h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

In my own experience in creating walking sticks, I've found the following rules to be useful.

1. Never, ever, molest a living tree to create a walking stick. There's enough deadwood around, dammit.

2. Always let people tell you that you can't take a stick. Many national parks prohibit removing stuff from the park, including sticks. Today's stick is the next decade's soil, after all. But if nobody tells you, then take the stick anyway.

3. Whenever you take a stick and make it good for reuse, the owner of the land has first right to it. If you don't know the owner (for instance, if you're visiting a trailer park), then the person who invited you to the land gets that right.

4. If you see a stick at the entrance of a hiking trail, it's meant for you to borrow, and you should leave it for the next hiker when you're done. Find your own stick to take home, dammit.

In short, everyone likes walking sticks, but don't be greedy about them. They come from Nature, and it's not like you need a stick to live.