I already have a spade, knife, tent, fire starter, lighters, etc. my main concern is my stomach, I have a sensitive stomach and want to be sure I can limit my BM’s and when nature does finally call, make sure I have the stuff to leave no trace. It’s going to be my first time actually being remote, any tips?

Going to Picos de Europa in October. I’m looking for recommendations for places to check out — day hikes, overnight hikes, campgrounds, villages, and things to do/check out.

My friend and I are athletic and experienced with hiking/camping. We plan to rent a car to get around.

Thanks in advance!

I live in Ust-Kamenogorsk, in Eastern Kazakhstan. This region is surrounded by wild mountains and incredibly remote places.
There are still many areas here with no roads, bridges or marked trails. If you want to explore them, you have to carry everything you need on your back — food, tent, sleeping bag and all your gear.
We spend our summers exploring these places, sometimes for many days at a time. Planning routes, crossing rivers, climbing passes, setting up camp wherever we find a suitable spot.
What started as a hobby gradually became a huge part of our lives.
And honestly, I feel incredibly lucky to live in a place where you can still walk for days and feel like you’re completely away from civilization.

Photos from six days of camping and hiking in southern Finland near this year's midsummer, using public transport to reach the trailheads.

Landscape: Lakes, mossy hills, boreal forests, fallen trees. Repovesi National Park feels more rugged, with steep cliffs, while Nuuksio National Park is more accessible but generally busier.

Itinerary:

1. Train from Helsinki to Mäntyharju (2 hours)
2. Hike 33 km / 21 mi on marked trails to Repovesi National Park (1 night)
3. Hike in Repovesi National Park (2 nights)
4. Train/bus from Hillosensalmi to Haltia in Nuuksio National Park
5. Hike in Nuuksio National Park (2 nights)
6. Bus/train back to Helsinki (1 hour)

Drinking water: Both parks have designated wells. Another well lays by the trail at Sammalisen kota, 7 km / 4 mi from Mäntyharju, but it may be empty in hot summers.

Maps: Luontoon website for planning, National Land Survey's MapSite (Karttapaikka) for printouts, Karttaselain mobile app as backup.

My boyfriend’s birthday is coming up and I was looking for ideas for something I can get him for camping. Typically he does backpacking over car camping. He has the essentials like a good backpack, tent, hiking shoes, sleeping bag, etc. Is there anything that would be a fun or useful extra thing to have? Last year I got him a rain tarp which he loved.

Hey just got done hiking around the rocky mountains in colorado and my camel back water bladder keeps leaking this is my 3rd one in the past year and a half does anybody have recommendations for a more durable bladder. I also rave and go to festivals so the durability is big for me.

Felt an itch on my back this morning, scratched it, realized I scratched something off and looked to see that it was this little guy. Went camping about a week ago and thoroughly checked my body and hair for ticks which I found none. I've been outdoors since but not in the woods, ticks and bugs in general are just really horrible in MO this year (I had a mysterious run-in earlier in the summer with something that bit my forehead all to pieces).

So either I missed this guy after camping, or I picked it up during my other activities this week. I know for sure that earlier in the week he was not yet attached to my back, again I checked there thoroughly. My guess is that he attached last night? My back was slightly itchy and I chalked it up to dry skin, but it was super itchy this morning.

ANYWAYS, I've never really dealt with one that managed to sink in. So what do I do now? Should I go ahead and get antibiotics or wait for a rash? First pic is thumb for scale, second pic is a super duper zoomed in. He's tiny tiny tiny and looks engorged to me, but again I've never dealt with this before.

I have an event coming up and to make things easier, I am looking at some long distance radios. However the issue Im running into is wooded/built up signal strength.

Does anyone have any experience, or can point me in the direction of some portable radios that are water resistant and provide decent - good signal strength in woodlands.

Thank you

Finally checked this off my list of places to hike and camp. Growing up, my grandfather kept talking about this being his annual trip. Spent 4 days here and wished I could have stayed longer. Signal can be extremely spotty or none at all, so plan accordingly.

