Editorials

Outdoor Retailer is a trade show held every summer where outdoor gear manufacturers come together and show off the gear they plan to bring to market in the upcoming year (2019). It’s a very social event where you get to catch up with old friends, drink a lot of beer, …

Most US National Forests allow people to harvest firewood for personal use, but you must have a Forest Service-issued permit and you must follow specific guidelines, which can vary from forest to forest (The BLM sells similar permits for the land they manage.) In my neck of the woods, you can harvest up to 5 cords of …

Hikers swear by Darn Tough’s wool socks because they last forever. Darn Tough even guarantees them for life, and will send you a replacement pair if you wear them out. I bought 6 pairs of Darn Tough Hiker Boot Socks three years ago and I’ve worn them almost continuously since for …

The Women’s Granite Gear Crown2 60L backpack (37 oz) is the lightest weight backpack available today that has a women’s-specific hip belt and shoulder straps as a standard option. That shouldn’t be surprising, since Granite Gear has a history of offering more lightweight women’s-specific multi-day backpacks than any other backpack …

I find it helpful to write a set of New Year’s resolutions each year about the things I want to learn and accomplish during the next 12 months. Since my life and work revolve around hiking, backpacking, camping, and writing, I get to set goals that are both fun and which …

Before we turn the page on another year and start the clock again afresh in 2017, I wanted to take a moment to remember some of the hiking friends that I lost this year. While my memories of them still remain fresh and vivid, they will be missed by those …

Arlette Laan or ‘Apple Pie’ as she’s known in New Hampshire’s close-knit White Mountain hiking community, is one of the region’s most accomplished hikers. A triple crown hiker who’s completed the AT, CDT, and PCT, among other long trails, she’s the first woman to complete a White Mountain Direttissima, a continuous unsupported …

Mountain guiding is a service industry, and a mountain guide is really no different from your taxi driver, your waitress, your hairstylist, or any other person or company catering to your wants and needs in the provision of a particular service. In the case of the mountain guide, their service …