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Feature stories
Hike the Wind River Range
A stunning new hike—plus two thrilling classics—in the Rockies' top spot for big backpacking adventures.China: The People's Hiking Revolution
As prosperity spreads across China, so does a passion for the outdoors. But can millions of new trekkers save Asia's vast wilderness from the march of development? Welcome to the world's next hiking frontier. PLUS, check out China's Top Treks.The Perfect Circle: Hiking the Annapurna Circuit
Nepal's Annapurna Circuit can't compete with the world's best treks for lavish huts, extreme solitude, and sumptuous cuisine. So why is it still number one? Let us count the reasons.Hiking The Annapurna Circuit: Q&A With Shannon Davis
Associate editor Shannon Davis tells us more about the highs and lows of his honeymoon trek (featured in March 2009's "The Perfect Circle") on the sky-scraping Annapurna Circuit in Nepal.The Alaska Wolf Debate: Q&A with Tracy Ross
Author Tracy Ross discusses her feature story "Dogs of War" devoted to the debate raging in Alaska over the famed Toklat wolf pack.I'm Hiking with Stupid - A Buddy Story
The last time our author took his buddy camping, they stopped speaking for a year. A decade later, they still haven't hit the trail together. Which means there's only one thing to do: Try again.I Will Survive
Flesh-eating bears. Dive-bombing eagles. Can a regular guy escape certain death armed with only the clothes on his back and the skills he learned on TV from Les Stroud, Bear Grylls, and John Rambo?Rescue Me!
On a snowy night in New Hampshire, Congressional candidate Gary Dodds crashed his car, wandered into the woods, and collapsed. Twenty-seven hours later, rescuers carried him out. And then the real drama began.Walking Bataan: The Hardest Miles
Survivors of the Bataan death march overcame one of history's most grueling walks. What kept them on their feet? and could you do the same? every year, more than 4,000 people hike through the New Mexico desert to find out.
The Long Trail to Jail
Is he a pilgrim, a victim, or a thief? The Appalachian Trail provides a path and refuge to all sorts of seekers. Few are as baffling as the man they called Saved.Destination Nowhere
The most remote spot in the Lower 48 is inside Yellowstone National Park. It's also the goal of our correspondent. What he encounters–and what it says about the solitude backpackers treasure–will surprise you. PLUS: See more of his photos and read a Q&A.River Keeper
Grand Canyon raft guide and Havasupai tribal member Shana Watahomigie becomes a paddling–and Hollywood–pioneer.September 2008 Table of Contents
24 Hours of L.L. Bean
It's the gear world's ultimate endurance event: a full day and night roaming the aisles at Bean's flagship store in Freeport, Maine. Will our man survive?Walking the Talk
First John Francis stopped riding in cars. Then he stopped talking. More than three decades, two continent-spanning hikes, and countless trail miles later, he's still following his remarkable path of protest–only now he's not alone.Beyond Destination Nowhere: Q&A with Mark Jenkins
Mark Jenkins, the author of "Destination Nowhere," discusses his Yellowstone assignment to find the most remote spot in the United States.The Grand Tetons: 5 Hikes, 7 Days (or so)
How to retrace each segment of the author's perfect week from "A Perfect Week in the Tetons."A Perfect Week in the Grand Tetons
You won't waste a minute with our only-the-highlights hiking and climbing guide to the West's archetypal range. From the loftiest summits to the loneliest cross-country routes, this seven-day sampler visits every type of Tetons treasure-and then some.The Onion vs. Mr. Magoo
On your mark, get set ... hike. Inside a 5,600-mile footrace on the country's hardest trail.The CDT Project
We sent 209 readers out to GPS the Continental Divide Trail, the biggest, baddest long-distance path of them all. They brought back the makings of the first authoritative map of this American classic. These are their stories–and their favorite sections.Climb Higher
With the right preparation–and a little help from a half-dozen friends, two exotic techno-gadgets, and one very sweaty hypoxic chamber–can a sea-level-dwelling rookie climb the highest peak in Colorado?Eat Better
