Beginner's Guide to Winter Camping, Part II: Gear Up
Picking the right equipment is key to having fun in the snow.
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Reader's Choice Issue Free And Online Now!
BACKPACKER's January issue features trips, skills, photos, and more from our best sourceyou!
Hike of the Day: Georgia's Panther Creek Trail
Count five waterfalls--including one of Georgia's most scenic--on this 10.8-miler in Chattahoochee National Forest. Go midweek for more solitude.
Trail Chef: Greek Beef With Lemon Couscous
Take Mediterranean taste on the trail with this reader recipe
Big Mountains, Big Sky, And A Whole Lotta Sheep
'Sweetgrass' chronicles 'last ride of the American cowboy' in Montana's Absaroka-Beartooth Range
Vasque Outdoor Footwear Mindbender
The Khumbu is an all-terrain mountain boot with a design that promotes comfortable walking for any kind of adventure.
Vasque Outdoor Footwear Sundowner GTX
The Khumbu is an all-terrain mountain boot with a design that promotes comfortable walking for any kind of adventure.
Reader Essays: How to Botch a Gear List
Carl Mandrioli can teach (almost) anyone to pack the right stuff.
Janyary/February 2010
Check out Katie Herrel's author page.
Reader Essays: Close Encounter
Paula Patterson learns how to share the trail–but not her tent–with the wildlife.
Reader Essays: Yogi, Meet the Kids
Finding it hard to get the whole family out for a hike? Let Danny Griffs show you the way.
17-year-old Conquers Seven Summits
Utahn Johnny Collinson becomes the youngest person atop all Seven Summits
Beginner's Guide to Winter Camping; Part I: Get Outside!
We drop some wisdom and gets you inspired in this beginner's guide.
Help The AT Win A Million Bucks
Febook users can vote for the Appalachian Trail Conservancy to win a charitable contest from Chase Bank
The North Face Mercurial Liner Bag
It packs down as small as a summer bag and weighs just two pounds
The North Face Hotlum
It packs down as small as a summer bag and weighs just two pounds
Scare A Bear? There's An App For That
New Jersey lawyer develops iPhone substitution for bear bells and air horns
Lunchbox's Disaster Round-Up, 01-18
The beloved star of our in-book feature "The Predicament," Lunchbox the Cadaver Sniffing Dog, brings you a round-up of this week's outdoor predicaments, disasters, and near-misses
Surviving is a strange and wonderful thing
A video exploration of the link between skill and survival value
Backpacker Photo School: Get A Great Tripod For Less
Ready to upgrade your tripod? Figure out which one you want because now is the time to buy.
Man vs. Stairs
Bear Grylls shows you the ropes of urban survival in Discovery's 'Worst Case Scenario'
The Price Of Climbing Rushmore
11 Greenpeace activists who climbed Mt. Rushmore to hang a 'stop global warming' banner face $400 fines, community service
Think the BPA Scare is Bogus?
scientists link BPA to heart disease
Green Gear: Nemo's Ditto Wallet
an ultralight billfold made from tent scraps
Help Haitians Survive
Too many cameras and not enough food: Change that.
Trail Chef: Coriander and Cilantro Frybread
Try this scrumptious, hot bread as a dipping side or all by itself
Choose Your Tortillas Wisely
Monsanto GMO corn linked to organ failure
2010 Reader Photo Contest
Your best shots: BACKPACKER readers have been to some spectacular places and here's the proof from more than 700 submissions.
Hike of the Day: Eagle Mountain in the Boundary Waters
Tag the highest peak in Minnesota on this 6.6-mile hike, which courses under a coniferous forest and past a glacial lake with nice backcountry campsites.
Caption This Photo! Week 13
'I love my hiking boots with wheels!'
Gear Test: Float-testing A Tent
Contributing Editor John Harlin reveals groundbreaking tent-testing technique...in his swimming pool.
West Coast Reader Map Team
Check out Katie Herrel's author page.
Southeast Reader Map Team
Check out Katie Herrel's author page.
How Do I Keep Meat Cold On a Long Trip?
I am going on a week-long trip at around 10,500 feet elevation and we'll be using mules to carry our gear. Any suggestions on how to keep our food cold so we can carry perishables such as steak/chicken etc?
Northwest Reader Map Team
Check out Katie Herrel's author page.
Your Most Pressing Bear Questions, Answered
Real reader bear questions answered by Buck Tilton.
Hiker Finds Explosives
San Diego hiker stumbles on unidentified bombs, uses GPS coordinates to relay location to authorities
Your Best Advice: Reader Tips
Backpacker readers share their hiking, camping, gear, bear bagging, and firestarting tips.
