Over six tumultuous years at the head of the ATC, Sandi Marra contended with Covid-19, a natural gas pipeline, and two Trump administrations. She talks about what she learned and what she missed.
Backpacker spoke with the director behind "The Lost Wolves of Yellowstone," a new documentary featured at Banff, to learn how the reintroduction of wolves over 30 years ago.
After becoming the first Mexican to complete the Triple Crown of hiking, Zelzin Aketzalli has an even bigger dream: building Baja California’s first thru-trail.
Madeleine Bryant completed the entire end-to-end Grand Canyon trek alongside her father over the course of 17 years
We polled hundreds of hikers about their partner pet peeves. Do you have any of these habits?
A trail club of seniors has built dozens of miles of trails across their county, transforming how their community gets outside.
To write the San Jacinto Trail Report, Jon King hikes 5,000 miles and a million feet of vert each year.
My dad carried me (kicking and screaming, mostly) up Mt. Washington at age four. It was just the intro I needed for a lifetime of high adventure.
When Alexa Tubbs met Matt Leef on the CDT, he was brewing beer in a soda bottle. Now, the two own Open Space Brewing, a hub for hikers and beer-lovers.
Lisa Benish found her calling introducing kids in Virginia’s rural coal country to the joys of backpacking and nature.
The kids of the Mountaineers Adventure Club are tackling serious peaks—all between classes and homework.
For over 17 years, trail angels Barney and Sandy Mann gave PCT thru-hikers an unofficial orientation before they set off from the southern terminus. This talk undoubtedly changed trail culture forever—and saved lives.
Former pastry chef Baylee Chapo's trick to keeping hiking snacks interesting? A piping bag.
Lots of people say they hike to change their lives. For some, that starts by changing their love lives.
From dropping egos to taking a first-ever overnight trip, experienced hikers share their hopes and dreams for the new year ahead.
A retired Bureau of Land Management employee may well be the most-published outdoor photographer working today, with his jaw-dropping landscapes showing up everywhere from the New York Times to Patagonia ads. The kicker? Photography wasn’t even in his job description.
As a child, Soren West dreamed of hiking the AT. Sixty three years later, he and his golden retriever made it a reality.
The rigors of the trail will tell you a lot about people—and tell them a lot about you. From new friends to new spouses, this is how hiking shapes our relationships.
In the ’70s, Ray Jardine changed rock climbing forever when he invented Friends. In the ’90s, he teamed up with his wife Jenny to do the same for backpacking, kickstarting the ultralight movement with their innovative gear designs. In a rare interview, they explain why they left the industry they helped create.
A friend to the thousands of hikers he fed, the late Ed Faubert helped Cheryl Strayed during the journey she chronicled in "Wild," and earned a place in PCT history along the way.
The group has run more than 20 trips in under two years, and shows no sign of slowing down.
Harrod's route offers a fresh perspective on the American West. Now she wants you to hike it, too.
When Nikki Bettis and 13 of her kids set out on the AT, they had no idea how transformative the experience would be.
In 2019, police killed Ethan Murray in the midst of a mental health crisis. In his memory, his mother, Justine Murray, decided to tackle two of the toughest thru-hikes in America.
The company is filling a void in the world of adventure travel.
The new book Walk, Ride, Paddle documents Senator Tim Kaine's years-long triathlon through his home state.
David Jeong has taken home-dried Chipotle, Cava, and homemade feasts on the trail—and he's documenting it all online.
After spending her infant years ascending New Hampshire’s 4,000-foot peaks in a carrier, Lydia Pearson recently accomplished the challenge on her own two feet—summiting all 48 of them
Renee Pelletier had never backpacked before deciding to embark on Spain's most famous trek. Along the way, she found strength and community.
Heather "Anish" Anderson obliterated the previous record, hiking 800-miles in 24 days with no aid or resupply.
Barney "Scout" and Sandy "Frodo" Mann are veritable PCT legends. Now, they're passing the torch.
You've probably seen a video of Nelson Holland on your Instagram or TikTok feed. Here's how he went from a New Yorker with little outdoors experience to a Colorado hiking fanatic.
When Laura Van Antwerp stepped on a trail, she found a way to maintain the sobriety she had been fighting for. Now, through her organization Your Sober Pal, she's trying to bring that transformative outdoor experience to people who might not otherwise have had it.
Their idea of a nice dinner is buying the expensive dehydrated meal, cuddling on a sleeping pad is awkward, and don’t get us started on their feet: There are a lot of great reasons to date a hiker, but there are also a lot of reasons not to.
The author and thru-hiker is hosting his first book talk for "Journeys North" in Boulder, Colorado's Carsen Theater December 5 from 7 to 8 p.m.
And Alfredo Aliaga is already planning his return to come back and do it again next year.
Saufley, who passed away after a battle with brain cancer earlier this month, spent decades hosting hikers at her home in the desert of Southern California—and touched thousands of lives along the way.
We sat down with this year’s PCT correspondent to learn about the highlights (and lowlights) of his hiking season.
While heavy snow and closures forced most PCT hikers to flip-flop this year, a small, dedicated group is still trying for a continuous, end-to-end hike as the season hits its final stretch.
