Backpacking hammocks are a great alternative to camping in a tent in the right conditions but there’s a steep learning curve to gearing up and learning how to be comfortable across a wide range of temperatures. While you can educate yourself about …
Read More »Outdoor Skills Books
Bushcraft 101 or How to Bring Even Less Survival Gear on Wilderness Adventures
A lot of us pride ourselves on having a lightweight backpacking gear list coupled and the advanced hiking skills that make it possible to replace extra gear with experience and know-how. But how far are you willing to push the gear vs. …
Read More »Mountain Weather: Backcountry Forecasting for Hikers and Backpackers
“Mountains make their own weather.” I’ll never forget hearing that from the friend who introduced me to trip planning and accident analysis. It’s a sobering and important lesson for anyone who climbs above timberline across exposed terrain on backpacking and mountaineering trips. …
Read More »The Ultimate Hiker’s Gear Guide Review, 2nd Ed. by Andrew Skurka
Contrary to its title, Andrew Skurka’s backpacking book, The Ultimate Hiker’s Gear Guide is not really a book about gear per se, as much as it is about the skills and knowledge that very experienced backpackers develop for planning trips and deciding …
Read More »Best Hiking and Backpacking Skills Books
Becoming a skilled and confident hiker or backpacker is a lifelong endeavor that requires continuous learning and practice. While reading hiking books can’t give you the hands-on experience that only comes by getting your clothes dirty and boots wet, they are a …
Read More »The Hiking Engine: A Maintenance Manual for your Feet and Legs
After many years of hiking and hiking with other people, I’ve concluded that the shoe industry is fundamentally broken and the cause of untold suffering in the hiking world. There are huge individual differences between people’s feet: people have hammer toes, bunions, …
Read More »Extreme Alpinism: Climbing Light, Fast and High
Extreme Alpinism: Climbing Light, Fast, and High is a great book that is about way more than mountain climbing. Written by Mark Twight and James Mason, it covers a wide range of topics about mental and physical conditioning, sports nutrition, and outdoor …
Read More »The Essential Wilderness Navigator
I have been reading a lot of books about compass navigation this year to improve my skills as an off-trail navigator and to figure out if there is a better way to teach compass navigation to hikers who want to learn it. …
Read More »Backwoods Ethics: A Guide to Low-Impact Camping and Hiking
Backwoods Ethics is one of my favorite hiking and outdoor conservation books. Written by two legendary New England hikers, Laura and the late Guy Waterman, it was first published in 1979 and is still considered a cornerstone of the outdoor conservation and Leave No …
Read More »Trail Tested – Justin Lichter’s Backpacking Gear Book
Wow! Justin Lichter, uber long-distance hiker, has published a book called Trail Tested which is a must-add gear guide for your backpacking book collection. It’s super readable and an excellent reference for beginners backpackers who are trying to figure out what gear …
Read More »Book Review: Ray Mears Essential Bushcraft
You’ll probably never use most of the stuff in Ray Mears Essential Bushcraft: A Handbook of Survival Skills from Around the World, but it is fascinating to see the ingenuity of people from around the world and they utilize nature to increase …
Read More »Book Review: The Backpacker’s Field Manual
The Backpacker’s Field Manual, A Comprehensive Guide to Mastering Backcountry Skills is still the most complete and readable handbook of backpacking instruction available today. Written by Rick Curtis, Director of Princeton University’s Famous Outdoor Recreation Program, it provides a gear-agnostic approach to the skills …
Read More »Book Review: Bushcraft by Mors Kochanski
I get tremendous personal satisfaction from learning, practicing, and using my outdoor skills when I go hiking, and it’s become an integral part of every day hike or backpacking trip I take. But there are so many outdoor skills that I am …
Read More »NOLS Wilderness Guide: A Book Review
The NOL’s Wilderness Guide (National Outdoor Leadership School) is a great book to read even if your are an experienced hiker and backpacker. The book provides in-depth instruction on a wealth of topics including: expedition planning how to dress for the backcountry …
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