Top Chefs: Reader-Submitted Recipes
We taste-tested a stack of your recipe submissions–everything from pasta to pub food. These four winners emerged as the best of the bunch.
Weekend Backpacks
Ten reader-testers hiked nearly 1,000 miles to rate new midsize load haulers. Their five picks: five models that deliver comfort, affordability, and convenience.
4 Ultralight Sleeping Bags
4 featherweight sleepers for all types of ounce-counters, spring through fall.
Your Favorite Places: Readers' Choice Trips 2010
Who knows the secret trails and must-do classics in every corner of the country? Our teams of regional experts, recruited from the ranks of readers like you. Here are their top hikes from coast to coast.
Midwest Readers' Choice Hikes
Mississippi river vistas, ocean-size grasslands, and guaranteed solitude.
Mountain West Readers' Choice Hikes
A weekend in Glacier, a quiet 14er, and the Rockies' best hot springs.
Northeast Readers' Choice Hikes
A state high point, killer foliage, and a hike loaded with waterfalls
Hike of the Day: Mount Greylock
Charge up Mount Greylock, the highest peak in Massachusetts.
Northwest Readers' Choice Trips
Crashing waterfalls, hidden lakes, and a choice Denali view highlight the 2010 Northwest Readers' Choice hikes.
Southeast Readers' Choice Hikes
Colossal trees, sweet swimming holes, and the USA's best picnic spot.
West Coast Readers' Choice Hikes
The world's prettiest shoreline, giant pines, and Yosemite's premier view.
West Coast Readers' Choice Hikes: Kalalau Trail, HI
Hike Hawaii's all-world coast to a secluded beach.
West Coast Readers' Choice Hikes: The Ruby Crest Trail, Humboldt NF, NV
Explore lonely alpine scenery in this off-the-radar wilderness.
West Coast Readers' Choice Hikes: Thru-hike the John Muir Trail, CA
Trek 211 miles through hiker heaven.
West Coast Readers' Choice Hikes: California's Giant Sequoias, Sugarbowl Loop, Kings Canyon NP
Take a lightly trafficked trail into the word's biggest grove.
West Coast Readers' Choice Hikes: Sentinel Dome, Yosemite NP
Bag a granite peak with big views and small crowds.
Lakes Trail to Pear Lake, Sequoia National Park
Get a highlights tour of the High Sierra backcountry.
Ramsey Cascades, Great Smokies, TN
See big water, massive trees, and tiny amphibians.
Mt. Rogers NRA, VA
Celebrate the arrival of summer with an unrivaled circus of color.
Max Patch Bald, NC
Have a picnic on one of the Southeast's biggest balds.
Clingmans Dome to Silers Bald, TN
Bag four scenic peaks in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Thru-hike the Florida Trail
See wild, historic surprises in the Sunshine State.
Ask A Bear: Can Bears Get Drunk?
Bears, beers, and booze—our resident bruin expert tells all in our 'Ask A Bear' column.
Raven Ridge – Blackbird Knob Loop Dolly Sods Wilderness, WV
See a Great White North south of the Mason-Dixon.
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.
Northeast Reader Map Team
Check out Katie Herrel's author page.
Hike of the Day: Miccosukee Greenway Loop near Tallahassee
Hike through shady sweet-gum forest and rolling grasslands on this 6.5-miler along the premier canopy road of the Red Hills region.
Readers' Choice Northeast Hikes: Ricketts Glen State Park, PA
22 falls in a one day. Need we say more?
Readers' Choice Northeast Hikes: Panther Gorge and Mt. Marcy, Adirondack Park, NY
Bag New York's high point and two other big peaks.
Readers' Choice Northeast Hikes: Bernard Mountain, Acadia National Park, ME
Hike to a crowd-free view of the ocean.
Readers' Choice Northeast Hikes: Vermont's Green Mountains Foliage
Ogle fiery color in the Green Mountains.
Readers' Choice Northeast Hikes: Maine's 100-Mile Wilderness
Explore the Appalachian Trail's wildest stretch.
Readers' Choice Northeast Hikes: Burroughs Range Loop, Catskill Mountain Preserve, NY
Scramble to the Catskills' highest peaks.
Readers' Choice Mountain West Hike: Santa Maria Spring, Grand Canyon NP
Gaze into the world's most beautiful labyrinth.
Readers' Choice Mountain West: Mr. Bubbles, Yellowstone NP
Relax in an effervescent bath far from the dayhiking crowds.