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Everything you need to eat well in the backcountry.

Feeling inspired by your hike? Here's how to protect more land.

Sure, regular old marshmallow/chocolate/graham treats are great. But you can do better.

Get big views and rack up long miles with these close-to-home adventures.

From dumplings to pasta, check out these three recipes for on-the-go goodness.

In part 1, our online editor sings the praises of three North Face shirts he wears everywhere...and we mean everywhere

Follow our fool-proof three-stage guide to getting your kids as psyched as you are about getting outside.

Get outside earlier and faster by taking less with you. Here's how to ditch excess gear and pack light, tasty food.

Team trips will help get you outside faster than solo outings.

If you want to hit the trail before everyone, you'll need to get your gear in gear. Here's how.

A little thought and planning in the office can put you on the trail earlier than everyone else. Get started with this primer from productivity experts.

We guarantee you can triple your trail time this summer. How? Our step-by-step guide solves every challenge–work overload, gear chaos, no partner, family demands–so you can enjoy more of what you live to do every weekend: hike.

A quick guide to the best acres, trails, and views.

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.

Urban sprawl and local opposition lead the threats to this 84,000-acre tract of Coronado National Forest.

A two-day, 17-mile zigzag along blueberry-lined mountain ridges will give you a dose of the 24,000-acre "Crown Jewel of the Monongahela," threatened by oil and gas drilling.

The biggest threat to his critical gap between the Weminuche and Uncompahgre Wilderness Areas? Off-highway vehicles.

Oil and gas development threaten these 65,000 acres. Float the Green River to see what's at stake.

On the Brooks Range's Arctic slop, coal mining and oil and natural gas drilling are threats to half a million caribou, and the Arctic's highest concentration of grizzlies.

Development, bureaucracy, and apathy threaten this Glacier-like mecca, home to grizzlies, fields of beargrass, and superlative alpine hiking.

Oil drilling and vacation homes threaten on of the last Chestnut tree bastions, a 5,191-acre proposed Wilderness Area in the Allegheny National Forest.

The thread to this Down East trail? Vacation homes. Passing through roughly 10 miles of private land that has yet to be protected, wilderness designation could neutralize the looming threat.

The threat to this 1.2 million acre wilderness? Oil Drilling. Hike to the top of 6,660-foot Alamo Mountain to see what's at stake.

It's never been easier to help save the wilderness–no donations, no petitions, no pulaski swinging required. The only thing you have to do is go backpacking.

Boulder's Matt Moniz, the youngest Aconcagua summiteer, hopes to bag 14 14,000-foot mountains in 14 days to help out his ailing best friend

Trek to the New Jersey border along PA's finest section of the AT.

Climb riverside bluffs in the South's oldest national forest.

Australia considers closing Uluru, or Ayer's Rock, to climbers

Dupe the daytrippers on this rugged trail to brilliantly colored backcountry cliffs and hoodoos.

Keep your salt, pepper, and sugar in this rugged, ultralight case.

Get these light knives, forks, and spoons without breaking the bank.

This pack-friendly mug keeps drinks hot and hands cool.

This cook kit provides a light solution for two-person dinners in the backcountry.

This better bottle survives freezing temps, doesn't absorb food smells, and can take a beating.

Camp cooking and cleanup goes much faster with Evernew's ceramic-coated pots.

This sustainable light gives cap-wearers a viable headlamp alternative.

This stove comes tailor-made for winter campers and high-altitude mountaineers.

Few stoves are tougher or more stable than the Brunton Raptor.

This tiny, fast stove performs great in poor weather.

The Optimus Crux Lite is meant for backcountry foodies who need precise cooking control.

If you need speed, this boil-test champ is your stove of choice.

Extremely lightweight and versatile, this stove can handle just about anything.

Could a trail-savvy terrorist hike a nuke into America through wilderness areas on the Canadian border? An anonymous hiker-patriot alerts the White House.

Don't leave it in the car–mobile phones are the latest essential rescue gear.

Explore South Dakota's 7,242-foot high point in a weekend or a day.

Regarding Giardia and crypto: Can one develop a tolerance or immunity to them? I remember drinking from streams as a child while fishing and hiking in the backcountry. Surely I couldn't have been lucky than many times.

Win a trip, camera, and more with the National Parks Foundation "Your Parks" Video Challenge

I know I'm supposed to use a bear canister all the time in bear country but they're really bulky. If I'm going on an overnight trip, do I really need one? And if I do, is there a sealable bag option that might work

Rangers in Maine's Acadia National Park tackle thieves who plunder rocks as souvenirs

Check out the world's hottest hydrothermal fumarole, Glacier's grizzlies, and a venus flytryp in North Carolina.

Trek through a trio of wilderness playgrounds on shape-shifting mountains of sand.

Climate change could push Bigfoot to the Rockies

With these top day, weekend, and week-long hikes, you'll see more than your fair share of Yosemite's wonders.

Yosemite Valley may be popular–rightfully so–but it still holds secrets. Hike this long-forgotten trail on the North Rim, and you'll have the granite icons to yourself.

A week aboard the Maine Schooner Mary Day can be pretty close to a carbon-neutral vacation

Craving a slice? Get your fix in the backcountry with these easy stovetop recipes.

Check out The Backpacker Editors's author page.

Three generations of American mountaineering royalty discuss their sport, their fears, and their new mission: design great gear.

I'm having my first child this summer, and I plan to hike and camp with her in the mountains as soon as she can hold her head up. How will I know if she's acclimatized to the altitude?

Treat dental problems–from minor to major–with these tips.

Wow your friends with this campfire cooking trick.

Improve the basic pie with cornmeal crust and fresh basil sauce.

Climbers set two records—most blind climbers and youngest blind climber at the top

Justin Timberlake, Jessica Biel hike in LA, while the NFL's commissioner attempts Rainier with the Seattle Seahawks' coach

Close encounters of the electrical kind highlight this Fourth of July - and lightning safety

Rocky Mountain State remains least obese in a rapidly swelling country

If Schwarzenegger shuts down California State Parks, the National Park Service might take past gifts back

See Honey, we were all hiking

Does your kid want to be an ice climber? How about a thru-hiker, or paddler? These cities have just what you need.

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.

Do's and Don't for a busy park season

Associate Editor/Bear Fighter Shannon Davis tests some of the latest and greatest schwag on his successful Mt. Rainier climb

Nepal could drop climbing fees for Everest, making them more competitive with Tibet

From Boulder to Juneau to Bozeman, see which cities made the cut for the best place to raise an outdoor kid, and why.

First question: How did over 100 hikers ever get lost?