Trips

See sheer-sided fjords, calving glaciers, and the northern hemisphere's largest ice sheet.

Experience the magic of the remote Himalaya.

Lose yourself in Europe's last great wilderness.

Explore a hiker's fantasy island on Tasmania's rough-and-wild long trail.

See the Andes the way Cortez did–totally wild.

Discover the best of Kiwi wilderness–north and south–with these two hikes.

Score classic Alps scenery, adventure, and hut culture without the classic crowds.

Spain's little-known Valencia region beckons the mountain-minded adventurer with dramatic topography, sun-drenched hiking and biking, and sumptuous end-of-day feasts.

It takes a certain kind of trail to earn such a lofty title. But our top 10 deliver unrivaled scenery, challenge, local culture, and most of all–fun.

Circumnavigate Europe's most iconic peak.

Walk the World's Highest Trail.

In this interview the founder of adventure travel dishes on his favorite wild places, oddest encounters, and the world's next great trekking destinations.

As prosperity spreads across China, so does a passion for the outdoors. But can millions of new trekkers save Asia's vast wilderness from the march of development? Welcome to the world's next hiking frontier. PLUS, check out China's Top Treks.

Stand on the roof of Africa.

Marvel at Middle Earth on this 33-mile, four-day Milford Track.

Brave the Old World's newest and wildest long-distance route.

Bound for one of the globe's most exotic locales? Thrive in any environment with these tips.

Verse yourself in proper cultural etiquette to avoid being just another rude tourist (hint: keep your hands to yourself).

Tackle everything from jet lag to malaria (and those pesky mosquitoes) with our guide to staying healthy abroad.

Hike locals-only trails in Europe's other Alps. This 500-mile track combines rugged hiking by day with luxe living by night

We've traveled to 10 countries and uncovered the best adventures you never knew existed.

Trek across the roof of the Andes, mix in some trail riding–on bike and horseback–and climb a 19,000-foot volcano.

Hike to South America's acropolis.

See azure seas from rocky peaks.

Traverse the unknown end of the Alps–by trail, canyon, and cliff face–on this demanding journey in and around Triglav National Park.

The Sarawak Chamber at Gunung Mulu National Park in Malaysia has over 186 miles of caves.

Think the Empire State Building is tall? Try this waterfall on for size.

The white, fluffy, subzero-temperature-loving polar bear is the world's largest ursine.

You better stand back if this Sicilian island volcano starts to spurt.

From jaguars to river dolphins, Amazonian animals are diverse.

There is a reason the native's call it Sagarmatha, meaning "head of the sky."

Trekker-friendly glacier is largest in the Alps.

If your going to Chile's Atacama Desert, don't forget the sunscreen.

Trek through the earth's wildest mountain range.

Nepal's Annapurna Circuit doesn’t offer lavish huts, extreme solitude, or sumptuous cuisine. So why is it still number one? Let us count the reasons.

Hike, paddle, and swim narrow canyons before running class IV rapids on an inflatable boogie board.

Walk, bike, and raft between a string of glaciated peaks; then ladder-climb 2,500 feet up a sheer rock face.

Join the Backpacker Editors on a rip-roaring tour of Wales for the 2009 Editors' Choice Awards. Hit the mountains and the coast and learn what it takes to be an Editors' Choice Award winner.

Check out Backpacker Editors's author page.

From Maine to Glacier National Park to the top of Rainier, our readers get out and take great photos.

Find hikes in National Parks and regional parks with our comprehensive guides.

Use our comprehensive state-specific pages to find hikes in your home state our a state you're planning on visiting.

Use our comprehensive city-specific pages to find hikes near your hometown or in a city you're planning to visit.

Follow editor Shannon Davis and his wife Emily as they trek the first half of the legendary Annapurna Circuit for their honeymoon.

Backpacker.com editor Anthony Cerretani leaves the trail behind to sail the western Scottish isles in this video and photo feature.

Discover the best hike in every state, as voted by BACKPACKER readers. Plus: your essential gear, most desirable tentmate, worst-ever adventure movie, and our picks for the best reader-submitted photos.

Associate editor Shannon Davis tells us more about the highs and lows of his honeymoon trek (featured in March 2009's "The Perfect Circle") on the sky-scraping Annapurna Circuit in Nepal.

In Colorado, wilderness hut managers recruit hikers to track an elusive wildcat.

Pack snowshoes for these nine epic treks to snowy solitude in the Pacific Northwest, Rockies, and Northeast.

Denver teacher Mike Haugen sets a new state summits speed record–fifty state highpoints in less than 50 days!

Join our editors for their annual testing trip on the rocky, misty coast of Wales in this gallery. (Steve Howe)

Paddle out to Ontario's Slate Islands where canoe and caribou are a plenty in this video of these majestic animals and marvel at a slideshow of close-up images.

Fall camping season seems to go on forever with these fair-weather weekend trips.

Scout for gold–and desert views–amid this Texas park's spray of late-fall foliage.

Paddling, hiking, testing self-arrest skills–we cover it all in these 10 epic trips throughout the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

It'll blow you away

A hair-raising hike

Ghost stories always seem scarier beside a flickering campfire. So, dim your headlamp and scoot up closer: our writer-at-large explores the ghoulish beginnings of these age-old tales and shares a few of his all-time favorite blood-curdlers. We dare you to read on.

A gym teacher's speed hike becomes a five-day bushwhack in Olympic National Park.

Read these real-life tales from five survivors who made it out alive, and learn what they did wrong–and right.

Survivors of the Bataan death march overcame one of history's most grueling walks. What kept them on their feet? and could you do the same? every year, more than 4,000 people hike through the New Mexico desert to find out.

Check off the most remote miles in California's Range of Light.

Is he a pilgrim, a victim, or a thief? The Appalachian Trail provides a path and refuge to all sorts of seekers. Few are as baffling as the man they called Saved.

Follow these guidelines to keep your gear dry, secure, and well balanced in a canoe or kayak.

Your partner can't go on. Should you stay–or go for help?

Here's how to avoid hypothermia.

As conservationists and energy developers fight over Wyoming's Red Desert, one thing is certain: There's no time like the present to hike through its unreal geography.

Coastal views, mountains, and fjords await on the Long Range Traverse in Newfoundland's Gros Morne National Park.

Wildflowers, bugs, and other nature photographs shot by our map correspondent on the AT © Jeff Chow

We've got your Appalachian Trail packing list dialed. Here, take stock of what you'll need to thru-hike the trail. Just print it out and get packing.

The system was rigged, says a former ranger. Here's how to beat it.

Hike with grizzlies in this remote northern corner of Alaska's greatest park.

America's first national park is a playground for grizzlies, wolves, moose, and hikers (not in that order).

Explore two ecosystems in this hinterland of moss-draped forests, ancient trees, and snowcapped peaks.

Trees, trees are everywhere, but sometimes there isn't a dry twig in sight.

Graze blueberry patches, explore swimming holes, and tag the South's high points on this sultry hike.

Send him out on a work trip. Let wilderness do the rest.

Drop into America's belly on a little-known hike that dips in and out of four different canyons, each blessed with gurgling spring water.

First John Francis stopped riding in cars. Then he stopped talking. More than three decades, two continent-spanning hikes, and countless trail miles later, he's still following his remarkable path of protest–only now he's not alone.

Climb classic Sierra passes, ogle granite monoliths, and camp above treeline in John Muir's second home.