• Welcome to The Big Outside!

  

  Hi, I'm Michael Lanza, thanks for visiting. Click on my photo to learn more about the benefits of following my blog, and to write to me. I love hearing from readers. And please enter your email below for updates about new stories and gear giveaways!

• Subscribe to The Big Outside

  Enter your e-mail address for updates about new stories, reviews, and gear giveaways!

  Name
  

  Email *
  

• Comments From Readers

  "This is the first blog that I have committed to and read on a regular basis. I have gotten many great ideas for future trips."
  —Scott

  "Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and expertise!"
  —Kimberlee

• Top Posts & Pages

  • Ask Me: What Are the Best Hikes in Idaho’s Sawtooths?
  • 10 Tricks For Making Hiking and Backpacking Easier
  • Ask Me: The 10 Best Short Hikes in Yellowstone
  • ‘The World’s Most Beautiful Trail:’ Trekking the Alta Via 2 in Italy’s Dolomites
  • Tent Flap With A View: 25 Favorite Backcountry Campsites

• Support The Big Outside

  This blog is my full-time work and I rely on the support of readers. If you like it, please help me continue producing The Big Outside by making a contribution in any amount: $5, $10, $25, $50, $100 on up. Thank you for your support.

  

• Book

  

• Sponsors of The Big Outside

  

• Categories

  • Ask Me (131)
  • Backpacking (279)
  • Family Adventures (214)
  • Gear Reviews (364)
  • Hiking (214)
  • International Adventures (56)
  • National Park Adventures (263)
  • Paddling (72)
  • Skiing (50)
  • Skills (57)
  • Uncategorized (62)

• Tag Cloud

  Arizona Ask Me backpacking backpacking apparel reviews backpacking boots reviews backpacking clothing reviews backpacking gear reviews backpacking skills backpacking tent reviews backpack reviews California California backpacking California national parks camping gear reviews Canyonlands National Park daypack reviews family backpacking family hiking family outdoor adventures family paddling Glacier National Park Gore-Tex product reviews Grand Canyon National Park Grand Teton National Park High Sierra hiking apparel reviews hiking clothing reviews hiking gear reviews hiking shoes reviews Idaho John Muir Trail Osprey pack reviews outdoor apparel reviews Sawtooth Mountains Sawtooth National Recreation Area Sequoia National Park Southern Utah hiking backpacking trail-running gear reviews ultralight backpacking gear reviews Utah Utah parks Washington hiking backpacking Wyoming Yellowstone National Park Yosemite National Park Zion National Park

Tag Archives: South Kaibab Trail

June 5, 2017

The 20 Best National Park Dayhikes

In Family Adventures, Hiking, National Park Adventures   |   Tagged Andrews Bald, Angels Landing, Anhinga Trail, Appalachian Trail, Arches National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, California, California hiking, California national parks, Canyonlands National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Cascade Pass, Chesler Park Trail, Clingmans Dome, Cohab Canyon Trail, Death Valley National Park, Delicate Arch, Everglades National Park, family hiking, Fying Pan Trail, Garnet Canyon, General Sherman Tree, Giant Forest, giant sequoias, Glacier National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River, Grand Canyon South Rim hikes, Grand Teton National Park, Grandview Trail, Granite Park Chalet, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Half Dome, Heather Pass Maple Pass Loop, High Sierra, Highline Trail, Hiking Bryce Canyon, hiking Grand Teton National Park, hiking Half Dome, hiking Wyoming, Horseshoe Mesa, John Muir Trail, Logan Pass, Lower Yellowstone Falls, Mist Trail, Montana, Mount Rainier National Park, Navajo-Queens Garden Loop, Nevada Fall, North Carolina hiking backpacking, North Cascades, North Cascades National Park, Olympic National Park, Peek-a-Boo Loop, Sahale Arm, Sahale Glacier Camp, Sequoia National Park, Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Park, Skyline Trail, South Kaibab Trail, Southern Olympic Coast, Southern Utah hiking backpacking, Strawberry Point, Sunrise Point, Sunset Point, Tags: Best national park dayhikes, Telescope Peak, Third Beach, Toleak Point, Upper Yellowstone Falls, Upper Yosemite Falls, Utah, Utah parks, Vernal Fall, Washington hiking backpacking, West Rim Trail, Wyoming, Yellowstone National Park, Yellowstone North Rim Trail, Yosemite National Park, Yosemite Valley, Zion National Park   |   2 Comments

