Trips

What are the best hikes on the PCT that you can do in a weekend? We asked triple crowner and Backpacker thru-hiking columnist Liz “Snorkel Thomas.

Since its peak in the early 20th century, the Salton Sea has suffered from increasing salinity, fish die-offs, and general neglect. But on a pair of kayak camping trips, one paddler found surprising beauty there

Hike, splash, paddle and stargaze your way to warm-weather bliss on these trips.

With both "eastern-style" and "western-style" mountains, Oklahoma is a little-known hiker paradise.

Find bigger adventures (and smaller crowds) in America’s most under-the-radar national forest

This short shuttle hike explores the southernmost section of the Benton MacKaye Trail, which links the Georgia backcountry to the northern reaches of the Great Smoky Mountains.

With high snow levels making travel on the PCT unusually difficult, many Americans have canceled or postponed their thru-hikes. Not so for the trail's global hikers, who have mostly stuck it out.

The Green Mountain State delivers when it comes to year-round outdoor recreation and adventures with a uniquely Vermont spin

Enough of Type 2 Fun. These six hikes give you that just-left-the-spa peaceful feeling.

Don't be fooled: The Heartland has plenty of steeps to get your heart pumping.

Got a few days off, a pair of healthy feet, and a pain threshold higher than Dean Karnazes? You can (possibly) blaze the length of America's Most Beautiful Trail

Montezuma Valley Market was a beloved stop for PCT hikers until a blaze—and a dreadful diagnosis—threw it into limbo.

Bask in the spray of these cascades at the end of a long day's hike.

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.

You only have a few weeks left until summer arrives. Better make them count.

You can hike one trail for the rest of your life. Which would you choose?

With heavy snow making mountain travel more difficult and hazardous than usual, a growing number of hikers are taking a less traditional approach to the PCT.

Club Med’s first four-season resort in Canada just might be the summer vacation your family needs

Dreaming of a long, long walk up the spine of the West Coast with a few good friends? Here's what you need to know.

It’s not just fashion that has changed since the 1970s.

Hike farther, faster, and pain-free with these training tips and exercise.

All trails have changed quite a bit in the past 5 decades. Here are the trails that changed the most.

This International Dark Sky Park has some of the best astral views in the country. Here's where to find them.

Think you need to head deep into the wild to have an outdoor adventure? Think again. Explore urban nature in these six cities, each home to outdoor community organizations, diverse history and culture, and wildlife.

Discover a paradise where nature, art, and history come together on Florida’s Gulf Coast

In or on the water, get a closer look at Florida’s marine ecosystem

Hit the trails and float the rivers in Ocala and Marion County

Located off the coast of the Everglades, the Sandfly Island Loop is an intro to sea kayaking that even beginners can do.

Want a national park to visit while the weather is yucky everywhere else? This is your place. Download this playlist for maximum vibes.

Explore mossy gorge trails, ancient sandstone caves, and morel-filled forests in this unexpected hiking paradise.

Washington's Hoh Rainforest is one of the few remaining landscapes in the world that's free of human noise—if you don't count the Navy jets tearing above it, that is. Hiker and veteran Chris Marvin goes on a pilgrimage in search of silence.

This is the best way to view the North Cascades.

While California’s storms were devastating in many parts of the state, they blew epic snow and adventure opportunities into the park. Waterfall viewings are off the charts, there are fewer crowds, and conditions are primo for backcountry exploring.

These ten routes will show you that nature never stops bustling, no matter how much snow is on the trail.

How one hiking photographer got the perfect shot in Florida's Gulf Islands.

New year, new adventures: Add these long trails and dayhikes to your 2023 bucket list.

For new year trail inspiration, we turned to some of the most adventurous hikers we know.

From a section of the Oregon Coast Trail to an Alaskan backcountry adventure, these were our editors' favorite trails this year.

As the sun transitions to “solar maximum” in the next three years, it is prime time to spot the aurora borealis—even in the lower 48 states. Here’s where, when, and how to catch the show in our national parks.

On a rafting trip down the Kongakut River, a photographer experiences a landscape that's as spectacular as it is endangered.

Experience unique winter adventures in every region of the province

Want a national park to visit this winter? Great Smoky Mountains is your place. Download this playlist for maximum vibes.

From stunning alpine routes to the environments where high-altitude herbs thrive, tap into the healing power of nature in the mountains of Switzerland

In pictures, Greenland’s backcountry ski terrain looks spectacular. In person? It’s even better.

Forget a new tent: Backpacker's editors sound off on the trips they'd like someone to buy them in 2023.

Highlander's hiking events draw dozens of hikers together for an organized multiday trip with all the trappings of a race. One of our editors tried it—and found a lot to love.

Yosemite is beautiful in the fall and winter. Download this playlist and get after it.

In celebration of 50 years of trail beta and inspiration, we look back on our favorite spots through the moments we chose to capture.

Canada’s most revered backpacking trail was born out of a ghastly misfortune

In California's Big Pine Lakes basin, you can find the southernmost glacier in North America, for now.

After decades of disrepair, the path reopened to adventurous trekkers.

A basin of beauty resides in the middle of Kings Canyon National Park.

Load up this Spotify playlist and get going.

Explore the natural side of New England with year-round dayhikes, waterfall treks, and backpacking trips in the scenic Berkshires.

Full of rock scrambles, cactus clusters, and desert views for days, Joshua Tree National Park is the southwest at its finest.

Let the crowds stampede the national parks—in the U.S., you’re never far from state lands that boast sublime beauty, natural seclusion, and endless adventure. These 14 just scratch the surface.

Kayak to pocket beaches and Gulf islands in south Florida.

Maybe you don't want to carry a bear canister, or you're just naturally a quiet person. Either way, these trails are for you.

Forget Zion and Canyonlands; this desert gem has something for every hiker among the hoodoos and bristlecone pines

Want to hike without crowds? See jaw-dropping vistas without torching your quads? Check out these dayhikes and backpacks.

From local favorites to tourist must-dos, these trails are the best of America's Finest City.

In summer or shoulder season, there’s nothing better than a water-view hike or one that ends up at a beach for lounging and swimming. From the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean and places in between, these are our favorites.

Get a different perspective on Lake Tahoe (and fewer crowds, too!) when you head into the mountains surrounding North Lake Tahoe

Escape the dog days with these deliciously cool trails.

Feeling entranced by the cosmos? See the heavens like you've never seen them before by getting deep into the wild.

One mountain, five great hiking routes. Even if you’ve already climbed the peak, alternate ascent lines can make your adventure feel like a brand new mountain. 

Join us on a life-list Himalayan trek, and do good for others while enjoying one of the world’s dream trips

Scott Benerofe finished a rare and daunting southbound winter thru-hike of the AT. His self-proclaimed normalcy about the endeavor suggests such treks might not stay so rare for long.

Is it really an adventure if you have it planned to the mile? Patricia "Blackpacker" Cameron explains why she's playing it loose on the Pacific Crest Trail.

The world’s first national park will reopen this week after the devastating floods. Here's what you can expect.

Patricia “Blackpacker” Cameron has a family and a job running an outdoor-equity-focused nonprofit, so taking three months off for the hike of a lifetime was anything but simple. She explains how she did it.

From rolling road rides and family-friendly singletrack to downhill bike parks, Vermont has world-class routes for cyclists of every kind

Lace up your boots for a hiking destination that includes Rocky Mountain vistas, alpine lakes, wind-swept sand dunes, and memorable urban parks.