The Best Cities To Raise An Outdoor Kid - Backpacker

The Best Cities To Raise An Outdoor Kid

Which towns offer the ideal mix of accessible trails, inspiring teachers, and great recreational resources? We worked with The Outdoor Foundation to identify America's top 25 places to beat nature deficit disorder.

Author:: Jason Stevenson
Publish date:: Jul 1, 2009

Click here to see a larger version of the above map. 1. Boulder, CO
2. Jackson, WY
3. Durango, CO
4. Flagstaff, AZ
5. Juneau, AK
6. Seattle, WA
7. Colorado Springs, CO
8. Burlington, VT
9. Fort Collins, CO
10. Lebanon, NH
11. Asheville, NC
12. Portland, ME
13. Hood River, OR
14. Manchester, NH
15. Harrisonburg, VA
16. Eureka-Arcata-Fortuna, CA
17. Sevierville, TN
18. Bozeman, MT
19. Rapid City, SD
20. Brevard, NC
21. Madison, WI
22. Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN
23. Glens Falls, NY
24. Duluth, MN
25. Wheeling, WV

Want More Options? Click on icons below to find out which cities are best for which sports.

Top Place to Raise A...

BEST CITIES TO RAISE AN OUTDOOR KID: THE METHODOLOGY
The stats and assumptions behind our grading system.

Dog

Beginner Skills

Appalachian Trail, Baxter State Park

nepal

katmai bears

Weird Outdoor News

southwestern cairns

outdoorkids_bailie_445x260

California Trails

From Boulder to Juneau to Bozeman, see which cities made the cut for the best place to raise an outdoor kid, and why.

bestcitiesoutdoorkids_445x260

California Trails

Does your kid want to be an ice climber? How about a thru-hiker, or paddler? These cities have just what you need.

yosemite_russell_445x260

We've covered 245,591 miles of trails in our 37-year history. Here are our 20 all-time favorite trips, plus—shocking!—20 routes we never covered.

Easy pick: The Arizona Trail crosses the Grand Canyon rim to rim.

On its 50th birthday, the National Scenic Trails system boasts nearly 19,000 miles. Not sure where to start? We’ve scoured the whole network to bring you the best 50 miles.

Phantom Falls, CA (Photo by Adrien Patane)

Jump-start your hiking season on these spring-ready trips from around the country.

Mt. Washington's Nelson Crag Trail (Jerry and Marcy Monkman)

Can you ever really have too much of a good thing? Once you've seen the biggest tree, largest glacier, and deepest canyon, nothing else compares.

California Trails

Push yourself on any of these challenging hikes

The only thing better than enjoying the life-list scenery in the country's premier national parks? Getting that same scenery, minus the crowds. Find it in these 10 backcountry hotspots, along with no-hassle permits, choice campsites aplenty, and solitude to match the world-class terrain.

Mt. Rainier’s northeast face from the Wonderland Trail

We’re all for tagging summits, but the best way to experience a peak? Hike around it. You’ll see a mountain’s many faces on a single, peak-circling loop. These 14 trips circumnavigate the best of the best.