Searching for "Destinations"

Hike of the Day: Mount Falcon near Denver, CO

Explore a parkland once proposed as the summer grounds for a second presidential White House.

Link three trails on this super-scenic 5.8-mile out-and-back located 19 miles southwest of the Denver skyline. You'll pass redrock monoliths, giant rockslabs, and a crumbling cornerstone marking the proposed site of a summer White House for Woodrow Wilson (never completed). Also enjoy big views of the Mile High City and, to the west, snowy Rocky Mountain peaks.  See turn-by-turn trail directions and more at www.backpacker.com/hikes/40401. Read Full Story...

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Friday, November 20, 2009 in: Destinations, Hike of the Day, Maps
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Hike of the Day: Closed Canyon in Big Bend Ranch State Park

Descend this slot canyon from Big Bend's scenic River Road toward the Mexican border and the raging Rio Grande.

Drop from the scorched Chihuahuan Desert into Closed Canyon on this short 1.4-mile dayhike in the western horn of Texas. Then scramble or wade around deep pools to views of the Rio Grande, the Mexico Border, and an optional rappel. See more trail details provided by map scout Melissa Gaskill at backpacker.com/hikes/479976. Read Full Story...

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Thursday, November 19, 2009 in: Destinations, Hike of the Day, Maps
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Hike of the Day: Hadley Mountain in the Adirondacks

This family-friendly hike climbs to Hadley Mountain Fire Tower and showcases expansive views of the Adirondack High Peaks and Great Sacandaga Lake.

Ascend 1.5 miles to Hadley Mountain, an Adirondack peak with wide-open views of Great Sacandaga Lake, the High Peaks, and Lake Champlain. A fire tower stands on the southern end of this broad mountaintop. Climb six sets of stairs to reach.... Read Full Story...

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Wednesday, November 18, 2009 in: Destinations, Hike of the Day, Maps
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Hike of the Day: Trail of Ten Falls in Oregon

A classic waterfall hike in Silver Falls State Park, the Trail of Ten Falls visits 11 cascades and tours lush forests sprinkled with vibrant wildflowers.

Map contributor Eli Boschetto of Portland, Oregon calls this 7.7-mile loop in Silver Falls State Park one of his favorite dayhikes. It's a waterfall lover's--and photographer's--nirvana, featuring spectacular views above, below, and behind cascades of all shapes and sizes. See more photos and turn-by-turn trail beta at backpacker.com/hikes/448668. Read Full Story...

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Tuesday, November 17, 2009 in: Destinations, Hike of the Day, Maps
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Oh, The Pain: Gear Testing in Switzerland

BACKPACKER editors put the year's best gear through its paces with the finest Swiss cheese, sausages, beer, and—oh yeah—hiking

Backpacking in Switzerland's Grindelwald region—probably boring.

Set your jealousy detectors to overload: Last week, BACKPACKER editors jumped the pond to test all the latest n' greatest gear you (and me) haven't even seen yet in the land of Alpinism's birth—Switzerland! Of course, Der Schweiz offers much more than chocolate, cheese, and neutrality. Miles and miles of skyscraping mountains, tumbling glaciers, and rugged trail in the Grindelwald region ensured a perfect testing ground for our crew to determine which pieces of gear will win next year's coveted Editors' Choice Awards.

All of which couldn't stop our fearless, globe-trotting editors from sampling the finest in said cheese and chocolate, plus buckets of beer, sausage, and pretty much every other gourmet pleasure you can imagine—they just packed it in with them. Herewith, impressions from our editors on the Swiss backpacking experience: Read Full Story...

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Thursday, November 05, 2009 in: Gear, Destinations
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The ABCs of Glaciers

'Moraines.' 'Tarns.' 'Dirt Cones.' These are just a few of the glacial features I witnessed in Alaska.

To avoid falling in a crevasse (above), it's helpful to know what one is.

Luckily, that was a lesson I didn't have to learn the hard way. The word "crevasse" has become decidedly mainstream, at least when you work at BACKPACKER.

