| NATIONAL PARKS QUICKLINKS |
Top 3: Better in Winter
What off season? Bundle up and reap the benefits of colder weather in these snowy playgrounds.
Trail Mix: Great November Hikes in the West
Your region's go-now guide: See newts on the move in California and bears heading for lower elevation in Beartooths, MT
From the Field: West
Our trail scouts' top local hikes
Trail Mix: West
Your region's go-now guide.
America's Best Campsites
Park your tent in one of these 10 spots, and you'll be happy in the morning. Guaranteed.
Local Hikes
Jump-start your hiking season on these spring-ready trips from around the country.
Rip & Go: Oregon Coast Trail - Ecola State Park to Arch Cape, OR
Slip past tides along cliffy coasts on an easy-to-plan long weekend.
Ultimate Adventure Handbook: Climb Big Trees
Discover a higher world.
Ultimate Adventure Handbook
Tired of the same old weekend loops? Looking to create memories your grandkids will talk about? In this how-and-where guide, we serve up 15 extraordinary escapes that will shatter your expectations of "normal." From adventure moviemaking to canyoneering, we'll take you places you've never been—but will long to visit again soon.
Readers' Choice 2012: Your Neck of the Woods - West Hikes
Climb an 11,000-foot peak, hike to a secret summit, see the glacier-capped Cascades, soak in hot pools, and explore the ruins of a 100-year-old resort.
Online Exclusive: Readers' Choice 2012: Eli Boschetto's Five Favorite Hikes in the West
Five more must-do hikes from our top field correspondent, who's notched more than 1,800 trail miles throughout the West and mapped 116 trips.
Perfect 10: North America's 10 Most Memorable Hikes
Ten trails. Ten unmatched miles each. Get maximum bang for each boot step on hikes that our most-traveled contributors call their all-time favorites.
Rip & Go: Broken Top Loop - Deschutes National Forest/Three Sisters Wilderness, OR
Cross ancient lava fields on a lake-filled weekend.
Going to Extremes
Can you ever really have too much of a good thing? Once you've seen the biggest tree, largest glacier, and deepest canyon, nothing else compares.
Rip & Go: Rock and Serene Lakes Loop - Mt. Hood National Forest, OR
Discover real wilderness just two hours from Portland.
Local Hikes: West
Hike these long trails in Washington, Oregon, and California, and climb to a 10,064-foot peak in Angeles National Forest.
America's Best-Kept Secrets
The only thing better than enjoying the life-list scenery in the country's premier national parks? Getting that same scenery, minus the crowds. Find it in these 10 backcountry hotspots, along with no-hassle permits, choice campsites aplenty, and solitude to match the world-class terrain.
Right Place, Perfect Time: Best River Paddle
Hit Idaho's Owyhee River just right, and you get one of the West's best paddles to yourself.
America's Best-Kept Secrets: Eagle Cap Wilderness, OR
Local Hikes: West
See California dunes, Nevada red-rock canyons, Alaska's deep forest, quiet Oregon Coast, and Washington's Cascade lakes.
Trip Finder: Northwest
Your favorite Northwest hikes—from dayhikes to weekenders to multiday trips.
Readers' Choice: Northwest
The undisputed local experts—you—choose the top parks, trails, campsites, and weekend getaways in the Northwest.
Natural Wonders: Hells Canyon, OR/ID
Hike into North America's deepest river gorge--a canyon that could hold five stacked Sears Towers.
Local Hikes: Portland, OR
The best hikes near Portland.
Local Hikes: Northwest
The best hikes in Northwest, as suggested by the best local hiking clubs.
Top 3 Trailhead Pub Hikes: Buttermilk Falls SP, NY
Explore waterfall-filled Gorges with fossils preserved in the shale walls.
Top 3 Trailhead Pub Hikes: The Barr Trail, CO
Climb a fourteener for a view across the continental divide.
Top 3 Trailhead Pub Hikes: Deschutes River Trail, OR
Hike streamside near pacific northwest greenery and caribbean-blue eddies.