By Michael Lanza

America’s most stunning landscapes are protected within our 59 national parks, and some of the finest corners of our national heritage can be reached on dayhikes. Many can be done by kids and novice hikers. I’ve spent a few decades exploring most major U.S. national parks, making numerous trips to popular ones like Yellowstone, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Glacier, Grand Teton, and Zion (lead photo, above). From the thousands of very scenic miles I’ve hiked over the years, I’ve assembled here a list of the best dayhikes you can walk in our parks. Start ticking them off this year. Continue reading →

How to Get a Last-Minute, National Park Backcountry Permit

May 30, 2017  |  In Backpacking, National Park Adventures, Skills   |   Tagged Bright Angel Trail, Capitol Reef backcountry permit, Capitol Reef National Park, Glacier National Park, Glacier National Park backcountry permit, Grand Canyon backcountry permit, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Teton backcountry permit, Grand Teton National Park, how to get a first-come national park backcountry permit, how to get a first-come national park wilderness permit, how to get a walk-in national park backcountry permit, how to get a walk-in national park wilderness permit, John Muir Trail, Mount Rainier backcountry permit, Mount Rainier National Park, national park backcountry permits, national park wilderness permits, North Cascades backcountry permit, North Cascades National Park, North Kaibab Trail, reserving a hard-to-get national park backcountry permit, Rocky Mountain backcountry permit, Rocky Mountain National Park, Sequoia backcountry permit, Sequoia National Park, South Kaibab Trail, Teton Crest Trail, Wonderland Trail, Yellowstone backcountry permit, Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park, Yosemite wilderness permit, Zion backcountry permit, Zion Narrows permit, Zion National Park   |   Leave a comment

Mark Fenton enjoying the dawn above the Lyell Fork Canyon of the Merced River in Yosemite.

By Michael Lanza

You really want to backpack in Yosemite, Glacier, Grand Teton, Zion, Rocky Mountain, Rainier, or another hugely popular national park this summer—but you didn’t apply to reserve a wilderness permit months ago? Well, you’re in luck: Most parks have a system for getting a last-minute permit. The bad news? It requires jumping through some hoops, good timing, and a bit of luck. Here are the tricks I’ve learned from numerous backpacking trips to major national parks over the past three decades. Follow them and you just might go backpacking this year in a classic national park. Continue reading →

May 29, 2017

My 25 Most Scenic Days of Hiking Ever

In Backpacking, Family Adventures, Hiking, International Adventures, National Park Adventures   |   Tagged Aitana Mountains, Alta Via 2, Angels Landing, Annapurna Circuit, Arizona, California, California backpacking, California national parks, Canadian Rockies backpacking, Cirque of the Towers, climbing Mount St. Helens, Clouds Rest, Dolomite Mountains, Europa Trail, family backpacking, family hiking, Glacier National Park, Glacier Peak Wilderness, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon r2r2r, Grand Canyon rim to rim to rim, Grand Teton National Park, Half Dome, High Sierra Trail, Highline Trail, Hiking Mount St. Helens, Idaho, John Muir Trail, Kings Canyon National Park, Kootenay National Park, Landmannalaugar, Laugavegur Trail, Montana, Mount Hood, Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, New Zealand, North Cascades, North Kaibab Trail, Olympic National Park, Oregon backpacking, Pale di San Martino, Paria Canyon, Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness, Precipice Lake, Rockwall Trail, Royal Arch Loop, Sawtooth Mountains, Sequoia National Park, Sierra de Aitana, South Kaibab Trail, Southern Olympic Coast, Southern Utah hiking backpacking, Swiss Alps, Teton Crest Trail, Thompson Peak, Thorung La, thru-hiking the John Muir Trail, Timberline Trail, Tongariro Alpine Crossing, Tongariro National Park, Torres del Paine National Park, trekking Iceland, trekking Italy, Trekking Nepal, trekking Switzerland, ultra-hiking, Utah, Utah parks, Washington hiking backpacking, Wind River Range, Wind River Range hiking, Wyoming, Yosemite National Park, Zion Canyon, Zion Narrows, Zion National Park   |   6 Comments

