We asked a bunch of great writers to bear down, focus, and tell us what makes them giddiest in the outdoors. Join them as they celebrate everything from diving off rocks to adventure flirting to … shivering in a bed between cold sheets? (Hey, don’t judge.) Plus: five scientifically proven ways to up the fun and improve your health.

Last summer, Tiffany Thiele, a young rock climber from Reno, Nevada, took her life after posting a Facebook message claiming she’d been raped by a ski patroller. She left behind an unsolvable mystery about what really happened, along with urgent questions about whether more could have been done to heal her feelings of pain and distrust.

My buddy switched the price tags on a tent to pay a lower amount on a more expensive setup. I was unaware, and now I feel terrible.

To become one of those people who joyfully hikes, bikes, and skis in the nude, she’d have to train for it

When we open our ears to the marvels of natural soundscapes, we experience the energies of the world in a unique way—and begin to understand the mysteries behind them

‘Our Great National Parks’ overly idealizes U.S. conservation efforts and gives a mealymouthed call to climate action

I am pretty sure no runner who has consistently won races approaches their training in this way

‘Severance,’ a John Green audiobook, and ‘60 Songs That Explain the ’90s’

A relationship with plants built on love, care, and respect is at the heart of bringing the outdoors inside

Something surprising is happening on the video app best known for silly dance moves: users are finding inspiration for adventure

In an excerpt from his new book, ‘Riverman,’ writer Ben McGrath recounts how he met an itinerant canoeist named Dick Conant, a fascinating character who mysteriously disappeared shortly thereafter

If chronic overthinking is getting in the way of your next adventure, ask yourself these two questions

This month the Outside Book Club will read ‘Riverman,’ by Ben McGrath, the tale of a traveler who glimpsed the kind of freedom most of us only dream about

In a live Zoom Q and A, the beloved author talked about what it’s been like to have her bestselling memoir make such a big impact on the outdoor world, what her relationship to the outdoors is now, and what ever happened to Monster

Yolanda Davis-Overstreet is fighting for safer streets and mobility justice in the marginalized communities of Los Angeles

Last year, Annette McGivney lost her beloved yellow Lab, Sunny, and was overwhelmed by sadness. Since then she’s built a new life with a challenging rescue dog, and she’s learned a lot about the healing power of human and animal bonds.

Leisure Project is selling NFTs to consumers who want a chance to “cocreate” a beverage brand—and a community

Life isn’t so ruff when you can sleep in a bed as comfy as this one

The phone feature can be a convenient safety tool. But for one writer, it served as a crutch for anxiety.

Bill Hayes’s new book, ‘Sweat: A History of Exercise,’ offers a personal account of a universal tradition

If you’ve been riveted by the discovery of the ‘Endurance’ shipwreck, dive deeper into the rich history of daring—and often tragic—Arctic and Antarctic expeditions with these works of fiction and nonfiction

In the ten years since she published her memoir about hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, her life has changed dramatically—and so has the trail itself

The real-life action heroes swapped their boards for tuxedos to present a James Bond anniversary homage at the Oscars. We should’ve known they’d land it.

It’s not easy being a progressive who works for a middle-of-the-road president. Mark Sundeen sizes up the interior secretary’s first year in office—which has been a disappointment to climate-change activists—and decides she’s most likely to make a mark through a historic reckoning over the U.S. government’s shameful running of Native American boarding schools.

I took my dream job in a foreign place. I'm worried about leaving my local woods behind and connecting with a new landscape overseas. Help?

Join us for a live Zoom Q and A with the beloved author, presented by the Outside Book Club, on Tuesday, April 5

Is there anything better than seeing kids having fun outside? 

In his new book, ‘Sounds Wild and Broken,’ the award-winning ecologist and writer dives into the history and diversity of our planet’s soundscapes in effort to get us to pay attention before they disappear

Set far from dramatic mountain peaks, the movie stays true to a gentler side of the state

Reflections on getting just a little bit older

Buying a house just so you can rent it out on Airbnb is lame. And predatory.

The American downhill skier may not have won a medal in Beijing, but he got the most style points by far

Joey Santore’s YouTube channel, Crime Pays but Botany Doesn’t, crosses citizen science with vigilante environmentalism

The Netflix film tells the true story of an early 20th-century explorer and his engineer fighting to survive in the Arctic. We talked to the ‘Game of Thrones’ star about what it was like filming on location in Greenland and Iceland in extreme conditions.

How boredom and booze created an outlaw sport best left alone

Outside columnist Brendan Leonard investigates his relationship to nostalgia, happiness, and type-two fun

Our March pick is Cheryl Strayed’s classic memoir of hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. We’ll conclude the conversation with a live Zoom Q and A on April 5.

After months of pandemic-induced isolation, one Vermont family dove headfirst into a 272-mile adventure

I’ve lived in a van for a year. It sucks, and now I’m ready to change things up.