Want to hike farther, explore tougher terrain, and carry big loads without bonking? To achieve your biggest backcountry goals, you have to change how you eat.Train Smarter
Get trail-fit in six weeks with this simple exercise plan.Summer Fitness Special: Hike Stronger, Live Longer
Achieve peak performance on the trail with our complete guide to training and eating like a backpacker.Hiking the Sierra High Route
On this burly, 210-mile traverse, which crosses 33 passes and barely touches established trails, you can find Alaska-sized scenery, complete solitude, and just enough risk to keep things interesting.Secret Agent Man
Animals can't talk. But Ed Newcomer can. As an elite U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service detective, he goes undercover to protect threatened raptors, bears, even butterflies–and bring poachers and smugglers to court. Inside the agency's latest covert operation.The Porters' Progress
Two Everest-scaling Sherpas face their biggest challenge yet–surviving suburban America.Rock Star: Brett Dennen
Once a guide and counselor near Yosemite, up-and-coming musician Brett Dennen is now taking his backcountry jams to the masses.Backpacker Editors' Choice 2008
The year's best packs, boots, tents, jackets, and sleeping bags. Period. Plus, a never-die headlamp, a life-saving beacon, a back-saving ultralight chair, and more innovative, trail-tested gear.Carbon-Neutral Costa Rica: How I Lost 5,400 lbs While Packing for the Trip of a Lifetime
In search of a guilt-free adventure in the tropics, Jason Daley discovers the line between saving the world–and seeing it.Iceland: Live Earth
The planet's most dynamic landscape is full of bubbling hot springs, steaming geysers, and kaleidoscopic lava flows. Hike Iceland's epic Laugevegur Trail, and join the action.Hot Springs: Soak Here Now
6 more must-dip pools from Alaska to HawaiiHot Springs: The Perfect Pool
Here are the top wilderness soaks on the continent. Can you keep a secret?National Parks Inc.
Like it or not, national parks are officially in the business of business. Will this focus destroy the soul of a national institution - or save it in these lean times?The Future of the National Parks
Everyone loves national parks - but are they being loved to death? Join a star-studded roundtable to explore the fate of this embattled American institution.Hiking Honeymoon: How to ruin a perfectly good marriage
What happens when a couple's vows are tested by hard miles and hunger pains on the John Muir Trail? A sore-footed bride tells all.Secrets of the Guides
Camp like a pro with 83 field-tested tips and techniques from experts who earn their paychecks in the backcountry.What Would Davy Crockett Do?
He'd toss the titanium stove and build a big fire. Our man enrolls in a traditional guide school and learns how to survive - and think - like an American original.The Backpacker Interview: From Jail to Trail
Inspired by a mountain view, Don Moseman walked out of prison and hiked his way to a better life.The Source of All Things
What if your favorite place in the world was ground zero for your greatest strengths and your deepest fears? The author and her father trek into Idaho's Sawtooth Mountains to grapple with a tragedy that has haunted them for decades.Gods Of Rock: The Adirondack Mountain Club trail crew
Sharpen your double-bit axe, get your pecs ready for action, and shoulder the biggest pack you've ever seen. Then dive into the trenches with a screwball trailbuilding crew, fixing the neediest hiking paths in the Adirondacks. Assuming you're not afraid of some very heavy lifting, this just might be the ultimate summer job.Hell On Wheels
Bob Coomber is determined to become the first man in a wheelchair to ascend a 14,000-foot mountain.The Future Of National Parks
Everyone loves national parks--but are they being loved to death? Join representatives from the Park Service, Department of the Interior, Sierra Club, American Hiking Society, and more to explore the fate of this embattled American institution.Utah Hikes: The Case For Glen Canyon
Drought is giving Glen Canyon--and those who love it--a second chance. Here are four spectacular reasons why we should protect this Southwest wilderness by making it America's next national park.National Parks Inc.
