Blog
Best Backpacking Hatchet & Axe [2024 Update]
Narrowing down your selection from the best backpacking axe and hatchets doesn't have to be difficult with our in-depth reviews and comparisons.
Best Backpacking saw
Looking for the best backpacking saw? We give the rundown on what to consider when purchasing a backpacking saw & let you in on six of our favorites.
Staying Dry on the Trail: Best Backpacking Ponchos
In conjunction or instead of a rain jacket, taking a Backpacking Rain Poncho out in wet weather is a good idea. Find out the Best Hiking Poncho in our guide.
Best Backpacking Fishing Pole of 2024
Choosing the Best Backpacking Fishing Pole can be tricky as you balance weight & performance. We rank several contenders in our in-depth review
Best Backpacking Knife For Trail Errands
Best Knife for Backpacking The Spyderco Delica 4″ Most people wouldn’t be surprised that the Spyderco Delica 4 is the ...
Best Backpacking Thermometer for Weather Prediction
Best Backpacking Thermometer Sun Company Outsider While other backpacking thermometers might be more “advanced,” most of them provide functions that ...
Best Power Bank for Backpacking, Camping & Hiking
Best Power Bank for Backpacking Best Power Bank for Backpacking Jackery Bolt 6000 mAh By far the best quality of ...
Best Flashlight For Camping & Backpacking Trips
Let there be light! We take the ambiguity out of choosing the best flashlight for your next camping trip with our in-depth review of the top models on the market!
Best Multi-Tool For Backpacking [2024 Update]
When packing light, having a single tool that can do many jobs is a boon. We review & give our recommendation as to the best multitool for backpacking.
Choosing a Scout Backpack [2024 update]
Choosing a new backpack for a Scout backpacker is a critical and expensive decision. Our guide is here to help you choose the right boy scout backpack.
Wilderness Emergencies (S.A.M.P.L.E.)
On the fourth day of a 50 miler, the group was interrupted by a boy loudly complaining about intense pain in his stomach. The adult leader, assuming appendicitis, frantically hiked to the nearest ranger station and arranged for a helicopter evacuation. When the boy finally arrived at the hospital emergency room, a quick examination by doctors revealed the problem and the Scoutmaster was dead wrong in his diagnosis.
Best Camp Stoves for Backpacking [2024 update]
The Best Backpacking Stoves for While cooking your trail food over fires might seem like a good idea to a ...
Lighten Up On Pack Lists
Every credible organization provides a pack list to participants before taking them on any sort of high adventure backpacking outing. Inexperienced participants and their parents dutifully take these pack lists into stores to buy everything, exactly as it is written on the list. This is all very nice, except some pack lists are not very good at all.
Wilderness First Aid
One of the unique characteristics of backpacking is that it puts you in control of your own destiny in a ...
Water Purification
Water. It’s the source of all life. It makes up around 60% of the average adult human body, and without ...
Fear, Panic, and Paranoia on the Trail
Fear can paralyze anyone and keep them from experiencing life-changing experiences. There is no way to eliminate fear from a backpacking trip and we shouldn’t try. However, success on a high adventure outing is all about facing fears and dealing with them successfully (and safely).
Choosing the Best Backpacking Tent (or Shelter) [2024 Update]
Choosing the Best Backpacking Tent (or not) Backpackers sometimes need shelter but don’t necessarily always need to carry a tent. ...
Snow Camping
Boy Scout Snow Camping For most Scouts and adults, snow camping is the ultimate wilderness experience. There is nothing in ...
“Backpacking For Scouts” Manual
Request your own free copy at the bottom. “Backpacking for Scouts” contains Checklists, “Trail Tips”, pictures and useful references for ...
Bear Country
Bears are an increasingly common companion for hikers in the backcountry. According to a Ranger in Yosemite, there are now ...
Mosquitoes Suck
At dusk the mosquitoes were swarming and we were all cowering in our tents. Only the cook and his assistant were forced into the open, and they struggled to prepare dinner in long shirts, gloves, and mosquito hats. When it was time to eat, everyone grabbed their food and disappeared back into their tents as fast as possible. Next morning, we ventured out and were immediately attacked by thousands of frantic mosquitoes. Everyone just grabbed their stuff and ran down the trail with tents, cooking equipment, and even sleeping bags in their arms until the mosquitoes left us alone. (Please forward to your backpacking friends.)
Cat Holes
Believe it or not, many boys (and men) refuse to go on a long backpacking trip only because they are ...
Backpacking Food & Nutrition
Backpacking Food Backpacking food has changed a lot since the days when Scouts bought chili and beef stew for their ...
It’s Spring and Spring is Backpacking Season for Real Scouts!
Its Spring – a time when every sturdy young Scout starts thinking about the backpacking season ahead. Across the country, young men are pulling packs out of the closet, cleaning out the leftover food from last year, and getting ready for practice hikes. Adults are enthusiastically stepping up to do the same. Many with the goal of completing their first 50 miler backpacking trip before the end of the summer.
Getting Ready for Philmont!
As Spring approaches, hundreds of Scouts and Scouters across the United States are preparing for their trip to Philmont this summer. After winning a lottery to secure a spot, and after collecting payments over the past year, it now becomes very real for the 20,000 hikers who will converge on the small town of Cimarron, New Mexico - gateway to the Ranch. Are you one of them?
How Can We Start a Backpacking Program In Our Unit?
Backpacking has lost favor among Scouts and Parents for many reasons and starting or restarting a backpacking program is not easy for many Troops
Poison Oak
At the end of the summer, Colin was climbing around in Rock City, a popular area at Mt. Diablo State Park. Since the temperature was in the high 80’s, he was wearing only shorts and tennis shoes as he scampered from rock to rock in the bright sunshine. Unfortunately, he suddenly lost his balance. A large bush broke his fall, but he ended up scratched and bleeding where the branches penetrated his skin. The next day in the hospital emergency room, Colin learned the bush was poison oak, and he had several painful days of recuperation ahead of him. (Click to learn more about poison oak and how to deal with the rash it causes. Please forward to other Scout leaders.)
Wilderness Fine Dining
On the way to the outing, Scouts stopped at the grocery store and loaded up on enough canned chili and beef stew for the entire trip. At dinnertime, partially opened cans were set directly onto the coals of a camp fire. After a few minutes, we wrapped a dirty shirt around our hand and grabbed the bubbling food out of the fire, then took metal spoons and ate right out of the can. Later the cans were smashed, and buried away from the campsite. Today we have moved beyond cans to freeze-dried meals. Learn how to prepare them correctly. (Forward this to your backpacking friends.)
Backcountry Navigation
Finding your way through the wilderness is an essential backpacking skill requiring reliable tools and knowledge of how to use ...