Earth-loving New Yorkers are drawing from an unlikely arsenal of activism, hip-hop, marathon city-council Zoom meetings, and one sassy pug to hold the city to its zero-waste commitments. If they succeed, the environmental benefits could be huge.

‘Normal Gossip,’ a book about navigation, and ‘Abbott Elementary’

Whether on the Olympic stage or the home hill, women on skis demonstrate what sportsmanship, bravery, and self-love could look like

A ‘Washington Post’ story on Greg Gianforte’s latest hunting escapades is misleading, which is a shame, because its subject deserves much more scrutiny

Science shows that spending time outdoors can help with all kinds of serious ailments. So why not a broken heart?

After her 25-year marriage ended in divorce, the Outside contributing editor turned to science—and a river trip—to navigate through the darkness. Register here for our Zoom book discussion on March 9.

Thanks to female characters Bryce Kellogg and Robin Hand, women in ski towns have a timeless manifesto to follow

I’m on a quest to learn to love the body I’m in but afraid to push my limits outside

Some runners swear by their pump playlists, but I’d rather listen to a great book

Let your grom take the lead and you’ll both learn new tricks and become better skiers for it

Professional skier Markus Eder had a fantasy of an impossible descent. Then he got creative.

I want to thru-hike part of the AT or PCT, but I’m the main caregiver in my household

In his new book ‘Wayward: Stories and Photographs,’ Chris Burkard takes readers behind the camera on his quest for meaningful experiences

A poet laureate’s memoir, ‘Station Eleven,’ and a lacrosse film based on a true story

I’m not convinced I can be with someone who isn’t into the same kind of adventures as me

The messed up rugs, destroyed childhood mementos, and complicated travel plans? Completely worth it.

When Outside contributing editor Florence Williams’s husband of 25 years left her, she paddled the Green River to process her grief. Her new book recounts that story and dives into the science of the heart.

The precocious author’s debut release was the December-January pick for the Outside Book Club. We spoke with him about his journey along the Magdalena, Colombia’s longest waterway, and his attempt to understand the quickly changing country

Watching your dog age is one of the hardest parts of having a pet. Make their life comfortable and full of joy, and they’ll know how much you love them until the very end.

Tips for being a backpacking beginner and a woman adventuring alone

Time to shred

The Twitter famous saurologist and cofounder of Black AF in STEM is helping to build a more inclusive scientific community—and spotting some very sneaky lizards along the way

While getting his PhD in English, Logan Scherer developed an intense friendship with a male grad student that lasted for years, through his friend’s engagement and marriage to a woman. Scherer struggled to make sense of it, until he lost himself in a group of spinster nature writers from the late 19th century who eschewed marriage to live alone or with other women during a time when the language of queerness didn’t exist.

Marshall Sella started as an intern at Outside in Chicago in 1988, and he went on to a successful career as a magazine writer in New York. His friends and former colleagues will remember him as much for his infectious humor and generous spirit. Here, his editor recalls the impact a young man had on a magazine still finding its voice.

If not now, when?

Fitness comes and goes. Allow Glen Plake to make a case for prioritizing style—that elusive athletic skill that endures.

When you get creative with natural materials in parks, some call it art; others call it litter

By portraying predators as villains, we are influencing how our children perceive the natural world

Cahill’s stories and rollicking misadventures around the world have made this publication what it is today. Here he talks about his role in the creation of Outside magazine, choking down snake blood and gallbladder cocktails in the name of journalism, and how he came back from the dead after a frigid swim in the Grand Canyon’s biggest rapid.

The stories we were most excited to read and publish across Outside titles this year

This year’s most memorable adventure films include ‘The Rescue,’ ‘14 Peaks,’ and ‘Playing with Sharks’ 

What makes a queer person choose to live in an outdoorsy hot spot instead of an urban gayborhood?

38 quotes that we interpret for our own needs

The actor’s nature show, now streaming on Disney+, offers a welcome update to a familiar format

The podcast ‘FOGO’ captures a comedian’s quest to discover what she’s been missing in the outdoors

Some of this year’s best outdoorsy reads include new works from Alison Bechdel, Imbolo Mbue, and Mary Roach

America’s youth are in desperate need of real-life human connection. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame bassist says there’s no better place to provide that than a skate park.

The Outside contributing editor’s latest release was the November pick for the Outside Book Club. We spoke with her about the appeal of chasing powder and the many crises facing the ski industry.

In her new novel, the award-winning author takes an especially pessimistic view of the climate crisis—but this isn’t the time to give up

Earlier this year, journalist Amelia Arvesen participated in a ride for bicycling safety that ended in tragedy. Months later, she’s still figuring out how to process what she saw.

After moving to San Diego, one writer took her husband and sons on a five-day urban hike to explore and better understand their new stomping grounds