Like it or not, national parks are officially in the business of business. Will this focus destroy the soul of a national institution--or save it in these lean times?Yosemite @ $7.38 An Hour: Seasonal Work in the National Parks
Our scribe-turned-pizzaman labors in the land of granite and pulls back the curtain on the seasonal-employment fantasy.Wide Awake And Dreaming
The author sets out to camp in New York's Central Park--and winds up roused by matters of life and death.Last Chance Adventure: Oregon's Umpqua National Forest
Can you see the forest through the trees? Join a bittersweet trek through an old-growth wilderness in its final days.Mountaineering Fitness: Climb Like Ed
Got summit fever? The sky's the limit with a fitness plan and climbing tips from world-class mountaineer Ed Viesturs.Paddling's Greatest Getaways
16 wild ways to find backcountry solitude and big-time scenery. All this, and you can bring the ice chest, too.8 Weeks to Fitness for Any Hike
No gyms, no weights–and, with our easy-to-follow plan–no bonking on the trail.Alive Again: New Findings in the 1972 Andes Plane Crash
Colorado climber Ricardo Peña's surprising discovery raises new questions in the infamous tale of survivalUltimate Summer Escapes: The Best Dayhikes and Backpacking Trips Near You
Coming soon to your city: far-out adventures that are shockingly close to home.America's Hardest Dayhikes
Push yourself on any of these challenging hikesThe Unbearable Lightness Of Being Scott Williamson
To hike from Mexico to Canada and back, a man needs strength and speed and luck. He needs something else, too. If only he knew what it was.New Zealand: Backpacking, Paddling, and More
It's better than you've heard, and closer than you think. Here's how to see it all in 10 perfect days.More New Zealand Adventures: Climb, Paddle, Jump!
Canyoning, mountaineering, kayaking, and camping, Kiwi-styleOy, Wilderness: First-Time New York Campers
Three days. Two nights. Five New Yorkers who had never slept outdoors. And a leader who has some issues with map and compass. What could go wrong?The Grizzly Detective: Tracking Bears in the Bitterroots
America's preeminent bear tracker backpacks Idaho's most remote wilderness looking for signs of the lost grizzlies of the Bitterroots--and winds up staring at the great bruin's future.High Points: Borah Peak, Idaho
Don't forget your sound judgment when summitting this high point.High Points: Mt. Elbert, Colorado
Come enjoy this high peak's playgroundHigh Points: Mt. Hood, Oregon
Head through the Pearly Gates for a heavenly sunriseHigh Points: Gannett Peak, Wyoming
The longest and wildest approach in the bunchHigh Points: Humphreys Peak, Arizona
An easy high point with an unpredictable personalityHigh Points: Mt. Whitney, California
You could do it in a day, but don't rush this one.High Points: Mt. Rainier, Washington
Get to the top and you'll hear a joyous echoHigh Points: Kings Peak, Utah
The mosquitoes make it challenging, but the towering sedimentary rock makes it worth it.High Points: Granite Peak, Montana
The toughest high point in the lower 48High Points: Mauna Kea, Hawaii
Your car does all the climbing here.High Points: Boundary Peak, Nevada
Expect unexpected challenges to reach the summitHigh Points: Wheeler Peak, New Mexico
Bighorn sheep and golden eagles await you at this high point.High Points: Mt. Mitchell, North Carolina
A high point that provides an alluring combination of scenery, storms, and access.High Points: Cheaha Mountain, Alabama
Go from the path of racecars to the path of a high point.High Points: Brasstown Bald, Georgia
Come visit this Cherokee named place of fresh green.High Points: Black Mountain, Kentucky
Look closely for the path to this high point.High Points: Sassafras Mountain, South Carolina
It's all about the journey.High Points: Black Mesa, Oklahoma
Welcome to this delightfully weird world of extremes.High Points: Driskill Mountain, Louisiana
The mile-long walk invites contemplation like few other high point approaches.High Points: Britton Hill, Florida
A humble high point in a low-lying stateHigh Points: Clingmans Dome, Tennessee
