The Outdoor Research Helium Rain Jacket.

Review: Outdoor Research Helium Rain Jacket

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Ultralight Rain Jacket Outdoor Research Helium Rain Jacket $170, 6 oz./170.1g (men’s medium), $180, 6 oz. (women’s medium) Sizes: men’s XS-XXL, women’s XS-XL backcountry.com Whether hiking through heavy, cool mist while backpacking the Wonderland Trail in Mount Rainier National Park, pulling this shell on frequently to fend off cold wind and rain showers during a five-day backpacking trip in The …

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Cotopaxi Fuego Hooded Down Jacket

Review: Cotopaxi Fuego Hooded Down Jacket

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Down Jacket Cotopaxi Fuego Hooded Down Jacket $295, 13 oz. (men’s medium) Sizes: men’s S-XXL, women’s XS-XL cotopaxi.com Down jackets come in a wide range of prices based primarily on the fill-power rating (read: warmth per ounce and packability) and amount of down inside, with the cost boosted when those feathers are water-resistant. While $250 does not seem inexpensive at …

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A view from the Appalachian Trail in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

In the Garden of Eden: Backpacking the Great Smoky Mountains

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By Michael Lanza

Late-afternoon sunlight tilts golden beams through the low canopy of spruce and fir trees as I hike alone up the Welch Ridge Trail, deep in the backcountry of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I haven’t seen another person all day. Solitude in the mountains exerts many effects, small and large, on us, including that we instinctively listen more attentively. Our rational minds cannot erase from primal memory the instinctive knowledge that, in the primitive brains of some woodland creatures, we represent a boatload of calories.

I stop abruptly and stand perfectly still—listening intently, waiting. And then I hear it.

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The Sierra Designs Nitro Quilt.

Review: Sierra Designs Nitro Ultralight Backpacking Quilt

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Ultralight Backpacking Quilt Sierra Designs Nitro Quilt 35/20 35-degree: $250, 1 lb. 5 oz. 20-degree: $280, 1 lb. 11 oz. Women’s 20-degree: $340, 1 lb. 11 oz. One size in each model sierradesigns.com For some backpackers, taking a quilt instead of a sleeping bag for multiple nights in the backcountry may seem risky—what if it’s not warm enough? In reality, …

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Ouzel Lake in Wild Basin, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado.

The 5 Rules About Kids I Broke While Backpacking in Rocky Mountain National Park

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By Michael Lanza

“I’m dying!” my son, Nate, bellowed to the entire forest in the Wild Basin of Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park. “This pack is too heavy!” We were just 30 minutes up the trail at the outset of a three-day backpacking trip. It was a trip that seemed like an unmitigated disaster for the first two days—then morphed into an adventure my kids clearly enjoyed and that helped expand their outdoor interests.

For me, those three days in Rocky serve as a reminder about the many ways you can do it wrong when taking kids outdoors, but how simple it is to make it right.

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