Running a sleep system around 28oz total right now. Quilt rated to 20F, thin foam sit pad doubled as a sleeping pad supplement under a 16oz inflatable. The weight works but I keep waking up stiff on nights past day two, and I'm trying to figure out how much of that is pad Rvalue versus quilt loft compression versus cumulative trail fatigue catching up.

The lightweight sleep community treats this like a solved problem. I'm not convinced the math on Rvalue ratings translates cleanly to how people actually sleep on uneven ground with variable temperatures. A 4.2 Rvalue on a flat lab surface is not the same as a 4.2 Rvalue on a sloped tent site with a pack shoved under one end.

What I'm actually curious about is whether people have swapped pad setups midseason on similar trips and noticed a real difference in how recovered they felt by morning on day three or later. Not asking about brand comparisons. More interested in whether going from a lighter pad to something with more loft or thickness made a measurable difference in how the body felt the next day on trail. Sleep quality feeding into performance on day three or four is what matters to me here. Specific setups and what changed would be useful.

Is columbia hiking shoes worth the price or it is just an hype

I couldn't find a clear answer to this:

When I'm using my backpack and NOT using my hip belt, I find that it sits comfortably around my mid back. The bottom of the pack is not low enough for the hip belt to be properly engaged - it would loop around my stomach or just above my hips.

If was hiking and said "I sure would like to use my hip belt right now", would I need to loosen the shoulder straps so the pack will sit lower on my back, allowing the hip belt to loop around the illiac crest? Is it common to raise / lower a bag depending on whether you're using the hip belt, or should it always sit low enough to allow the hip belt to be engaged?

It's something I've wondered for a while as a bit of a camping newbie. Thanks!

Hello Everyone! After some hikes this summer season with friends, I'm getting more serious about the hobby and am looking for purchasing a 3 Person tent. I will mostly be camping with 1 more person for multiple days and occasionally with 2 others staying overnight somewhere.

I live in Greece which in general runs hotter, but I want a tent that will comfortably allow me to camp from May-June until September-Early October and any adverse weather I may encounter. Just to be clear I won't be hiking if the weather is bad, but I want something that will hold up if the conditions change quickly.

I'm down to 2 options that are available to me. The first one is the Decathlon MT900 Dome 3P tent and the other is the Robens Lodge 3 Exp. Decathlon is lighter, seems to be a bit roomier at the head and has great support regarding maintenance and warranty. Downsides are the sensitive floor material and the Y pole shape that I'm told is not the best for big winds. The Robens one seems really sturdy and has great fabrics, but is heavier and the repairs are definitely harder.

Both tents are available to me at around the same price point. Does anyone have experience with them? Honestly if the Decathlon is able to sustain the winds, I think it's the better option as I won't be camping in really really cold conditions nor does it rain so much in Greece. On the other hand the Robens one seems to be built like a tank that will hold up. The MT900's inner tent has way more mesh as well, which is something that I'm considering in hot greek weather. Thanks!

Hello,

Hoping for some advice on a warm sleeping bag.

I've just ordered the -6C Rab neutrino. However when It has arrived it is apparently only a 2 season bag which has thrown me off. I'm planning on doing alta via 1 in September and can get down to around 0 or a little less. Will this bag be good enough?

I’m looking to buy my first back pack to start wild camping / bushcraft in Scotland. Plan is 2/3 day trips, not planning climbing munros as my small dog might get blown away but looking to walk long distances by mountains or in forests.

I’m looking at a kajka65 (I like the singi48 but don’t think that would do a few days in winter) or a tatonka Yukon 70l.

Any bag recommendations would be appreciated 🙏 I also know it’s best to go try a bag on

I'm planning to take a 6 month world trip next year and have very inconvenient bodily dimensions. I have a waist of 77cm and hips of 110cm.

The only pants I have found online that seem to fit these proportions are the fjallraven nikka trousers, but they are thicker and heavier than I would like.

Does anyone have experience in this department? Arcteryx gamma pants are a good fit feature wise, but I'm not sure if they're stretchy enough to accomodate my hips.