A downright goofy dome marks this highpoint.High Points: Mt. Magazine, Arkansas
Hit the high point and move on to the other attractions this park offers.High Points: Guadalupe Peak, Texas
This peak lives up to its reputation.High Points: Woodall Mountain, Mississippi
America's bloodiest high pointHigh Points: Charles Mound, Illinois
Access is limited, but well worth the view.High Points: Mt. Arvon, Michigan
The view is nothing to write home about, but this newly crowned high point deserves a visit.High Points: Campbell Hill, Ohio
Time it just right to get to the top of this one.High Points: Taum Sauk Mountain, Missouri
Lay low like Jesse James at this high point.High Points: Mt. Sunflower, Kansas
Something's happening in this spot where nothing happened.High Points: Timms Hill, Wisconsin
This old logging camp and woolly mammoth marching ground provides incredible views.High Points: Hoosier Hill, Indiana
A fitting place to ponder the true meaning of the term Hoosier.High Points: Harney Peak, South Dakota
Traveling to this point will leave you at a loss for words.High Points: Eagle Mountain, Minnesota
Find this high point in the largest national forest outside of Alaska.High Points: White Butte, North Dakota
If you loathe traffic, the commute to White Butte is pure ecstasy.High Points: Panorama Point, Nebraska
There's not a bad napping spot anywhere.Family Camping Tips
Ideas to help make the backcountry family friendlyAn Overnight Success?
Need a crash course in backpacking? Join our newbie and his brooding teenager as they fend off mountain lions, overzealous retail clerks, and other beginner hazards.High Points: Mt. Rogers, Virginia
Allow the plants to color the landscape as you make your way along the trail.High Points: Mt. Marcy, New York
A long hike to the highpoint where weather and black flies could pose a challenge.High Points: Ebright Azimuth, Delaware
True highpointers will find this peak.High Points: High Point, New Jersey
You'll find numerous surprises as you explore the lakes, rivers and forests of this highpoint.High Points: Spruce Knob, West Virginia
Watch out for rough weather and serpentine-like roads as you drive up to this highpoint.Being Caribou Returns Home
We follow a giant, endangered caribou herd from the Yukon to Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Part 6.Secrets of Yosemite National Park
Sneak in the side door for a private viewing of the finest in California's High Sierra real estate.Being Caribou: Arctic Summer
We follow a giant, endangered caribou herd from the Yukon to Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Part 5.Balancing Act
Secrets for staying on your feet from dancers, tightrope walkers, running backs, and more.Stone Cold Campers
They kill swiftly and silently. They flit like ghosts through enemy forests. And they will brew you a fine cup of cowboy coffee. Meet America's deadliest hikers as we hump ruck with the Special Forces.Body Of A Backpacker
It's lean, it's mean, and it can last forever.Being Caribou: A Mountain Of A Shortcut
We follow a giant, endangered caribou herd from the Yukon to Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Part 4.Being Caribou: Calving Grounds
We follow a giant, endangered caribou herd from the Yukon to Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Part 3.Being Caribou: 350 Miles On Skis
We follow a giant, endangered caribou herd from the Yukon to Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Part 2.Good News About Bad Food
Got burgers on the brain? Learn why some experts say it's okay to indulge.Being Caribou: Spring Migration
We follow a giant, endangered caribou herd from the Yukon to Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Part 1.Touched By A Grizzly
Can anyone really know what lurks in the heart of a grizzly? In the wilds of Russia's Kamchatka peninsula, Charlie Russell believes he is beginning to find out.Being Caribou: Caribou Facts
18 facts you didn't know about Alaska and Canada's Porcupine Caribou herd.Being Caribou: Protecting the Porcupine Caribou Herd
Protection one of Alaska and Canada's largest caribou herds is so close, yet so far away.Being Caribou: The Route
