1+ week, 5+ day ago   (697+ words) Labor Day’s a sweet time to backpack. You’ve hopefully still got some summer sun, and cooler, crisper nights for comfortable sleeping. The lakes aren’t filled to the brim with stinging snowmelt, and the worst of the bugs has come and…...

3+ week, 4+ day ago   (306+ words) Even on the best backpacking trips, there’s a certain joy to spotting the car through the trees at the end of the hike. That glint of sunlight on metal signals the promise of a cushioned seat, a hot shower, and…...

3+ week, 5+ day ago   (786+ words) Backpacker Magazine 5 Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me When I Started Backpacking With no judgement intended, it’s pretty easy to pick out a beginner backpacker compared to more experienced thru-hikers or backcountry travelers. Someone new to the backcountry might…...

1+ mon, 6+ day ago   (706+ words) Backpacker Magazine 5 Ultralight Gear Choices You Really Don’t Have to Make My pack weighed around 35 pounds when I started my first thru-hike. By the time I finished that hike, I had cut that weight in half. This could have been…...

1+ mon, 1+ week ago   (697+ words) Backpacker Magazine The Gear That Backpacker’s Editors Loved in July 2026 There’s a moment, right around the end of July, where it dawns on most hikers that summer isn’t going to last forever. You’ve heard of seasonal depression? Call this seasonal…...

1+ mon, 2+ week ago   (583+ words) This story contains graphic images. On July 20, David Cifaldi was about two miles shy of the summit on a hike of Montana’s Granite Peak when he fell and accidentally impaled himself through his torso with one of his trekking poles....

3+ mon, 3+ week ago   (152+ words) Changing out your backpacking tent for an ultralight model is probably the most consequential single swap you can make to lighten your load. Unfortunately for you and your wallet, it’s also the most expensive. This weekend’s crop of Memorial Day…...

3+ mon, 3+ week ago   (437+ words) If I were hiking and heard someone playing the saxophone at full volume, my thoughts would be as follows: There actually is something worse than that friend who plays guitar by the campfire; I should have brought my earplugs; and…...

3+ mon, 4+ week ago   (410+ words) $90 (50 percent off) at REI—Women’s “They look like moon shoes,” one tester remarked after checking out these chunky kicks. They kind of feel like walking on the moon, too: The ridiculously thick EVA foam underfoot felt cushy but never squishy,…...

5+ mon, 3+ week ago   (35+ words) From a super-versatile, super-light trail shoe to a 5-ounce camp chair that you could stuff in your pocket, these are 8 pieces of gear we wish we could still find in stores....