Local Hikes: New Hikes Near You
Our army of reader-reader scouts mapped 59 local hikes from South Carolina to Northern California. See their favorites, then learn how to download tracklogs and waypoints.
Local Hikes: Northwest
See five volcanoes, camp at secluded lakes, and hike through a swarm of butterflies. (Click linked trips for GPS waypoints, photos, and more.)
The Best Cities To Raise An Outdoor Kid
Which towns offer the ideal mix of accessible trails, inspiring teachers, and great recreational resources? We worked with The Outdoor Foundation to identify America's top 25 places to beat nature deficit disorder.
Northwest Readers' Choice Trips
Crashing waterfalls, hidden lakes, and a choice Denali view highlight the 2010 Northwest Readers' Choice hikes.
Readers' Choice Northwest: Golden Larches - Alpine Lakes Wilderness, WA
See this deciduous pine turn electric-yellow.
Readers' Choice Northwest: Wahtum Lake, OR
Find primo lakeside camping on a rainforest-to-alpine loop.
Readers' Choice Northwest: Lost River Range, ID
Want guaranteed peace and quiet? Hike to two of the Lower 48's most remote alpine lakes.
Readers' Choice Northwest: South Spur, Mt. Adams, WA
Climb the Northwest's tallest nontechnical volcano.
Wonderland Trail, Mt. Rainier National Park
This classic alpine loop belongs on every backpacker's tick list.
Readers' Choice Northwest: Hannegan Peak and Copper Ridge - North Cascades NP, WA
Enjoy unparalleled views from one of the country's finest skyline trails.
Natural Wonders: Blowholes, Salmon Runs, & Wine Country
Hawaii's Nakalele blowhole rivals Old Faithful. Plus: Trek to Oregon's salmon run and California's wine country.
Natural Wonders: The Pacific Northwest's Salmon Run
Every year the salmon of the Pacific Northwest return to their birth place to spawn. See this natural phenomenon and a river of fish on an easy hike through tall pines.
The Wild Edge: Exploring Portland's Forest Park
When urban trails blend with raw wilderness, the sum is much greater than the parts.
Your Daily Tread: Local Hikes Across the U.S.
What's better than hiking every weekend? Hiking every day. Here are the best big-city escapes from New York to Los Angeles. Plus: Bill Donahue explores the remote reaches of Portland's Forest Park and discovers secrets even locals don't know.
Top 3 Family Dayhikes
Pack up your brood for a day in the outdoors with these kid-friendly trails.
Vote on America's Best Trail
For our 2010 Readers' Choice issue we want to know your favorite trail in America.
Natural Wonders: Ice Caves, Bison, and Huckleberries
Three treks to life-list phenomena
Where Solitude Rules - Lonely Summits
You won't find bottlenecks on these untrammeled peaks.
Top 3 Dune Hikes
Trek through a trio of wilderness playgrounds on shape-shifting mountains of sand.
America's Newest Wilderness
A quick guide to the best acres, trails, and views.
Hike It, Save It: Red Buttes, Oregon/ California
Threatened by OHVs, logging, and overgrazing a 120,000-acre proposed addition to Red Buttes Wilderness would quintuple its size and benefit the Pacific Crest Trail.
Top Cities to Raise A...
Does your kid want to be an ice climber? How about a thru-hiker, or paddler? These cities have just what you need.
The Best Cities to Raise an Outdoor Kid: The Winning 25
From Boulder to Juneau to Bozeman, see which cities made the cut for the best place to raise an outdoor kid, and why.
Swimming Hole Hikes
Time to cool down. Hike to these refreshing swimming holes and settle right into summer.
Adventure Weekends: Luxury Hiking and Camping
We've got a selection of cozy shelters and trail-side restaurants from Washington to Maine. Check out these hikes in the Rockies, the Northeast, and the Northwest.
Bioluminescent Organisms: 3 Living Lights
According to folklore, the soft light emitted by bioluminescent organisms is magical. In reality, the eerie glow results from a chemical reaction–but it still looks enchanting on a moonless or cloudy night. Here's where to glimpse these living light bulbs.
