Outdoor Activities | Product description

Aug 2, 2025

Sky-High Ceiling, Down-to-Earth Comfort: NEMO Aurora Highrise 4 Tent Review

　　It’s embarrassing how many tents I have tucked away in our garage. So much so, I’m pretty sure I got an eye roll from my partner when the NEMO Aurora Highrise 4 showed up. In my defense, it’s hard to purge our stash of tents, with some feeling like part of the family, like my parents’ old center-pole Kelty, and...

Aug 2, 2025

Retro-Chic Ski Goggles for Spring Laps: Vallon Freebirds Review

　　It was a scorcher in Vail’s back bowls. Without a cloud, the snow softened to perfect corn. I enjoyed uninhibited turns for thousands of vertical feet. While those conditions are my favorite, the blasting sun and snow reflection demand solid eye protection. Thankfully, I was testing the Vallon Freebirds ski goggles — alongside a heavy layer of sunscreen. 　　The lens...

Aug 2, 2025

Robotically Crafted Spray-On Super Shoes: Cloudboom Strike LS Review

　　The origin story for On’s LightSpray technology seems tailor-made for Hollywood (cue the Damon and Affleck script). It all started on Halloween several years ago, when Johannes Voelchert, the senior lead of innovation technology design for Swiss brand On, watched his kid use a hot glue gun to make a costume. Marveling at how quickly the liquid turned solid, Voelchert...

Aug 2, 2025

Midland’s Latest High-Power GMRS Radio for Off-Road and Overland Comms

　　For overlanders and off-road explorers, reliable communication isn’t optional — it’s essential. That’s why serious trail users turn to high-powered, vehicle-mounted GMRS systems. Transforming the communications space with cutting-edge technology since 1959, Midland offers GMRS two-way radios built to deliver clear, long-range communication in remote locations over challenging terrain. 　　Whether youre coordinating across a remote basecamp or leading a multi-rig convoy...

Aug 2, 2025

Trump Admin Removes Logging Protections From 58 Million Acres of National Forest

　　Another Trump administration proposal is taking aim at public lands — this time through the U.S. Department of Agriculture. 　　In a Monday announcement, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said she would rescind the Roadless Rule, which protects 58.5 million acres of national forests from road construction, logging, and other resource development. 　　Initially passed in the Clinton administration in 2001,...

Aug 2, 2025

See What’s Next: Top Outdoor Gear From Debut ‘Switchback’ Event

　　No longer a subevent within The Running Event, Switchback officially opened its doors to brands, retailers, and media for its first-ever standalone outdoor trade show. 　　While it was nowhere near the grandeur or size of the halcyon days of Outdoor Retailer, Switchback evoked much of the same buzz and anticipation that long rallied the industry into one place. Speakers, seminars,...

Aug 2, 2025

Armada Nismo Makes Nissan’s Biggest SUV More Powerful Than Its Sports Car

　　The fleet has just gotten more powerful. Nissans high-performance arm has applied its expertise to the Armada SUV for the first time, creating the new Nissan Armada Nismo. 　　This gives the U.S.-market SUV one of the best versions that the Japanese automaker had been saving for the rest of the world. 　　Nissan US Finally Brings What the World Has Had...

Aug 2, 2025

Should ‘Negligent, Reckless’ Hikers Pay for Rescue? WA Sheriff Eyes SAR Fees

　　Unprepared hikers are getting stranded and injured in unprecedented numbers in Skamania County, Wash., and the sheriff has had enough. Now, Sheriff Summer Scheyer is advocating for an ordinance that would fine negligent or reckless hikers who require search and rescue (SAR). 　　Were not in the business of billing people per se, but I do want some type of deterrent,...

Aug 2, 2025

Senate Parliamentarian Blocks Public Land Sales in Budget Bill

　　In a major development for public land advocates, the Senate parliamentarian, Elizabeth MacDonough, has ruled that a proposal to sell off federal land cannot be included in the GOP-backed budget reconciliation package. 　　The decision effectively blocked Senator Mike Lee’s plan to privatize up to 3 million acres of public land as part of the party’s housing initiative, for now. 　　...

Aug 2, 2025

Opinion: Rebranded but Still Rotten, Sen. Mike Lee Updates His Public Land Sell-Off

　　Senator Mike Lee is backpedaling sort of. 　　After proposing a sell-off of 3 million acres of public land, he was met with a massive backlash from hunters, anglers, ranchers, and public land users across the country. 　　The Senate parliamentarian dealt him another blow, ruling that public land sales can’t be included in the reconciliation package he planned to use to...

