Skills

A compact kit that provides you with the survival essentials you need while you're on the go.

Save money (and weight) with this tent-saving DIY trick.

Pick the best tent anchors for any condition.

From a morning cup of joe to easy-sipping fireside nightcaps, here are our staff’s most-requested trail beverages.

Sweet treats to close a campside meal--and help you recoup after an energy-zapping hiking day.

Fuel more trail miles with our favorite new packable meals.

Our resident expert, gear editor Kristin Hostetter, assembles the tools to save any trip.

A camp throne built for long-term schlepping and chilling.

Haul your little one in this lightweight and customizable backpack kid carrier.

Check out Katie Herrel's author page.

Yes, it's the journey that counts. But every trip is better with fast, delicious food like this.

We received so many great photo for our January 2012 Readers' Choice photo contest that we just had to share the runners-up.

Here are the top 10 finalists for the Reader Photo of the Month.

Prevent six common adventure-travel risks.

Stay charged and in touch abroad.

Pick and choose what to pack for long or multi-activity trips. Plus, three ways to avoid overspending when outfitting your next trip.

Carry more, protect your pack, and ease transit.

Get backcountry-worthy accident insurance and plan for good-weather windows and low-traffic trails.

Stay on track in exotic terrain with tips from adventurer Pete Takeda.

Shoes that stick, rope worth investing in, and a Grigri 2 overhaul.

On Wednesday night, reggae-hip-hop-fusion artist Michael Franti was recording a new track for his follow-up to the hit album "The Sound of Sunshine." On Thursday night, he rocks The Depot at Outdoor Retailer in a concert presented by Wolverine. BACKPACKER's Jonathan Dorn and Anthony Cerretani spoke to Franti right before the show about how the outdoors influences his music, lifestyle, and clothing line.

Don't get sidelined by these common and painful foes. Fight back with these tips and tricks for preventing and treating any kind of hot spot problem.

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.

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.

Have you ever heard anyone wish he spent less time outdoors?

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.

Boost performance and be a better backpacker with these fitness- and strength-building moves from our experts.

Pack and prepare a week's worth of mouth-watering meals.

Prep for success, plan ahead, and stay healthy to pull off a month-plus trek.

Extend your backpacking season: Here's how to stay warm and protect your gear.

Explore wildly sculpted rock.

Learn how to fix and prep your gear so that it lasts for miles

See a week's worth of terrain on an epic dawn-to-dusk hike.

Use these tricks to get your kids begging for another trip outside.

Take your backpacking to the next level. Our experts craft custom plans for readers who asked for help with navigation, winter camping, thru-hiking, and more.

Be a real explorer by going where others don't.

Serve a 5-star meal that matches the scenery.

Stay warm while hiking in the fall with these temperature-regulating tips.

Name: Ross Mason, 44 Predicament: Off-course and severely dehydrated Location: Gila Wilderness, New Mexico; November 2010

With a fatty boost of peanut butter, these savory soups fuel cold-weather trips.

Strengthen three key areas - shoulders, ankles, and core - this winter so you can tackle tougher trails next spring.

Peanut butter is the secret ingredient to this smoky chili

A can of pumpkin makes for an interesting trail soup

Tips for lessening the risk of lightning in the backcountry.

How to use bear spray.

How to safely traverse a small, seasonal snowfield.

Two readers shiver for their lives through a cold, Alaskan summer night.

A charging grizzly comes too close for this reader's comfort.

A summer snow slope gives this reader the scare of his life.

A perfect splurge gift for the foodie on your list

Perfect this move for on-a-dime turns in steep, rugged terrain.

Stay safe with these six ski-down tips.

Use telescoping shafts for stability on any angle.

Change your technique and style to manage any snow conditions.

Conquer cold with proactive hydration and calorie-packed nutrition.

All conditions affect avy potential. Check forecasts and assess risk.

Four ski pros share advice for looking good--and staying safe--in the backcountry.

All the top mountaineering gear, picked for you by the editors of Climbing magazine.

We teamed up with sister publication Climbing to bring you the best ice climbing gear.

Two stoves, a deluxe kitchen set, and a bunch of pots and pans.

Goose down booties with a nylon shell that pack down super small.

Hiking tips from this region's top mapper, who has notched 20 bag nights and 200 trail miles in 9 states this year while scouting trails for BACKPACKER.

Three backcountry cooking tips that will guarantee easy and tasty meals

Don't get swept away, use this technique.

Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even desert recipes that are easy and tasty campground meals.

Don't let low points get you down.

Pick a good partner--or you may get burned.

Grab some dehydrated veggies, a little salsa, and some beef jerky for these tasty Fajitas.

Your favorite desert as a kid goes trail-side.

Check out The Backpacker Editors's author page.

Some quick-cooking rice and a handful of vegetables makes this a healthy trail lunch.