The first rays of sunlight illuminated the Elk Mountains on the periphery of Crested Butte Mountain Resort on a below-freezing December morning. My truck actually says it’s -15 degrees Fahrenheit, as I drive to the backcountry trailhead, trailer in tow. There’s 6 inches of fresh snow in town — meaning the backcountry likely (and hopefully) picked up triple those numbers....

　　The outdoors have a way of delivering to us our soulmates. Sometimes, that’s a romantic partner, discovered on a mountain-summit meet-cute. Other times, it’s the fiercely loyal friends we never knew we needed. Maybe you’ve noticed the same—that your best friends are your adventure friends. There’s a reason for that dynamic. The outdoors draws out the best and the worst...

　　If its outside, Denvers got it. This modern city with a pioneer past is a gateway to the Rocky Mountains. But a plethora of local parks, lakes, gardens, and trails means you can find adventure within the city, too. 　　With so many options, it can be hard to know where to start. On this episode of Guide to Outside, get...

　　For decades, many of the thru-hikers who trek the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) have ended their journey just a few miles over the U.S.-Canada border. Yet theyll now have to be satisfied with ending their hike at the border — or trekking an extra 62 miles to the closest available border crossing. 　　Thats because the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) changed...

　　This is a review of an automatic knife.Automatic knives are subject to a variety of legal restrictions.Check your local knife laws or consult with a local lawyer before purchasing an automatic knife.Here is the American Knife and Tool Institute website for more information. 　　There is an undeniable thrill in firing an automatic knife, especially one thats well-made. The feel of...

　　A version of this article originally appeared on Pinkbike.  　　Its easy to become part of an echo chamber. Pinkbike often gets lost in the finer points of mountain bike technology, from suspension platforms to frame flex. But what kind of questions are people asking about mountain biking outside the platform? For one, what are the best mountain bikes for beginners? Below, Pinkbikes editors...

　　First responders shared a spicy rescue that occurred in northwest Washington state last Wednesday. The King County Sheriff’s Air Support Unit responded to a rescue request on Jan. 22 after receiving a SOS alert from an Apple Watch worn by a backcountry skier. As they flew a helicopter to the coordinates, rescuers only knew that a male skier had been injured...

　　SHOT Show, the massive Las Vegas trade show for hunting, tactical, and sporting gear, played host to the latest innovations in premium flashlights and headlamps. Last week, I spent 2 days hunting for the most illuminating products of 2025, and the future is looking bright for flashlight aficionados. 　　From an expansion of the wedge light category to incredibly powerful EDC...

　　It takes a lot to push yourself to your physical limit alongside a significant other. It takes even more to do so for 12 straight days in some of the country’s most unforgiving terrain. And yet that’s what Andrew Hamilton and Andrea Sansone did in July 2024, when they set the couple’s record for hiking all 58 of Colorado’s 14,000-foot...

　　In an industry defined by continuously evolving trends, the knife markets craze du jour is the pocket fixed blade. If youre wondering why, I outline the history and justification for the trend in my full explainer on pocket fixed blades. (Start there for some context, and then come back here when youre ready to start shopping.) 　　Like any good knife,...

　　Indoor bike training seems like a sufferfest: a sweat-drenched cyclist alone in a dark basement, sucking stale air, pedaling hard but going nowhere. There are no fellow riders to talk to, no draft to ease the burden, and no scenery to pass the miles. Maybe there is even an analog clock, loudly ticking every second. 　　But it doesnt have to...

　　On a brisk weekday in October 2023, three sewing machines hummed while experimental indie pop played quietly inside a warehouse near the airport in Missoula, Montana. Three sewers had their heads down, assembling eggplant-colored jumpsuits, as Mallory Ottariano, the 34-year-old founder of the women’s outdoor clothing brand Youer, squinted into a dizzying spreadsheet. The Youniverse—what Ottariano, a queen of puns,...