Gear tested over real miles. Trips worth planning for.
We buy our own gear, break it on actual trails, and tell you what's worth the money — plus the trail guides, packing lists, and reservations know-how to get you out there in the first place.
Gear Review
The Best Hiking Boots of 2026, Tested Over 400 Miles
We put five boots through granite scree, river crossings, and the season's first snow squall. One pair didn't ask us to choose between support and comfort — and it wasn't the cheapest or the lightest.
Gear Review
Ultralight Tents Under 2 Pounds: Four Tested in Wind and Rain
A trekking-pole shelter beat two tents that cost twice as much once a 35 mph ridge camp and a three-day rainstorm were done with all four.
Gear Care
How to Break In Leather Boots Without Blisters
Full-grain leather needs a real break-in schedule, not a single long hike. Here's the conditioning and wear plan that actually prevents blisters.
Trip Planning
Trip Planning
How to Actually Get a Yosemite Campsite Reservation
Valley campsites sell out in under sixty seconds. The exact booking windows, the campgrounds worth the fight, and the fees nobody explains up front.
Trip Planning
A Weekend Backpacking Packing List
The exact two-night packing list we check against before every weekend trip, with quantities, so nothing gets left in the garage.
Trail Guides
Trail Guide
The Lost Lake Loop, Mile by Mile
A 7.2-mile loop that front-loads the climbing, pays it off at an alpine lake, and makes you earn the way back through an old burn scar.
Journal
Essay
Why I Stopped Counting Summits
Forty-six peaks into a list kept for six years, a whiteout summit made the number stop meaning anything true about why I was there.
Explainer
Reading Weather in the Mountains
The mountain writes its own weather, hours ahead of when it arrives. A field guide to the clouds, wind shifts, and pressure signs worth watching.