Aug 2, 2025

Comfortable Pack Puts Safety Up Front: Gregory Paragon 60 Backpack Review

　　As I ascended the trail in Northern Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, day hikers flowed past me heading back to the trailhead in the late afternoon sun. My group forged ahead into the backcountry for the night. On my back, the newly designed Gregory Paragon lightweight backpack held all of my gear comfortably as I climbed. 　　The Paragon is designed for backpackers seeking...

Aug 2, 2025

2026 Ford Explorer Gets the Off-Road Treatment With Tremor Model

　　Ford is applying its Tremor off-road branding to its entire line of trucks and SUVs. The latest to get the treatment is the three-row 2026 Explorer. 　　　　Ford Tremor lineup; (photo/Ford) 2026 Explorer Tremor: Off-Road Goodies 　　　　(Photo/Bryon Dorr) Of course, first, this new off-road–oriented machine gets bigger tires and a small lift. All-terrain tires, 31.5 inches tall, wrapped on...

Aug 2, 2025

The Best Minimalist Running Shoes

　　The running world’s brief, passionate affair with the minimalist movement may have burnt out more than a decade ago, but minimalist running shoes are alive and well—and experts agree there are good reasons you should own a pair. 　　At a Glance Why Wear Minimalist Shoes? What Is a Minimalist Shoe? Maximizing Your Minimalist Experience Meet Our Lead Tester Minimalist shoe...

Aug 2, 2025

Grizzly Recovery Efforts, Once Booming, Now Face Limbo

　　Visit a mountain trailhead here in western Montana right now, and you might be treated to an unusual sight: car-size white cylinders. Those are grizzly capture devices, and they’re being staged ahead of a summer-long effort to count the bears and evaluate the ongoing success of a 40-year plan to restore their population across the northern Rockies. This year may be...

Aug 2, 2025

Ski Industry Leaders Urge ‘No’ Vote to Protect Public Lands

　　The following column was submitted by Hannah Berman, senior sustainability and philanthropy manager atAspenSkiing Company, andBrody Leven, a professional skier andProtect Our Wintersathlete. 　　Sure, we think a lot about snow, water, and the future of our planet — but like you, we’re also trying to support our families and build a stable future. One of us climbs and skis steep...

Aug 2, 2025

French Alpinist Becomes First to Ski — And Climb — All 4,000m Peaks in the Alps

　　A French skier has just become the first person to climb and ski every mountain in the Alps higher than 4,000m (12,000 feet). After chipping away at the project for 15 years, Vivian Bruchez scaled the final peak on June 20. 　　“Happy to announce today that I have finished the final peak of this adventure, Bruchez wrote on Instagram (translated...

Aug 2, 2025

Paddling Western NC With an Olympian

　　Bryson City, North Carolina, is more than just a postcard-perfect mountain town — it’s where professional kayaker Evy Leibfarth learned to paddle and found her footing as a competitor and person. “To me, Bryson City is just where it all started — kind of where I found myself, Leibfarth says. 　　On her home turf, the Nantahala River, Leibfarths days are...

Aug 2, 2025

A Washington Sheriff Wants to Charge Negligent Hikers for Rescue

　　A county sheriff in southern Washington is considering fining visitors who require search and rescue—specifically if those visitors are unprepared for their backcountry trips. 　　In a June 5 Facebook post, the Skamania County Sheriffs Office reported that “despite continued preparedness messaging and warnings of the dangers” of recreating outside, the county had seen a 400 percent increase in SAR incidents...

Aug 2, 2025

Undefeated After 10 Years, This Solar Lantern Still Rules: BioLite Luci Lanterns Review

　　Desperate times call for desperate measures. Nearing 10 p.m. and the campfire just hitting its stride, my phone died — along with our tunes. The worse news was that my battery bank hadn’t made it into the truck. 　　Then a lightbulb, or rather a lantern, lit up — the little inflatable light source illuminating our shindig also had juice to...

Aug 2, 2025

Should You Cook With an Induction Stove On Your Next Camping Trip?

　　I just made the switch to an all-electric cooking system for car camping. The setup includes an induction cooktop, which uses an electromagnetic field in lieu of direct heat to cook food. While many people associate induction with lower air pollution or faster cook times, I switched for three different reasons: convenience, packed size, and the ability to “refill” my energy...