Fall/Winter Gear Guide 2012
261 reviews and camping tips
261 reviews and camping tips
Learn to use standard household items to survive with these pro tips from Stewart.
Grand to Grand Ultra is a 160-mile stage race from the Grand Canyon’s North Rim to the highest point in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument--and we have a free race entry to give away!
Skip the new wrench sets and the flowery ties. Give the man on your list something that he’ll really be stoked about. We’ve got a slew of great dad-tested gift ideas starting at $20
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Get everything you need and nothing you don't in one of these ultralight, ultracomfortable packs.
Ultralight, affordable, and idiotproof. What's not to like?
Feed the troops or go gourmet–these pots do both.
Tackle slick terrain with confidence–and a light load.
Couples camping just got a whole lot better–and lighter–with this down bag built for two.
Zip-off pants? Yes, thanks to convertibles that finally bring form to the function.
Score an ultralight tent for two—for less.
Get the right light on trail and in camp with this 2-in-1 lamp.
Fast and light and luxe: Get running-shoe comfort and hiking-boot stability.
The ultimate stove: anywhere, anytime, any gas
We've taken the best trips on backpacker.com and made them even better. Check out updated, interactive PRO trips and PRO bundles on GPS Trails. Use your Android or iPhone to discover these premium guides, or map your own adventures and share them with your friends.
Prevent six common adventure-travel risks.
Don't miss these affordable services, local haunts, and cultural highlights recommended by adventure-travel experts. Plus, bargaining 101.
Our bags logged thousands of miles–through airports and atop donkeys–and we came back with these top picks, from gigantic rollers and impervious duffels to laptop carriers and packable organizers.
A staff favorite, again and again.
This spacious shoulder bag holds a surprising 45L of goods.
This cargo hauler is outfitted with a surprising number of organizational features.
If you're mixing business with adventure travel, this is the bag for you.
This stable roller bag handles curbs and rough terrain with ease.
These ultralight storage sacks, made from water-resistant and strong Ultra-Sil fabric help you stay super organized.
Going far and going big, hauling monster loads? This is your bag.
When disaster strikes in the backcountry, don't pin your hopes on prayer. Your ability to spark a flame could be the difference between survival and six-feet-under.
Your body is a temple? Then your feet are the altar. Treat them right, and enjoy every hike from the first mile to the last.
Learn how to cope with relentless rain, and you can experience some of the Earth's holiest places–Alaska! Patagonia!–in comfort.
Join a long line of enlightened travelers who have navigated the wilderness–and discover a whole new world that lies beyond well-marked trails and guided trips.
Want your very own Eden? Here's how to go where–and when–others don't.
Who says spiritual travelers must shun earthly comforts? You just worked all day to reach a magnificent high-country cirque. Now create a campsite to match.
Get closer to the mystery of life: Put yourself spine-tingling distance from the fanged and clawed and horned.
Have you ever heard anyone wish he spent less time outdoors?
For hikers, pushing your limits will certainly yield more views–plus better fitness, confidence, and, perhaps, perspective.
Once you've been to the mountaintop, few other experiences will compare. For soul-cleansing, skill-building, life-affirming thrills, put a big one on your bucket list.
Backpacker's highest honor has now been bestowed on our favorite 10 pieces of cold-weather gear.
Hit the trail with your kids on these family-friendly hikes all over the country.
Three backcountry cooking tips that will guarantee easy and tasty meals
If you're camping with kids, this pizza is a must make.
Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even desert recipes that are easy and tasty campground meals.
Grab some dehydrated veggies, a little salsa, and some beef jerky for these tasty Fajitas.
Your favorite desert as a kid goes trail-side.
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Some quick-cooking rice and a handful of vegetables makes this a healthy trail lunch.
A bit of frozen chorizo extends your backcountry options.
A spicy peanut butter sauce makes this a light spaghetti dish that is excellent either hot or cold.
Boil-in-the-bag rice and beef jerky make this recipe a snap.
Make a double batch of this at home. Have it for dinner with your family then dehydrate half for your next few backpacking trips.
Plan hikes and backpacking trips, plus other outdoor adventures like never before on detailed, interactive topo maps and aerial photos.
We've picked the top 10 miles of North America's 10 most memorable hikes. Find your way to wilderness nirvana with these map and planning guides.
Want to improve your photography skills? Take this one-question poll to tell us what kind of interactive webinar you'd be interested in.
It's the final push. Complete the final week's challenge and get ready for next week's call to submit your video.
Week three of our five-week challenge will have you navigating obstacles and increasing mileage.
For big hauls these packs deliver.
Its design is a mash-up of features we like in luggage and a trail-ready backpack.
The Molimo fit everyone from beanpoles to fireplugs.
Rain, mud, rocks, snow, crampons. Some packs need to be coddled when faced with the wet, rough, and sharp. Not the Zealot.
The payload-to-weight-to-price of this pack is in a class by itself.
Its high-and-slim, alpine-style design easily kept 45 pounds close and stable as a tester scrambled up steep slopes and across tightrope-thin ridges.
This load monster's suspension is so dialed, it can induce a pleasant form of trail amnesia.
Whether you're loading for a local dayhike, a weekend in the wilderness, or a once-in-a-lifetime thru-hike, this year's class of packs redefines comfort.
Build on week one's regimen by mastering even more survival and navigation skills and improving your overall fitness level.
Rev up for the first week of our plan to make you the ultimate tough guy, or gal.
These packs will comfortably hold all your Friday-Sunday needs.
This pack is thousand-foot glissades and crampon/ice axe friendly.
A weekend pack that can handle overtime.
If you travel light and fast, this is your weekend pack.
An updated version of a previous Editors' Choice Awards winner.
Just $149 can buy you a great pack.
If you're an organizer, this is the pack for you.
For a day outside, grab one of these trail-tested packs.
The fit and comfort of this pack scored high with all our female testers.
A 15 liter daypack that's small, light, and tough.
A tough pack made for climbing rock.
If you only want one daypack, ever, this is your pack.
A 100-ounce reservoir makes this hydration pack the best of the bunch.
5 near-perfect pieces of gear in our 2011 Editors' Choice testing
Buy now, wear forever.
Get total weather protection for half the gas.