking and walking sticks is a great hobby. Take it step by step or you may fall into the trap of becoming frustrated with the hobby.

  if you have questions or suggestions please post it here for a quick response. Have a great time making your wood hiking sticks and walking staffs!

How to make walking sticks: Collecting walking stick wood to carve

First, not all wood is good for carving. In addition when collecting wood for hiking stick making the time of year plays a factor in most parts of the US. First, if you are in a snow bound area look fro fallen branches to wood carve practice and to used to make a hiking walking stick. Remember to cure the wood first. In other words, collect wood for hiking stick making now to use in the summer or even fall.

If you live further south now is the time to look for tree trimmings.  This is the time people start to think about spring  storms and tree trimming.  Walk around your area for trimmed oaks, popular,  cypress, fruit trees and other trees for walking stick making. In fact, I have talk to neighbors while going through their piles and now I have them looking for branches the right size/shape for me. I get on the average 20 to 30 great walking stick branches each season to making hiking sticks and staffs.

Check out the How to Making unique walking and hiking stick guide for details information on how to easily make unique  walking sticks and staffs. Learn how to carve wood, use wood burning to make images on wood simply, create you won rope handles and metal ferrules. It does not take any special skills to learn to wood carve a walking stick.

Wood Carving and walking sticks

Stop do not throw away your Christmas tree.  Wood carving walking and hiking sticks requires practice.

However, if you are like me, I do not want to practice on wood I self collected. In stead at this time of year I grab a few disguarded christmas trees for walking stick making carving practice wood.

    Once you collect the trees cut off all the branches then cut the tree into three sections. Once cut you will need to let the wood cure before carving or wood burning images. I would suggest at least 2 months of curing time before you start the practice walking stick carving making project. yes, you can make a walking stick out of the Christmas tree however, they are usually too thick at the bottom and require quite a bit of wood trimming for your hiking stick.

Once its cured you can split the larger sections and practice wood carving. Again test the wood first to make sure its cured. the how to make walking and hiking sticks guides gives more details on wood selection, curing, carving and other walking and hiking stick making processes.


Actually collecting your wood hiking stick or staff is only the beginning. If you are looking for a great how to make hiking and walking sticks for to  www.walking-hiking-sticks.com . You will a complete guide and many bonus material on how to make unique wood walking and hiking sticks by hand

How to making hiking sticks wood carve and wood burn walking sticks wood selection

Most of the wood used for hiking sticks are self collected during vacations or in the area I live. Since I live in a tropical area (Miami) I have a limited few wood types (many tropical woods are way to heavy) that carve or wood burn well. First of all I only collect wood limbs and saplings that are not rare, endangered or protected by law. I prefer collecting wood limbs to make hiking sticks from recent tree trimming. Locally my favorites are Flamboyant limbs (hard top find straight), oak, ficus aero-roots, cypress, eucalyptus and even pines to do hiking stick making and wood carving. However, I do not shy away from exotics trees that are trimmed. Each wood for hiking and walking stick making present different challenges.

I always get a few small pieces along with the longer ones to test wood burning and carving for walking stick making. The biggest draw back to being in the tropics is the moisture constant of the wood. When making walking and hiking sticks from wood you need to cure the wood first. Curing is the process of drying out the wood. Some wood cure better than others. If you are making hiking and walking sticks curing properly is important to make sure the wood does not crack or bend while drying. Nothing is more frustrating is when you wood carve a hiking sticks only to to see it crack down the middle of the carving a few months later as the wood dries out.

While on vacations I have collected Aspen (Great wood for wood carving), cedar, willow, and hickory. yes, there are many other great woods you can self collect for hiking and walking stick making. The how to make walking hiking stick making guides are a great resource for wood types, curing and all aspect of hiking stick and walking staff making.

After you collect your wood to make a hiking or walking stick do not rush right into the project. One of the great ideas from the how to making walking and hiking sticks guides is to wood burn onto the wood the wood type, month year collect and where it was collected. This serves helps you remember great hiking stick wood collecting sites and when you collect to track curing periods.