By Michael Lanza

You’ve had days like this. Maybe it was a dayhike, or a single, exceptional day on a backpacking trip or hut trek—one so gorgeous and inspirational that it forges a lasting memory as one of the best experiences you’ve ever had in the backcountry. From iconic national parks like Yosemite, Zion, Grand Canyon, and Glacier to some of the world’s great treks, like the Alta Via 2 in Italy’s Dolomite Mountains, New Zealand’s Tongariro National Park, and Iceland’s Laugavegur Trail, here’s a list of the 25 hands-down prettiest days I’ve ever spent walking dirt and rock footpaths. I think many of these places would make your top list, too. Continue reading →

May 21, 2017

Ask Me: Where Should Our Family Backpack in the Grand Canyon?

In Ask Me, Backpacking, Family Adventures, National Park Adventures   |   Tagged Arizona, Ask Me Grand Canyon, backpacking Grand Canyon, Bright Angel Trail, Colorado River, Cottonwood Creek, family backpacking, Grand Canyon National Park, Grandview Point, Grandview Trail, Grapevine Creek, Hermits Rest, hiking Grand Canyon, Indian Garden, Kahtoola Microspikes, New Hance Trail, North Kaibab Trail, Roaring Springs Canyon, South Kaibab Trail, Tonto Trail   |   1 Comment

Dear Michael,

My wife and I take our kids to Ketchum, Idaho, every summer and became fans of your site by finding your great recommendations and tips for the White Cloud Mountains. We are now planning a trip with our kids to the Grand Canyon. Our kids are 13 and 14 and are accustomed to multi-day backcountry hikes in the White Clouds and Sawtooths, with 2000+-foot elevation gains. We were seriously considering your suggested four-day trip east to west from Grandview Point to the South Kaibab Trail, but I just noticed that you have also recommended that to someone else in your Ask Me section in response to a request for a “big dayhike.” We don’t want to kill ourselves with an unreasonable pace, but I don’t want to allocate four days for a trip that my kids could reasonably do in two or three. Do you have any advice for what might be the best way to do this, or whether there is an alternate route you would suggest? Continue reading →

5 Great Adventures You Can Still Pull Off in 2017

May 15, 2017  |  In Backpacking, Family Adventures, Hiking, National Park Adventures   |   Tagged Appalachian Trail, backpacking Grand Canyon, backpacking Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Bright Angel Trail, California, California backpacking, California national parks, Clingmans Dome, family backpacking, family hiking, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon South Rim backpacking trips, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, High Sierra, hiking backpacking western North Carolina, Idaho, Idaho backpacking, Mount Hood, Mount Hood National Forest, North Carolina hiking backpacking, North Kaibab Trail, Royal Arch Grand Canyon, Sawtooth Mountains, Sawtooth National Recreation Area, Sawtooth Wilderness, Sequoia & Kings Canyon national parks, Sequoia National Park, South Kaibab Trail, Timberline Trail   |   14 Comments

Ramona Falls, along the Timberline Trail around Oregon’s Mount Hood.

By Michael Lanza

So you didn’t plan far enough in advance to reserve a permit for backpacking this summer in Yosemite, Grand Teton, Glacier, or another popular national park, eh? So, now what? Where will you take a big outdoor adventure in 2017? Here are five backpacking trips that even slackers still have time to plan and execute this year. Three of them are in top-tier national parks, and the other two are multi-day hikes with national park-caliber mountain scenery. Continue reading →