How do you plan a route following 123,000 migrating caribou across Canada and Alaska? Try to keep up.Being Caribou: Caribou I Am
How do you plan an expedition to follow 123,000 migrating caribou across Canada and Alaska? Very carefully.Being Caribou: ANWR Or Bust
Will he keep up? Karsten Heuer embarks on an audacious 1,200-mile expedition-cum-caribou chase.The Wild List: A Guide To The Best Outdoor Spots
A definitive guide to the hottest, sweetest, looniest, and most colorful spots in the great outdoors.Dreams Of Tibet: Exploring Lost Himalayan Mountains And Cultures
Deep in the heart of the forbidden Tibetan kingdom, a long-awaited adventure inherited from the author's father takes an unexpected twist.Trapped! The Mike Turner Story
Deep in Wyoming's Wind River Range, an accident with a sliding boulder makes a hiker confront his life, his fate, and his faith in God.Challenge The Backpacker Editor: The Ultralight Report
Torrential rain and wind expose chinks in our author's ultralight armor, but don't dampen his enthusiasm for the pleasures of unencumbered trekking.Avalanches: The Big Slide
Watching snow fall is a backcountry joy--unless it's barreling 80 mph down a mountain and you're in its path.The View No More
How America's tragedy affected one New Jersey hiker.HIking British Columbia's Savage Coast
Hike a rugged, historically rich trail for 21 miles along a nearly deserted island off British Columbia's coast.Keeping Utah's Outdoor Secret
Should secret wildernesses be revealed? Utah's Anasazi artifact hotbed Cedar Mesa begs the question.Lost Soul Or Yukon Slasher?
When you're deep in the wilds, a bedraggled stranger wandering into camp triggers a moral dilemma: Offer him dinner or run for the hills?Hike To Protect Wilderness From Drilling
How many miles of trail or acres of wilderness will we sacrifice for a tank of gas? Here's a look at eight threatened wildernesses and what you can do to stop the drilling.The Mountain Knows
When our firstborn son left us, the word "burial" was never uttered.Hiking Through Lessons Of Fire
Years and even decades after a forest fire, the healed land tells amazing tales about the benefits of flame.Firewalking: A Forest Fire's Aftermath
In an ancient cycle older than man, the fires that torched the West in summer 2000 are causing a dramatic and stunning rebirth of the once-charred landscape.Breathing Easy
A double lung transplant slows, but doesn't stop, Pacific Crest Trail hiker Dennis Coffey.Going Tribal
We know the strength that courses through flesh and bone when standing at a trailhead, ready to set out and practice our primitive art.David Brower's Last Interview
Activist and former backpacker David Brower reflects on his life in the political trenches and on the trails.Grand Canyon Magic
"With some eagerness, and some anxiety, and some misgiving, we enter the canyon below?." -John Wesley Powell, August 13, 1869Death On Montana's Granite Peak
High on a Montana mountain, the mystery of a long-lost climber continues to unravel for those willing to make the arduous trek and search for clues that literally lie at your feet.Just Go
Sometimes, despite all the commitments and obligations, you know what you have to do.Ironwoman Senator Of The Yukon
Compared with the rough-and-tumble Chilkoot Trail, the Senate is a walk in the park for Ione Christensen.Wilderness: Access For All
Should we pave the wilderness and install escalators for the disabled? No, says a former backpacker.Quest For The Jackalope
Is the legendary jackalope the most endangered species in the Lower 48 or just an old cowboy tale that refuses to die?The Joy of Wilderness Music
In a strange way, music and wilderness go hand in hand.Wilderness Of Hope
Five troubled teens and three well-meaning volunteers head into the Colorado mountains, hoping the wilds will help heal the youngsters. But in the end, it's hard to tell whose lives were forever shaped by the experience, the youths or the adults.Love Thy Rattlesnake
