Hiking
Archive
Vasque Sundowner: A svelte hiking boot that serves as a testament to how well-made products can endure despite evolving design trends.
The world's leading design center for outdoor footwear—everything from featherweight climbing shoes to hard-shelled mountaineering stompers—is a small city in northern Italy where craftsmanship reigns.
Six innovative tools to keep your favorite hiking buddy safe on the trail
Could this be the last rain jacket you’ll ever buy?
A space-saving design with that real water-bottle feel
Treksta releases an award-winning new boot with a hands-free lacing system
SafeSide marries common sense and cutting-edge technology, giving adventurers and their families a little peace of mind.
Experiencing setbacks in the great outdoors will bring out your inner MacGyver. Make sure he has an idea of what you’ll be up against.
Our Gear Guy Joe Jackson puts a fleet of camp chairs through the wringer to make picking the right one an easy choice.
These days, a weekend of camping doesn't have to mean a weekend of roughing it. Watch our guide to car-camping basics and you'll be ready for your first camping trip in no time. …
The latest hikers are lighter and more tricked out than ever before.
We spoke with six park rangers to find out what products they won’t leave home without.
Hiking boots get a long-overdue dose of style.
Picking the knife you carry with you everyday is no easy task. Thankfully, Outside's Gear Guy, Joe Jackson, is here to help. …
Stuff these in your pack and head out of the country with peace of mind
In the world of backpacking, there’s a band of craftsmen who have been making boots by hand since the Nixon administration.
Three new, surprising offerings from a heritage knife maker.
Outside's Gear Guy, Joe Jackson, puts the latest sleeping bag technology to the test and tries to answer an age-old question: what is the best fill for a sleeping bag? …
A purpose-made shoe for your next (or first) FKT
Plus three more sheep-wool alternatives to keep you warm this winter.
Outside's Gear Guy, Joe Jackson, puts 5 insulated stainless steel water bottles to the test. After they survive everyday wear and tear, Joe gets creative to find out which bottle is the most durable. …
Looking for one shoe that can do it all? The Outback is a great choice.
Cheryl Strayed started out on the legendary 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail with no backpacking experience, too-small boots, and a massive pack she nicknamed Monster. She learned a thing or two about gear on that 93-day trek (REI’s return policy saved her on one occasion), and she writes about some of…
When you have only the weekend to get outside and play, it helps to have an adventure-ready daypack prepacked and ready to go. Think of it as your bug-out bag, but instead of fleeing an impending apocalypse, you’re escaping from the tedium of your workweek. So whether you’re going…
The Eddie Bauer First Ascent Sorcerer goes from hauler to super-long hauler and can also be stripped down to a day-mission sack. Call it magic.
A jacket that can handle the trail but looks tailored enough for a dinner in Aspen—and is 100 percent American? We'll take three.
For the sake of your spine and your sanity, heed these rules
Keep your four-legged adventure companion cool in the heat this summer.
Shannon Stowell, President of the Adventure Travel Trade Association and co-founder of the first company to sell outdoor gear online, talks about his transition from online retail to the evolving world of adventure travel, and how it is changing on a global scale. Learn more about ATTA member and adventure…
Handmade goods are making a comeback. ETWAS Bags is a design project out of Brooklyn, NY, that makes leather bags by hand, the old fashioned way. Video by Lumineux Films and Madesmith. …
First, you should start by thinking about this question in a different way. It’s not about breaking in the boot to fit your foot, but breaking in your foot to fit the boot. If that sounds painful and a bit mystical, don’t worry. There are some easy steps you can…
Summer Buyer’s Guide tester Billy Brown currently has an office, a closet, and a garage overflowing with next year’s light hikers. The founder of Trek Tech blog and his testers have run about 120 boots through the ringer over the past year. In other words, he…
Outside's Gear Guy, Joe Jackson, puts a Yeti cooler through the ringer, including a cliff drop, a falling tree, and even hitting it with an axe. The result? Cold beer.
