A video of eight-legged creepy-crawlies clustering on a backpacker’s tent in Lake Clark National Park and Preserve last month had arachnophobic hikers vowing to stay a thousand miles away. But look a little closer, and you might just gain a new appreciation for the Alaskan wilderness.
The weather's getting colder, and that means your packing and planning strategies have to change. Steer clear of these backpacking mistakes for a smoother transition to fall.
Make your headlamp pull double-duty as a warm, inviting light for camp gatherings with these low or no-weight techniques.
Signed into law earlier this week, Assembly Bill 618 aims to make it easier for campers to snag a site—and will allow the state to punish visitors who don’t call to cancel.
An outbreak of norovirus on the Pacific Crest Trail proves that hikers’ hygiene routines need an upgrade.
After Oregon agreed to provide wolves to Colorado, state officials say they will be ready to begin releasing the animals between late 2023 and early 2024.
Starting on October 2 week, 12 of Alaska’s chubbiest bruins will face off in a bracket for the title of Fat Bear Week Champion. Here’s what you need to know about the history of the competition, the science behind bears’ fall feasting, and the tournament’s undisputed GOAT.
Enjoy an easy-to-make spin on a classic campfire treat—no kindling necessary.
This vegetarian campfire dessert comes together with two convenience-store ingredients.
This month, nonprofit The Conservation Fund announced it had acquired 300 acres of land on Colorado’s popular Mt. Democrat, permanently opening it to hikers after a series of closures. But the future of its neighboring mountains is anything but certain.
In July, Colorado’s popular Decalibron Loop, a 7.5-mile trail that crosses private property to tag multiple Fourteeners, reopened to hikers after a months-long closure over liability concerns. Last week, someone got their pickup truck stuck on it.
All newcomers to the outdoors make mistakes. But if you need to be told “don’t sprint full speed at a mother bear,” we’re sorry, but you are beyond help.
Heavy rainfall led to flash flooding in Bryce Canyon National Park and a canyon northeast of Moab, with disastrous consequences for hikers.
Making your own camp stove out of a cat food or soda can used to be a rite of passage for backpackers. But with canister stoves getting lighter and cheaper—and fire bans getting more and more common—one Backpacker editor argues their time has come. (Plus: Another editor dissents.)
When soreness crosses over into genuine pain, it can turn the most pleasant hikes into teeth-gritting tests of endurance. Fight back with expert advice and exercises for tackling 8 different types of ache.
The park announced that rangers had found "evidence of a black bear's presence" on top of the famous summit.
A proposed change in how Zion handles backcountry permits could raise prices for some groups by more than 400 percent—but solo hikers would get a break.
When a court struck down the public’s right to wild camp in Dartmoor National Park in January, hikers lost the only place in England where they could dispersed camp without getting the owner’s permission first. Now, an appeals court has given it back to them.
Light up your tent, camp kitchen, and more with these versatile lights.
Wildlife officers are looking for the bear and cub involved after a hiker found the victim’s body in a popular hiking and off-roading area.
The heat was so extreme that a rescue helicopter couldn’t even fly to the site of the incident.
In a viral PSA, Yosemite National Park urged hikers to knock over rock cairns. Days later, staff at Canyonlands and Arches asked hikers not to. What's a backpacker to do?
Live electric wires and bridge damage are among the hazards that trail crews have found so far—but it’s not all bad news.
Authorities are trying to determine what caused the deaths of three "mummified" people found in a remote campsite near Gunnison this week.
The death is the third snow-related fatality that local search and rescue has responded to over the past three weeks.
With its warm temperatures and long days, summer is the perfect season for backpackers to try going ultralight. Here’s how to make your pack lighter now without spending a fortune on new gear.
Rangers are urging hikers to follow safety rules after an unleashed dog “provoked” a black bear into fatally attacking a hiker’s leashed dog.
Extremely high water levels in Maine have shut down the famous Kennebec River canoe shuttle—and almost ended one section hiker’s trip permanently.
For hikers around the world, today isn't just the first day of summer: It's Hike Naked Day. Here's what you need to know before joining in the festivities.
Students in the Semester-A-Trail program at Emory and Henry College will spend their spring and summer semesters hiking part or all of the Appalachian Trail—with gear, support, and an on-trail budget included in tuition.
This bear has learned to appreciate the trail no matter the conditions, and we could all stand to learn from them.
In a typical June, a little less than an inch and a half of snow falls on Mt. Washington. This year, the peak has seen more than six times that much—and there are still two weeks to go.
The answer isn’t as obvious as it was five years ago
A widely-circulated article ranks parks by the total deaths they saw in a ten-year period. But those numbers don’t tell the real story.
If you’ve never forgotten an important piece of gear, you will someday. Here’s how to make do without your tent poles, sleeping pad, and more—and how to decide when it’s time to give up and go home.
Dubbed "Doo Colorado Right," the state is hoping its new campaign will deter people from leaving human waste where other hikers end up stepping in it.
With the Woods Creek and San Joaquin bridges out and creeks running too high to safely ford, hikers don't have many good options.
Incredibly, it's not the first time that a baby bison has been euthanized in the park after a visitor tried to "save" it.
