Adventure

Think you might want to go on a solo backpacking trip? We highly recommend it! It offers a fantastic opportunity to explore the outdoors at your own pace, listen to the sounds of nature, make new trail friends, and enjoy some quiet time with just you and your thoughts. I’m a big fan. But not everyone feels comfortable hiking or backpacking alone, especially women. But it’s not just women who are often afraid to embark upon a solo hiking adventure: people of color and LGBTQIA+ folks, even men from time to time, often feel uneasy on their own in the outdoors, too. Fortunately, there are ways to assuage that fear and go boldly into the backcountry with no company but your own. Here are a few tips on how to safely hike alone.

Backpacking in Guadalupe Mountains National Park offers a unique wilderness experience in the desert peaks of West Texas. You should go. Here’s how and what to expect.

Outdoor brands and retailers are constantly running sales and specials. There are so many of them, and they change so often, how on earth are you supposed to keep track of them all? Lucky for you, we’ve compiled some of the best deals on outdoor gear right here in one place. And since the links to specials and sales update automatically, you can check back as often as you please to find out who’s offering the best sales and specials every week!

Ready to start backpacking? Here’s our intro to backpacking guide to get you started out on the right foot. Or the left foot. Whichever foot you want to start on is fine. We don’t discriminate between feet.

Ready to hit the trail on two wheels? In this guest post, Ashley Parsons from the En Selle duo offers some tips to start planning your first bikepacking adventure in this intro to bikepacking. We hope you’re ready to get inspired, don those bike shorts, and get pedaling!

Whether hiking, backpacking or traveling, water filtration and purification is important. But not all portable water filters do both. So we’re gonna compare three portable water purifiers and filters in one and explain why it’s important to do both (and simultaneously avoid dysentery and giardia…)

A lot of travel plans got canceled this year. International travel is largely off-limits and most people aren’t too keen on the idea of flying across the country, either. So naturally, a lot of folks are shifting travel plans to include road trips. And while we can’t in good conscience recommend you embark upon “The Great American Roadtrip” this year, a close-to-home jaunt may be an acceptable alternative (as long as you do it safely and responsibly). But driving across the country or across the state still comes with its own set of complications (even if you don’t require a passport), so we’re gonna break it down. Here’s a solid list of road trip essentials that we’ve compiled based on years of experience (and more than a few flat tires and empty peanut butter jars) and an assumption that you, as we do, will be avoiding crowded hotels in lieu of socially distant campsites this year.

We love being outside. We love it when others love being outside. We don’t love it when others don’t respect outside. So with more and more people heading outdoors these days, we thought it was high time that we discussed a few rules for the outdoors so all of us can enjoy the outdoors together. Some of these are suggestions that merely make the whole outdoor experience more pleasant for everyone involved, and some are hard and fast rules that can destroy delicate ecosystems (or your life) if not followed. So read up, then get outside and wander on!

If you didn’t grow up in Ohio or near Ohio, you may have never heard of Hocking Hills. In fact, you may be mumbling under your breath right now, “What even is a Hocking Hills?” Allow me to enlighten you. It’s a fabulously outdoorsy destination in central-ish Ohio for those looking to get away and experience the outdoors, all within driving distance (if you live in the midwest/Great Lakes region, anyway…). But what kind of outdoor adventure in Hocking Hills Ohio can you expect? All kinds. We’ll break it down for you.

It’s still summer. In fact, we’re sliding into August, which is typically the hottest month of the year in most places in the Northern Hemisphere. Which means if you’re playing/hiking/cycling/backpacking outside, you’re probably sweating. A lot. And a lot of sweat means your body is losing a lot of H20 (and other stuff). Which means your risk of dehydration is higher. So you need to drink more water. But here’s the thing: if you’re out working hard and sweating for over an hour at a time, your body needs more than water to keep itself functioning properly. It needs salt and minerals like potassium. It needs electrolytes. But not all electrolytes are created equal. So if you’re looking for better electrolyte drink mixes without all the artificial color, flavor, additives or sweeteners, we’ve got you covered. Here are 5 sports hydration mixes that aren’t Gatorade so you can hydrate and keep wandering on.