With ice-ax retention you can release with the pack on, gear loops for ’biners and belay devices, and an integrated crampon pocket, the Matrix is purpose-built for ski mountaineering. But you don’t have to rope up to appreciate how light, roomy, and useful the Matrix is.
April Showers or Labor Day deluge—new gear to keep you dry
I work on trails to help my local mountaineering club. Is there anything light enough to carry with in my backpack?
I work on trails to help my local mountaineering club. Is there anything light enough to carry with in my backpack?
I work on trails to help my local mountaineering club. Is there anything light enough to carry with in my backpack?
Shoes fall into the “do not skimp” category when it comes to gear.
Since I was a kid, it’s been droned into me to carry a map and compass in the outdoors, even if it’s a backup for GPS. What’s the least I can get away with?
I’ve heard of shoes and special boot inserts that generate electricity every time you step down. It sounds far-fetched. What’s the reality?
Easily tailored to your body, with clever details and a surprisingly light weight.
Roomy, great for heavy loads, and has a super-customizable hipbelt.
I’m looking for something long-lasting and bright that won’t let me down in the backwoods. What do you recommend?
Outside reviews the best women's travel dresses, including the Outdoor Research Trance Dress
I'm getting ready for a two-month trip around Asia and I need luggage that can hold up to serious abuse. What do you recommend?
I’m looking for a pair of quick-drying pants for hiking in the slush and rain over the next few weeks. I need to look presentable if we stop at a brewpub on the way back. What have you got for me?
Holiday gift guides abound this time of year. But they're mostly filled with gifts that you hope you'll get, not gifts you'll give. Stumped as to what to buy your lady this season? This guide is for you. 1. NAU DOWN LOOPNER SCARFShe'll wear it as a scarf, and…
If you're looking for the perfect Christmas gift for the person who has everything, consider giving an IOU note with HX-1 written on it. That's the name of toymaker Hirobo's one-person, single-seat, remote control electric helicopter, which won't be ready until at least next year. The wait is a…
How breakable are the new glass water bottles? Can you take them outdoors, or are they only for the office?
While Nemo’s Hunker won't stand up against the toughest conditions, after you’ve been out hiking or skiing all day, it can be rejuvenating to duck out of the wind or weather. Nemo’s Hunker let’s you sidestep the elements quickly and easily so that you can rest,…
In many cultures, your life depends on your knife. A knife is the tool you use to prepare food, hunt and dress animals, work skins, cut firewood, clear brush and vegetation. In southern cultures that knife is a often a machete. In northern Europe, the indigenous…
October solitude on the Rio Chama. Photo: Katie Arnold Last weekend we went camping on the Rio Chama in northern New Mexico. This wilderness canyon is one of our favorite places in the Southwest, and we figured it would be one of the last warmish weekends…
Package deals aren’t always winners, but this one is. To celebrate its 100th birthday, Stanley—celebrated manufacturer of insulated mugs and bottles used around the world—is giving you a present. It’s a stainless steel, vacuum-insulated travel mug that slides inside a leak-proof, BPA-free water bottle, meaning…
Gear Tester Andrew Forsthoefel has just finished his cross-country walk. It took him nearly a year. At approximately 2,000 steps per mile—he’s had plenty of chances to count—Andrew has taken more than six million steps on his way from Pennsylvania to the Pacific. Forsthoelfel sent us notes on his shelter…
Boyscout blades are a dime a dozen, but SOG’s Blade Light Folder (BLT-50N) takes camping knives to a new level. This steel-blade folding knife has six LED lights, three molded into the handle on either side of the blade, to…
I see people using increasingly high-tech hiking poles. What’s the deal?
Wild Things was founded 31 years ago to provide alpine climbing apparel and hardware for the world’s most extreme expeditions. The co-founder, Chamonix-born Marie Meunier, wore Wild Things on the first ascent of the South Face of Chacraraju, Peru,…