Encountering a rattlesnake is a splendid moment in time, a cherished wilderness event--at least that's the view of Arizona researchers trying to change public perception of all things fanged.Bruce Babbitt: Not Your Average Bureaucrat
Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbit knows he can't please everyone. So rather than try, he spends his time righting environmental wrongs and preserving wildlands.Julia 'Butterfly' Hill Leaves Redwood Home
Protester celebrates victory in a two-year battle to save a giant redwood by coming back to earth.The Wisdom of Abo Dude
To all the techno-weenies with your space-age outdoor gear, Cody Lundin has some advice: For that day when your butt's on the line, you better know how to get primitive.Climbing: A Higher Calling
In every backpacker's life, there comes a time when you stare awestruck at a mountain and wonder, "What's it like to climb that sucker?"Tales Of A Wilderness Rescuer
After you've spent a cold, drizzly, miserable night searching for a lost or injured hiker, sometimes a few simple words of thanks make it all worthwhile.The Devil Wore Sneakers
Last time you went looking for a new place to hike, you probably consulted a guidebook. We all do. So why is author Michael Kelsey getting lambasted for giving us what we want?The Mother of All Beginner Trips
Imagine that your well-coiffed, country club mother calls and says, "I want to go backpacking." Would it be your worst nightmare or a family dream come true?Solo Hiking Alaska: Fear Walked With Me
A once-in-a-lifetime solo hike through Lake Clark National Park, where the midnight sun shines like candlelight on the mountains.ANWR: Postcards From The Edge
Journey to Alaska's far northern edge, the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, where the midnight sun shines like candlelight on the mountains.Animal Rut: Doing The Wild Thing
They paw, prance, bang heads, and curl lips. The rut is on, and there's no better time to observe the wild kingdom.Yosemite: Treasure Of The Sierra
Forget what CNN and Your Daily News say about Yosemite's crowds and crime and traffic. the "treasure of the Sierra" is still a golden place for backpackers to escape.A Blank Spot On The Map
We travel to New Mexico's Aldo Leopold Wilderness to understand the roots of the preservation movement and see just how far we've come.Go Now! The Wilderness Life List
The 10 once-in-a-lifetime adventures any backwoods fanatic should have under his hipbelt before hanging up the ol' pack.Why Do Fireflies Glow?
Plus 24 other round-the-campfire brain stumpers every nature buff should know.You Can Leave Home Without It
Putting the Ray Jardine ultralight way to the test.Ultralight: The Ray Jardine Way
He rocked the world of climbing, challenged the accepted wisdom in sea kayaking, and now Ray Jardine turned his renegade way of thinking to backpacking.Paul Schurke: Chillin' With The Iceman
Your odds of surviving, much less enjoying, a -30°F night in the woods rate right up there with a snowball's chance in you-know-where. That is, unless you make friends with a guy they call The Iceman.Grand Staircase-Escalante: The Last Best Place
Utah's Grand Staircase-Escalante is huge, remote, controversial, and one of the finest destinations for backpackers in the Lower 48.Mt. St. Helens: The Cataclysm and Beyond
A trek through the blast zone of a restless volcano raises questions about a father's legacy and a child's future.Gall Wasps In Trees
What makes those golf-ball-size lumps on trees? A tiny wasp with a lot of nerve.Praise For Porcupines
Even though they eat boots and pack straps, there's newfound appreciation for porcupines.Mountain Lions: Return Of The Ghost Cat
The mountain lion is the only North American predator that occasionally stalks humans. Do you have anything to fear?Big Bad Wolves?
On their own and with help from the government, wolves are reclaiming their former range. Should you worry?Canada's Lewis and Clark: Alexander Mackenzie
When it came to continent crossing, the noted U.S. explorers were a step behind Canada's Alexander Mackenzie. And until you hike his namesake trail, you can't truly appreciate the toughness of his journey or the magnitude of his accomplishment.
