Trail Guides - Backpacking Skills - Gear Reviews
Into the Backcountry is a resource to help you plan your next backpacking trip, improve your wilderness skills, and learn about the latest gear.
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The Susquehannock Trail System is an 83.4 mile loop located in Potter County, Pennsylvania. When you traverse the trail, you'll be exposed to a variety of landscapes like – steep hillsides and valleys, wetlands, diverse forest types, open meadows, cascading streams, and a few nice overlooks. Also, as you venture further into this region's remote and unspoiled woodlands, you'll discover an abundance of wildlife.
The Escarpment Trail is a 25 mile hike located in the Catskill Mountains of New York. It’s a point-to-point trail that traverses the Windham-Blackhead Mountain Range and treats you with many panoramic views of the surrounding area. Additionally, on the Escarpment Trail, you’ll be able to explore the wreckage of an old plane crash, and if you’re willing to take a little side trip, you’ll get to see the spectacular Kaaterskill Falls.
The Perry Valley Loop is a 27.4-mile hike located in the George Washington National Forest of West Virginia. This trail is one of the best kept secrets on the East Coast. Few people know about it and that means you’ll basically have the trail to yourself. You will get to see incredible rock outcroppings with stunning cliffside views. The three notable views are Half-moon Mountain, Big Schloss, and Tibbet Knob.
The Pemi Loop is a legendary 31.5-mile hike located in the White Mountains National Forest of New Hampshire. On this route, you’ll enjoy long stretches of above-treeline hiking, including the Franconia Ridge Traverse and the Bonds Traverse. Along the way, you’ll knock out eight of New Hampshire's 48 4,000-foot peaks, each offering a spectacular view of the Pemigewasset Wilderness.
The Black Forest Trail is a challenging 43-mile loop hike located in Pennsylvania's Tiadaghton State Forest. It’s considered by many as the most prized hiking trail of the Pennsylvania Wilds. On a backpacking trip to this region, you can expect to see dramatic mountain views that seem to be endless, cascading mountain streams, and an abundance of wildlife.
The Three Ridges Loop is a popular 13.2-mile hike located in the George Washington National Forest of Virginia. This route uses the Appalachian and Mau-Har Trail to form the loop. Throughout this hike, expect several steep climbs and some rock scrambles. However, in the end, all your effort will be rewarded with many beautiful views of the surrounding Blue Ridge Mountains.
The Roan Highlands is one of the most scenic sections of the Appalachian Trail. It's located in the remote Pisgah and Cherokee National Forests, on the border between Tennessee and North Carolina. The highlight of the trip is the long stretch of grassy balds providing 360-degree summit views of nothing but mountains as far as the eye can see.
The Allegheny Front Trail is a 42-mile hike located in the Moshannon State Forest of Pennsylvania. It utilizes a network of hiking trails, old logging roads, state forest roads, and Native American Indian paths to form a loop. You'll get to experience six incredible vistas and traverse through a variety of forest habitats.
The Dolly Sods Wilderness is located on top of the Allegheny Plateau of West Virginia, and is part of the Monongahela National Forest. A backpacking trip in this area will expose you to a very diverse and unique landscape with sphagnum bogs, grassy meadows lined by spruce trees, windswept boulders, and beautiful mountain vistas.
Setting up a tent on a wooden platform can be a bit tricky, especially if your tent isn't freestanding. In this article, I will talk about six anchoring strategies to make the whole process a lot easier and explain how and when to use each technique.
A quality backpacking tent can cost anywhere from $300-$600. After spending that kind of cash, you may be thinking of protecting your investment and deciding on whether or not to buy a footprint for it. In this article we will discuss if it’s really necessary to get one for your tent.
After hiking many miles over challenging terrain, the next morning can be difficult to get moving again. Many backpackers including myself turn to coffee to give ourselves a necessary boost in energy. However, if you're new to backpacking you may wonder how can I make coffee while backpacking? Or maybe you're a more experienced backpacker and trying to find a better way to make coffee. Either way, this article is for you.
Whether you’re an experienced backpacker or a beginner, one of the most important skills that you can have is knowing how to safely ford a river. Going on a backpacking trip without such skills could result in severe injury or worse. So in this article, I will guide you through the whole process of fording a river so you can remain safe and be able to have an enjoyable trip.
If you spend enough time camping in the backcountry, at some point, you’ll wake up with a tent full of condensation. The good news, however, is that it’s possible to prevent tent condensation while backpacking. The way to prevent it is to follow these 5 steps
When planning your backpacking trip, one important issue you’ll need to figure out before you go is how much water to carry between water sources. The last thing you want to happen is to run out of water and find yourself nowhere near a stream and then potentially getting dehydrated. So, how can you figure out how to carry the right amount of water for your hike?
Sadly, human waste is the most common form of pollution in our wilderness areas. This shows that a lot of backpackers simply don’t know how to properly poop in the woods. With more and more people choosing to enjoy the outdoors, it’s important that we all learn how to do so by following ‘Leave No Trace’ practices. Then our natural areas will remain beautiful places to visit. Here is a complete guide on how to poop in the woods.
Choosing the right campsite when backpacking is essential for your comfort and safety. Here are some tips to help you evaluate potential campsite locations.
After using your sleeping bag on many different adventures, dirt and body oils can slowly work into the fabric and reach the down. This can cause it to lose it’s loft and insulation capabilities. However, with the proper care, you can keep your bag working effectively for many more years to come. Here’s a step by step guide on how to clean your down sleeping bag.
Ticks and mosquitoes present the biggest threat to a hikers health on the trail. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported that each year more and more people are contracting diseases from these insects. With numbers tripling since the 1990s. Even though this might be alarming, this shouldn’t keep you from hiking in the woods, but should motivate you to take the necessary preventive measures to protect yourself from this danger.
The Pinchot Trail System is a 23 mile loop located in Lackawanna County of Northeast Pennsylvania. You'll find that this hike doesn't have the breathtaking mountain views that other trails have. However, it makes up for it by taking you through a variety of natural ecosystems, including dense hemlock forests, open meadows, rhododendron tunnels, picturesque streams, and even a waterfall.