This weekend's deaths mark the second double fatality in Buckskin Gulch this spring, and follow a string of rescues caused by wet conditions and flooding.
Yes: You can make pancakes on literally any stove, including a Jetboil. And you don't need a frying pan to do it, either—just a mug and this trick.
A group of young hikers who went missing near Ojai managed to call for help with Apple's Emergency SOS, which the company introduced with the iPhone 14 last year.
Social media is full of ridiculous “camping hacks” that won’t help you do anything but create a bunch of extra garbage. Embrace these editor-tested tricks for staying comfy in the backcountry instead.
Once again, food-seeking bears have forced the closure of part of the AT to overnight stays.
Roughly 84% of visitors at one popular national park are in favor of its new reservation system—and it could be a sign of things to come.
A heat signature in a dense forest led to the discovery of Matthew Read, who went missing in the park over the weekend.
From dense, moss-draped rainforest to misty, cliff-guarded beaches, the Oregon Coast Trail is 425 miles of pure Pacific beauty with a complicated story behind it.
Marta Renee Bowen had disappeared from her campsite in Connecticut, leaving behind her gear and cell phone.
Used correctly, frameless packs can be a great tool for ultralighters. Used incorrectly? Welcome to Shoulder Pain City, baby.
Wildlife officers have been unable to locate the mountain lion so far, and are urging hikers in the area to use caution.
Swapping out your tent for a shelter that sets up with trekking poles is a quick way to cut weight. But is it the right choice for you?
In one week, a Colorado search and rescue team had to perform three rescues on the same fourteener. The cause? The spring snowpack pulled off hikers' shoes, leaving them barefoot above treeline.
A rainy trip doesn’t need to be a miserable trip.
A group of hikers in England got so ill from taking mushrooms that a search and rescue team had to retrieve them. And they're not the first psychedelic enthusiasts to have a trip go wrong on the trail.
There’s no faster way to ruin your first big trip than by wearing shoes or boot that aren't up to the task. We break down what beginners need to know about buying their first pair of trail shoes.
It weighs nothing, saves you time and fuel, and lets you enjoy a piping hot meal instead of a lukewarm one.
It's been 50 years since we published the first issue of Backpacker. What will the backcountry look like in another half-century? Our editor speculates.
Backpackers carry ultralight tents, backpacks, and quilts. Is it really so weird to hike with an ultralight dog?
Why is our editor so in love with the Guyot Designs Squishy Bowls? They're easy to pack, insulating, and—best of all—indestructible.
After state legislators voted down a bill that would have blocked hikers from suing private landowners over injuries, the owner of two of Colorado’s most popular summits says he’ll close the trail to the top.
National park visitation continued its overall climb toward pre-pandemic levels in 2022, but not every park saw visitor numbers increase.
With California in the midst of one of its snowiest winters on record, a local search and rescue group is urging early-season thru-hikers not to risk crossing the San Jacinto Mountains.
Think you can’t get bitten by a tick in the winter? As one surprise discovery this month shows, they’re waking up—and biting—earlier and earlier.
Philip Powers argued that the wildfire he set in 2018 was necessary to save his life. But a court found that he was so unprepared, he created his own emergency.
Located off the coast of the Everglades, the Sandfly Island Loop is an intro to sea kayaking that even beginners can do.
The frameless Mustang Survival Highwater 22L is the best of frameless backpacks and drybags in one slick package.
They’re big, scaly, and have a massive set of jaws. But as long as they take a few easy precautions, hikers and kayakers can coexist peacefully with gators.
A double helicopter rescue on Telescope Peak and a lost hiker on Wildrose illustrate that winter can be as hazardous as summer in this legendarily broiling park.
Getting lost on the trail after dark is a nuisance. As two dayhikers in Big Sur discovered this month, doing it without a headlamp can become an emergency.
With record low temperatures, unbelievably strong winds, and unusual weather patterns likely to drop the stratosphere to the level of the summit, it's a bad weekend to climb Mt. Washington.
For years, our editor thought toe socks looked dumb and were useless on the trail. After spending a winter testing them out, he's ready to admit that he was wrong about at least one of those things.
New Hampshire is one of the only states in the nation that regularly makes hikers it deems negligent pay for their own rescue. Now, legislators are considering suspending their driver's licenses if they don't pay. It's a dangerous policy, our editor says.
Hikers who had their trips canceled by Covid closures will get first crack at a new date—though others may be able to score a cancellation.
Yes, really. Taking your cat hiking is easier than you think. Just follow these trail-tested tips.
Dartmoor National Park was the only place in England or Wales where hikers could camp freely without landowner permission. A lawsuit just changed that.
James Alan Cattley was reported missing on December 12, but may have disappeared months earlier.
Take a walk in another hiker’s boots in these insightful pieces.
A Bentonville, Arkansas man who led a 31-person hike along the Buffalo National River where one participant died will face sentencing in March.
Cocaine Bear's first trailer shows a bloodthirsty, intoxicated bruin rampaging through the forest. But how much of the based-on-a-true-story movie is real?
Indian Garden will be known as Havasupai Gardens following a government decision.
National Park Service doesn't suspect foul play in the death of Il Hun Ro.