Readers' Choice Awards 2009
Discover the best hike in every state, as voted by BACKPACKER readers. Plus: your essential gear, most desirable tentmate, worst-ever adventure movie, and our picks for the best reader-submitted photos.
Weekend Snow Climbs in the Pacific Northwest, Rockies, and Northeast
Pack snowshoes for these nine epic treks to snowy solitude in the Pacific Northwest, Rockies, and Northeast.
Party Peaks
Ten perfect summits for your next group hike
Trip Finder: Indian Summer Hikes
Fall camping season seems to go on forever with these fair-weather weekend trips.
Hike and Raft Oregon's Rogue River
A killer whitewater trip at the end of a stunning 40-mile canyon hike? That's the scenario on Oregon's Rogue River Trail.
Trip Finder: Wildflowers
Trek the best spring blooms from the Ozarks to the Olympics with these two, three, and four day treks.
Best Damn Weekend Ever: Oregon's Crater Lake
Circumnavigate Oregon's Crater Lake on snowshoes
Time 2 Go See Wild Horses
From Florida to Wyoming, track wild horses for four hours or 10 days.
Natural Wonders: Florida's Sea Turtle Capital
Witness the birthing of a species that shared the seas with dinosaurs.
Natural Wonders: The Southeast's Living-Dead Plant
See ferns that play dead, then dramatically come back to life.
Natural Wonders: America's Deepest Lake
Gaze into a 2,000-foot-deep tub of snowmelt.
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.
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.
Top 3: Fishing-Hole Hikes
Classic hike-in spots in Wyoming, South Carolina, and Oregon let you ditch the trail mix for pan-fried fish.
The 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.
America's Hardest Dayhikes
Push yourself on any of these challenging hikes
High Points: Mt. Hood, Oregon
Head through the Pearly Gates for a heavenly sunrise
Backpack Oregon's Alvord playa
A hike with an otherworldly desert, a striking escarpment, and hot springs
A Hiker's Guide To Surfing and Snorkeling
Use your backpacking skills at the best surfing, climbing, trail running, and even paragliding spots
Oregon, Silver Falls State Park
The beauty of this hike comes alive with the rain.
Hike Through Washington's Blue Mountains
City life got you down? Head for the quiet hills of southeastern Washington, where the air is clean, the water clear, and bighorn sheep outnumber hikers.
Best Backpacking In Oregon
Our comprehensive guide to the best backpacking you can find in Oregon.
Hiking Oregon's Bull Of The Woods Wilderness
If overpowering stillness is your thing, try the old-growth forests in Oregon's Bull of the Woods Wilderness.
Hiking The Pacific Crest Trail
Everything you'd want in a long trail.
Oregon's Badlands: Only The Lonely
You'd better like your own company, because that's all you'll have in Oregon's Badlands Wilderness Study Area.
Oregon's Volcanoes In Full Bloom
Vast meadows of wildflowers sprawl across the ridgetops and valley bottoms of the Three Sisters.
Oregon's Eagle Cap Wilderness
All trails lead to the top in this lake-lover's paradise.
Icebergs In Oregon: Chambers Lakes
Chambers Lakes are too cold for swimming, but a great place to watch 'bergs drift by.
Oregon's Columbia Wilderness Area
Waterfalls and old growth in this gorge-ous Oregon hideaway.
A Walk In Oregon's Volcanic Park
Hiking through Oregon's Jefferson Park puts you in the heart of what was once some pretty hot country.
Editor's Choice: Columbia River Gorge
Waterfalls and wonder: Both are plentiful in Oregon's Columbia River Gorge.
Oregon's Tillamook Forest: A Craggy Option
Everyone's heard of the Cascades, but no one seems to know about Tillamook State Forest.
Oregon's Steens Mountain: An Airborne Oasis
Steens looks like your average mountain, but hike up high and you'll find a hidden paradise.
Washington's Juniper Dunes: Not So High, But Dry
In a region known for soggy times, Juniper Dunes is a warm sandbox where you can dry out.
Short Hikes On The Pacific Northwest Trail
Only have a short time to tackle the Pacific Northwest Trail? Our guide will give you the best the PNT has to offer.
