Education

We’ve all been new at something at some point in our lives. And chances are, we weren’t great at that something right out of the gate. There’s a learning curve with most activities that can only be gained through experience. And that includes backpacking. But if you’re new to shouldering a pack and hiking off into the woods to spend a few nights under a canopy of trees, we’ve got your back. Here are 5 mistakes beginner backpackers make (so you can get them right and stop looking like such a noob).

Nature therapy doesn’t get much better than solo backpacking. But I find that most people, especially women, aren’t all that interested in solo backpacking. Whether it’s because they think it sounds boring or lonely or they’re worried about safety, many will never attempt it. They’ll see this title and instantly shake their heads and utter a resounding, “Nope.” But you totally and absolutely should try solo backpacking! Especially if you’re female! Read on to find out how to do it right.

We absolutely love to highlight amazing, sustainable brands and gear that are better for the planet, care about their footprint, and promise to last for years. But the absolute best way to make sustainable gear choices is simply to keep using the gear you already have. It reduces the number of virgin materials required to create new gear but also keeps older materials that don’t readily biodegrade out of landfills. Win-win. But how do you keep using old gear when it’s starting to show its age? Repair it, of course! We’ll show you how in this guide to basic outdoor gear repair and maintenance.

Whether you’re in new, unfamiliar territory or your own backyard, we all need a little help locating the best hikes nearby from time to time. Sometimes it’s simply because you …

If you’re ready to shop for your first pair of hiking boots (or your first pair in a while), finding hiking boots that fit comfortably and correctly can seem a daunting task. So many shapes and colors and brands and styles! Plus, hiking boot sizes and shapes are all over the place, meaning you can’t just swap brands, order the same size you ordered with your last shoe, and expect them to fit exactly the same. Hiking boots and shoes are more complicated than your run-of-the-mill sneaker or even trail running shoes. But while color, style, and brand name may be the first details that catch our eye, fit is the most important factor when purchasing new hiking boots. But how do you correctly fit hiking boots and which type should you get? We’ll break down how to do just that right here, right now in our beginner’s guide to buying hiking boots.

I think we can all agree that this is a wild and unprecedented time we’re living in, right? And a lot of information, both helpful and incorrect, is swarming our …

Familiar with the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics? You should be. Whether you consider yourself an “outdoorsy” person or not, everybody can leave no trace, whether you’re taking …

If you’re new to winter camping or are thinking about giving it a go, I would be willing to bet the reason you haven’t tried it already has a lot …

Any savvy individual who knows anything about natural cleaners and home remedies knows what a multi-functional powerhouse baking soda can be. It’ll clean just about everything, it deodorizes, keeps bugs …

We love backpacking and camping. And we frequently hear other folks say they think they’d love it, too, but that it’s just too expensive to get into. We get it. …