The Bad Hiking Habits We’re Keeping in 2026
From refusing to use inflatable sleeping pads to packing enough just-in-case gear for our whole group, here are the things Backpacker's editors don't plan to change in 2026 even if we should.
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The Top Hiking Stories of 2025
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Start Your Year Outside: Where to Find a First Day Hike in All 50 States
Want to start 2026 on the right foot? There's no better way to do it than to kick off the year with a hike.
Three Hikers Found Dead on Mt. Baldy After One Fell 500 Feet
The fatality occurred in the notorious Devil's Backbone area of Mt. Baldy. The recovery mission is still underway.
Foot Pain While Hiking? This Tiny Bone Could Be the Culprit.
Cuboid syndrome can plague hikers. Here's how to recognize, treat, and prevent it.
When Did Ultralight Become About Buying More, Not Packing Less?
The market for ultralight gadgets has exploded in recent years. Has innovation gone too far?
Your First Backpacking Trip Will Probably Be a Disaster. Here’s Why That’s a Good Thing.
Backpacking for the first time might suck. That’s totally normal
I’m Over Calorie-Light Backpacking Meals
We're not counting them, but we sure could use more.
If You Can Do These Four Exercises, You’re Ready for Any Hike
Use this series of squats, leg bridges, planks, and calf raises to keep track of your training and you'll have trail-proof full-body strength in no time.
The Gear Backpacker’s Editors Loved in 2025
Layers, tents, meals: We asked our editors to pick their personal favorite backpacking gear of December and the year as a whole.
This Fitness Test Can Tell You How Strong of a Hiker You Are—and How to Get Fitter
Gauge your cardiovascular fitness to hone in on your training goals.
This Hated Holiday Food Is the Ultimate Hiking Snack
Made the butt of jokes and relegated to the discount aisle post-holiday, fruitcake may be the most disrespected confection of the Christmas season. But backpackers in the know understand this treat’s true power.
Wildlife
The Cocaine Bear Trailer Is Wild. The Real Story Is Weirder and Sadder.
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?
Fitness
The Best Hiking Workouts for Every Fitness Level
Reality check: Hitting the gym is the quickest way to hike farther, easier, faster, and pain-free. Get into a routine—or take yours to the next level—with these smart workouts for three different levels.
The Best Hikes
The Best Hikes in Joshua Tree National Park
Full of rock scrambles, cactus clusters, and desert views for days, Joshua Tree National Park is the southwest at its finest.
Backpacking Skills
Why You Should Use Trekking Poles
Ending too many hikes with sore, wobbly legs? Trekking poles can help you make it that extra mile.
Gear Round-Ups
The Best Hiking and Backpacking Gear of Winter 2026
From blizzard-ready tents to sleeping bags that can handle the coldest nights, this is the gear you can count on this season.
Trail Guides
The Ultimate Guide to Hiking the Zion Narrows
The Narrows at Zion National Park offers an incredible adventure in America's most amazing slot canyons. Here's how to safely explore them.
Survival Skills
How to Remove and Treat Thorns, Splinters, and Other Prick Wounds
Nature can be brutal. Learn how to to deal with wounds from all kinds of thorns, spines, splinters, shards, quills, needles, and anything else that might get under your skin when you’re on the trail.
Classic Destinations
Hike Mauna Kea: The Expert Guide to Hiking Hawaii’s Highest Point
Ready to hike to the highest point in Hawaii? Ascend Mauna Kea's volcanic slopes to a summit high above the clouds. This challenging day hike is among the most spectacular on the planet.
Backpacking Gear
10 Backpacking Gear Tips We Learned the Hard Way
Get the most out of your backpacking equipment with this sage advice.
Long Trails
100 Years Ago, the Appalachian Trail Was One Man’s Dream. Now, It’s Everyone’s.
Benton MacKaye's original proposal for the Appalachian Trail came out 100 years ago. While the trail may have changed, the appeal hasn't.
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Out Alive
Real people who survived the unsurvivable
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Impossible Odds
Two friends, 8,000 trail miles, one year
Featured Story
She Became the First Woman to Complete This 3,600-Mile Thru-Hike—and Brought Thousands Along for the Journey
This September, Jessica "Stitches" Guo finished thru-hiking the Continental Divide and Great Divide Trails in one five-month push, a deep-backcountry journey that saw her spend weeks without seeing a single other person. But with tens of thousands of people following her daily videos, it was a shared experience.
Jessica “Stitches” Guo began her 30th birthday alone, in the woods, walking north towards the Canadian border.
It was the same way she had spent the last few months of her 20s, during which she hiked from the Mexican border through New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana along the Continental Divide Trail. This day, however, was different.
At 1:51 p.m. on August 12, Guo reached a clearing in the trees, where stone monuments marked the U.S.-Canada border and the northern terminus of the CDT. She collapsed into tears alongside some concerned tourists. When they learned what she had just done, they applauded and helped her record a video, which would be viewed by more than half a million people on TikTok and Instagram.
For a few minutes, Guo sat, welcoming in her 30s with birthday cake Oreos and taking it all in. Then, she stood and continued into Canada. Her journey was not over. In many ways, she felt as if it were just beginning.
“Up until that point, I was like, ‘There’s a chance that I might not do this.’ I might get there and be too late or I might be too tired, or I might be too bored,” Guo says. “So for me to get there and still be feeling great, I was like, ‘All right, yeah, we can actually start the real hike now.’”
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