In 2020, Danae “Queen Bee” and Olen “Spreadsheet” Netteburg set out with their four kids on the Appalachian Trail. Three years (and one more baby) later, they’re about to complete the Triple Crown.
We posed your top questions to our resident outdoor nudist funhog
Most of this year’s PCT class is skipping the snowbound Sierra and planning to come back later when conditions improve. But a small, hardy group of adventurers are pushing straight through.
As record snows in the Sierra force more and more Pacific Crest Trail thru-hikers to flip-flop, trail angels are stepping up to make sure they get where they need to go—including a hiker-pilot who's flying them there.
After a five year hiatus, thru-hiking legend Heather “Anish” Anderson just set another FKT, the 250-mile section of the Appalachian Trail that runs through Pennsylvania. In this essay, she explores how her relationship with the sport has evolved over the past decade since her ground-breaking Pacific Crest Trail record in 2013.
Completing a winter journey on the Appalachian Trail convinced the fun-loving thru-hiker that he can accomplish whatever he dreams up
Last January, Carl Stanfield set out to break the world record for the most miles ever hiked in a year. In failing, he found his temporary limit—and, he hopes, a renewed version of himself.
Guidebook author Tami Asars hikes to write about it. Here's what she can teach us about hiking with intention, detail, and purpose.
The outdoors are powerful medicine—and the Refugee Women’s Network is helping displaced hikers get back to it.
"Nature is not a hobby to me, or even something I really think about. It’s simply part of who I am."
After finding her love for the trail, Welcome used hiking to process some of the most challenging moments of her life.
This trailblazing fire ecologist is making a difference in the world of hiking and land regeneration.
Jon Anderson overcame temporary snowblindness to complete the 2,650-mile journey from Mexico to Canada
Outfitters step up to provide career and financial stability for guides—from health insurance to 401ks to paid time off—as demand for outdoor experiences skyrocket.
Everyone has a Why. Our motivations are as varied as our backgrounds, and these passions are what powers adventures big and small.
The results, however hilarious, remind us how hikers destigmatize the body
On Sunday night, British hiker Josh Perry decimated the trail’s long-standing self-supported records after chasing Timothy Olson’s 2021 time
Too many rocks? Not enough people? Illustrator Amber Share says bring it on.
It's been six months since the first NPS director in five years stepped into office facing $22 billion in deferred maintenance. This is what he's accomplished so far—and what's still coming.
A hike in the author's native Washington state gives perspective on half a millennium of persecution, and a home worth fighting for.
Kathryn Miles’s new book, ‘Trailed,’ investigates the killings of Julie Williams and Lollie Winans in Shenandoah National Park 25 years ago—and asks difficult questions about safety in nature
Five-time Iditarod winner Dallas Seavey dishes on staying warm, well-fueled, and sane in extreme climates.
After becoming the oldest person to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail at age 83, M.J. “Nimblewill Nomad” Eberhart reflects on the trip that got him there.
When a normal trip turned strange, one hiker found himself transfixed by the paranormal.
The hiking community has long praised Earl Shaffer for being the first person to complete the iconic trail in a single push. But one man wants us to take a closer look at Shaffer’s claims.
The hiking community has long praised Earl Shaffer for being the first person to complete the iconic trail in a single push. But one man wants us to take a closer look at Shaffer’s claims.
In 2015, while crewing for her husband, Scott’s, successful Appalachian Trail speed record, Jenny Jurek began healing from the grief of two traumatic miscarriages. In 2021, she returned to the trail with their two young children in tow.
Liz and Collin Blunk already checked off the Pacific Crest Trail and the Appalachian Trail. Now they're on-route to complete their Triple Crown with this summer's hike of the Continental Divide. They share the wisdom they've won over nearly 8,000 miles together.
Without a healthy world, there's no backpacking. These 11 backpackers and advocates are fighting for a better Earth.
When Edgar McGregor decided to clean up Eaton Canyon, he started a quest that spanned 2 years and thousands of pounds of trash.
Late last December, Emily Ford, 28, of Duluth, Minnesota, took her first steps on Wisconsin’s 1,200-mile Ice Age Trail with a borrowed sled dog named Diggins. “I was laid off from my job as head gardener at the Glensheen Mansion, and I took full advantage,” she says. Ten weeks later, she became the first woman and second person ever to thru-hike the IAT in winter.
Hiking is for everyone, not just the kind of people you're used to seeing in magazines. See the trail from a different perspective with these 8 fantastic Instagram creators.
Nearly 1,000 young women make up the groundbreaking new class from the BSA.
A program called Goat Walkabouts pairs hikers with “healing herds”of retired yoga goats to help treat trauma in the Rockies.
For this 28-year-old Minnesotan, life on a long path is a series of snowy 20-mile days with a borrowed husky. What will life after it look like?
The 72-year-old activist, who passed away last month, used mining claims, scenic flights, hiking trails, and occasionally outright confrontation to protect the Opal Creek Wilderness.
The founder of HBCUs Outside is using gear libraries and hiking meetups to tear down barriers in the outdoor industry.
Go behind the curtains at this down-obsessed outfitter
After a cross-country road trip, Earl Hunter Jr. made it his business to break down racial lines in the outdoors.
This Appalachian Trail thru-hiker (2010) balances luxe and light on her long-distance jaunts around the East.