North America

Mount Rainier: Our Iconic Mountain

The Mountaineers Books is reprinting Mount Rainier: Notes & Images from Our Iconic Mountain, James Martin's stunning work of images and words that describes his extensive experience in Washington's Cascades and on Mount Rainier. GreatOutdoors.com presents this sneak peak at the images that made the book a classic.

Classic Hikes of North America

See this exciting excerpt from GreatOutdoors.com editor Peter Potterfield's new book, Classic Hikes of North America. Read how he approached the project, and discovered some of his favorite routes, including the Teton Crest Trail in Wyoming's Grand Teton National Park, the Tonquin Valley loop in Alberta's Jasper National Park, and the Long Range Traverse of Newfoundland's Gros Morned National Park.

First Fatal Grizzly Bear Attack in Denali

This week's deadly mauling of a backpacker in Denali National Park, the first confirmed fatal encounter,  is likely to reset how hikers view the park, which harbors some of the greatest wilderness in North America. Rangers found the camera belonging to the hiker who was killed, which sheds light on what happened before the attack. The big question: did he get too close?

Sierra: The Range of Light

Come along as GreatOutdoors.com gives you a sneak peak at photographer James Martin’s images from his iconic book, Sierra: Notes and Images from the Range of Light. The Mountaineers Books is reprinting the classic volume, Martin's stunning work in photographs and words that describes his extensive experience in California's Sierra Nevada.

Flying High in the Bugaboos

Passion for Fun at Silver Star

With accolades that include “Best Small Resort in North America” and “Best Family Resort in Canada,” British Columbia's Silver Star is a mountain for every interest, and its colorful Victorian-inspired Village evokes images straight from the pages of a Dickens novel while offering a true ski-in ski-out experience, and some of the best Nordic terrain anywhere. 

Jasper's Jewel: The Tonquin Valley

Waterton: The Quiet Jewel of Canada's Rockies

Tucked between Banff National Park to the north, and Glacier National Park to the south, sparsely visited Waterton Lakes National Park sits astride a narrow waist of the Rocky Mountains, where the high peaks don't bother with foothills, where the bear mojo is more intense than even Denali, and there’s more species of wildflowers than in Jasper and Banff combined.

GPS Navigation in the Wilds: Getting Started

Experts from Magellan accompany GreatOutdoors.com editor Peter Potterfield on a series of hikes in Utah's Arches National Park to demonstrate the benefits of using handheld GPS devices like the new eXplorist 310 to navigate in the wilds--and to show how easy it is to get started.

The High-Adventure High Life at Lake Chelan

From hiking to kayaking to mountain biking, the unique combination of mountains and water at Washington state's Lake Chelan creates unrivalled access to outdoor activities--months before the surrounding Cascades melt out. Outdoor fun combined with the civilized pleasures and fine dining of the world-class wineries make Washington state's Lake Chelan the perfect venue for early season adventures.

The Tour Divide: The World's Longest Off-Pavement Bicycle Race

A Trek to Grey Owl's Cabin

There’s no better way to experience the great boreal forest of northern Saskatchewan than to make the 40 kilometer round trip hike through the wilderness of Prince Albert National Park to pay homage to one of Canada’s earliest conservationists: the man who called himself Grey Owl. The two or three day tek out to his cabin on remote Ajawaan Lake, in the Grey Owl Wilderness is a great way to combine living history with backcountry adventure

Hiking Utah's Cedar Mesa Country

This unique plateau in southeastern Utah soars to 7,000 feet but harbors dozens of canyons slicing through the layer cake of the Colorado Plateau. With the greatest concentration of ancient Anasazi ruins on earth, Cedar Mesa’s landscape and artifacts make it a great place to kick off the hiking season.

Riding the White Rim -- In a Day

Most mountain bikers who take on  Moab’s classic White Rim Trail  do it as a two or three day ride with “sag wagon” support. But Colorado based Leighton White likes to do the entire 100-mile length of the trail in a single day to kick off the spring season. Follow along as White gives us a blow by blow, curve by curve description of this epic ride, despite broken spokes and a steep finish.

Mid Winter Getaway: Hike the Grand Canyon

Want to take a break from all those winter adventures, from ice climbing to skiing? Then head for the Grand Canyon, where March can be the best time of year for a backcountry trip down into one of the greatest features on planet Earth. Even if it's snowy and cold up at the rim, conditions can be pleasant in the canyon bottom. And the mild temperatures make the hike back up the rim pleasure.

The Wallowas In Winter

Come along as GreatOutdoors.com correspondent Kyle Beall goes skiing  and split-boarding off the grid: Beall and friends head into the wilds of Eastern Oregon's Wallowas, a cluster of mountains so impressive they are called the Little Switzerland of Oregon, to try out a yurt-based adventure with the guides of Wallowa Alpine Huts.

Whisked Away

Come along with GreatOutdoors.com correspondent Fletcher Jackson as he takes a wild ride on the slopes of Oregon's Mount Bachelor with Jerry Scdoris and his Oregon Trail of Dream dogsled operation, and his daughter Rachel, a racer who has run the Iditarod despite her blindness.