After three years of hiking Georgia’s Stone Mountain, Zach Cross lost weight, gained, confidence, and turned his life around.

When prepping for an outdoor adventure, do not underestimate how important food will be to your enjoyment and capabilities on the trail. “Food plays a huge part in how you feel,” says Aaron Owens Mayhew, a registered dietitian and thru-hiker and the founder of Backcountry Foodie. “What’s really funny is I can actually keep up [...]

Known for its majestic peaks and rugged beauty, Rocky Mountain National Park is one of the most iconic national parks in the U.S. It also happens to be a quick 1.5-hour drive from Denver—but that’s just the beginning of what the area around Colorado’s capital has to offer.  The Centennial State is packed with breathtaking [...]

Since they first made their commercial appearance in the late 1980s, hydration packs containing reservoirs, also called bladders, have become the de facto method of transporting water for hiking, backpacking, mountain biking, trail running and just about any outdoor activity that necessitates ample fluids.  As the story goes, CamelBak was born when Michael Eidson was [...]

In July 1900, Benton Mackaye climbed a tree at the top of Vermont’s Stratton Mountain. That moment, he would later claim, was the origin of what we now call the Appalachian Trail (A.T.). Decades of planning, trail building, and love for the outdoors have since given us the A.T. in its current form. This singular [...]

A majestic waterfall is one of Mother Nature’s most beautiful creations. Whether it cascades with rushing water during the spring runoff or is a frozen blue hue, seeing a fall up close brings a sense of peace.  If you’re planning a winter hike to a frozen waterfall, be sure to check the weather forecast. It’s [...]

As the weather warms and snow melts away, trails become accessible again for everyone’s favorite free way to get outside: hiking. For a day hike any time of year, you should be prepared to stay safe in the elements and in the backcountry.  But spring hiking also comes with its own specific fun, like muddy [...]

It never fails – whether day hiking or on a multi-day backpacking trip – we are quick to empty our pack, wash our clothes, dry out tents and air out sleeping bags. However, the piece of equipment that protects our feet from the rough and rugged terrain is likely the last piece of gear that we [...]

High-up mountain adventures are tons of fun—but if altitude sickness hits you, things can go downhill real quick. Altitude sickness happens because at higher elevation, there’s less air pressure and less oxygen (O2) available for us to breathe. The amount of oxygen in the air and, therefore, the amount of oxygen we can breathe is [...]

One of the best gifts we can pass on to our kids is a love for the outdoors. Like anything parenting though, figuring out how to transfer this passion to easily distracted, screen-obsessed, easily-tired mini-humans can be a challenge. Start by packing the Ten Essentials of Hiking and then add our parent-tested, kid-approved adventure items [...]