But I'd never witnessed a dirt cone or an actual glacial moraine until I traveled to Alaska this past August with Steve Howe. I had only a shallow understanding of what a tarn is or an icefield. Read Full Story...

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Wednesday, September 16, 2009 in: Destinations
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Cool Video: Arctic Surfing

First Ascent sends surfers to conquer waves at the frozen ends of the Earth--literally

Admittedly, surfing usually falls outside the purview of BACKPACKER—but one would also think it's beyond the range of Whittaker Mountaineering as well. Apparently not: First Ascent (the new Eddie Bauer/Whittaker Mountaineering brand dedicated to expedition mountaineering) expanded beyond mountains to sponsor five surfers who hope to nab untouched big waves beyond the Arctic Circle.

Luckily, they've documented their frozen ocean journey to the icy beaches of Norway, Russia, and beyond in a beautifully-shot film—call it Endless Winter. Check out Part 1:



Read Full Story...

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Tuesday, September 08, 2009 in: News and Events, Destinations
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Trip Report: Alska by Glacier

A multi-day glacier backpacking trip is a lesson in sleeping surfaces, dining options, and the notion of civilization.

Last Saturday night I slept here.
On a glacier's edge (the Castner Glacier), in rainy, sun-never-sets Alaska on a sleeping pad with a fast leak. I'm pretty sure the location of this tent was chosen, by my trip mate Steve, for its cinematic purposes–not for my safety.

Steve fastened the tent to the ground with rocks. Secure? Yes. Safe? Not when you're wearing half-laced moon boots and need to make a mad dash to the nearest, uh, rock.


On Sunday night I slept here: The Lodge at Black Rapids.
It was the nicest piece of real estate I saw in all of Alaska. (No, I didn't see the Governor's mansion.) The lodge had big cushy beds, down comforters, and lots of pillows. Steve didn't sleep so well; I did.

These two pictures represent just some of the contrasts I experienced on a multi-day backpacking, car-camping, lodge-napping tour of glacial Alaska I recently returned from.
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Tuesday, August 25, 2009 in: Destinations
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Hike Vermont's Long Trail!

New England hikers, rejoice: Every mile of this Vermont classic hike is now live on BACKPACKER.com.

Berne Broudy, hard at work on the Long Trail.

250 miles of trail, 200 waypoints, 135 photos—that's how much it took for BACKPACKER's Green Scene blogger Berne Broudy to map Vermont's classic Long Trail, which traverses the lush forests, stony peaks, and clear lakes and streams of the entire Green Mountain State.

That's good news for New England ramblers, because the fruits of her labor are live and online at www.backpacker.com/longtrail. You'll notice we also split the trail into 12 major sections for your reading pleasure. Thru-hikers can download the whole massive trail, while section hikers and casual trampers hoping to knock off a smaller portion of the scenic trail can peruse each section to find their their ideal hike. Read Full Story...

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Wednesday, August 19, 2009 in: News and Events, Destinations
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The Trail as Marketplace

Why I'm paying $25 to go to a crowded Fruita, CO mountain biking festival, when I could save the cash and play on the same trails for free.

It's not for the free socks. Or the token beer ticket. And the live music is generally awful.

But for the last three years–OK two, we didn't pay one year–my husband and I, plus a handful of renegade friends, have pilgrimaged over 6 hours to attend the Fruita Fat Tire Festival, paying to be bona fide guests of a free public trail system.

In addition to the $25 entry fee, we shell out for the campsite, for gas, and to purchase excessive amounts of high-calorie food and drink. Inevitably, one of us has to buy a new bike accessory for the event (this year: grips), and if we tack on a visit to Moab we plunk down another few Benjamins.

All this to ride the same, admittedly amazing, trails that we could ride any other weekend of the year without paying festival fees and battling the crowds at restaurants and on the trails. Why?
Read Full Story...

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Thursday, April 23, 2009 in: Destinations
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