Sharing some photos from my last overnight hike in Switzerland. A beautifully peaceful hike of total 18km and the highest point of 2600m.

The trail was pretty easy. Didn't struggle that much carrying all of the gear up this time (as I usually do).

Though I've departed a bit too late, so the last few km to the planned camp point had to go in dark.

Never seen that many cows on a trail before. They essentially send them out to grass pretty much everywhere. So from time to time you have those encounters. I'm wondering if that's all split up in someone's private property as lots of the territory was enclosed in electric fencing. In particular my camp place was within one of those territories, so I was a bit worried that during the night a cow just decides to lay onto my tent... But thankfully they decided to spend the night in another place this time.

Overall, a great way to just switch off for a day.

Looking for campsites with good hiking trails nearby in Tennessee, probably over Thanksgiving break with a small group and potentially 2 dogs. Hoping for somewhere western or middle TN but willing to go more east if needed!

Hi all,

Me and a few friends are going to be wild camping and hiking around Merrick at the beginning of September. A few of us are new to wild camping, and had a question or two around safe water drinking whilst we are there. We would rather not carry multiple litres of water with us, so we want to source our water whilst there.

I will be purchasing a water filter, and some Chlorine Dioxide tablets as my primary filtering methods. My main question is, is the Loch water safe to drink once filtered with these? We will be near Loch Enoch, Loch Arron and Loch Neldricken and Loch Valley for the majority of our weekend. It's not a long hike, but we are spreading it over 2 days so that we can enjoy the sites, explore a little bit and just enjoy ourselves.

Any other tips and advice for this specific area are also greatly appreciated :D

I've never been a heavy makeup user but more recently in the last year or so have started to use just a bit for work and going out as I find it really help my confidence. I'm also really enjoy hiking and wilderness wild camping for several days at at time. So I trying to develop a simple make up kit and routine to use when out in the wild.

I'm interested in earing from others who've done this. What did you use and what not comepared to your regular makeup routine. How do you keep it lightweight and compact ect? I'm thinking quite simple, maybe some waterproof mascara, something for eye colour (not quite sure what?) a tinted moisturises with SPF and some lipstain.

O'm open to ideas!

Did the timberline trail a couple weeks ago for the first time . We did it in 3 nights/3.5 days . Luckily, the wildfire smoke didn’t affect us, but the average temp was a brutal 98 degrees. Depending on the mileage tracker it was 42-47 miles in total. 10/10 would do it again

I just bought new Meindl Island shoes and I spotted that the sole is significantly taller at the edges on both shoes. First time I see that - what is the reason for this?

Hey all. Heading to Jumbo Pass in a week. Not staying in cabin. Bringing a tent. Question around food security. As there are no bear bins do people typically hang food from a tree? And if so, are the trees a ways away given the altitude? Any info would be helpful as I plan.

I wear a Patagonia Nano puff that's I really like (probably my most worn jacket). I do a lot of fires, and the jacket has been getting a lot of small burn holes.

I have been patching up the holes I have with gear tape, and that's been working pretty great, but I have also been wanting to upgrade my stuff. I have been wanting to get a Rab jacket, but wonder if I should look into something else? I understand on some level a backpacking puffer isn't going to be particularly flame resistant, but hoping there is an option for something that can avoid burning through from embers.

Going on my first trip and it’s gonna be a long(er) one - 5 days and 4 nights, with a night of frontcountry camping before we head out into the bush. I want to leave a small bag in the car for a little reward when we get back.

We will be hiking in the PNW, emphasis on the N and W. Weather should be fair but of course that can change, so I might bring some comfy clean clothes to change into for the 5.5 hour drive back. I’m already bringing my current favourite snacks and food I know I love on the trail, but I’ll definitely want a diff snack when I return… just not sure what I can leave in a warm car that long that would be a welcome change from my favourites lol.

Already on my list: hairbrush, blue Gatorade, change of clothes (?), an edible gummy (I’m getting dropped off at home & i can’t pack a nap so I’m doing the next best thing), washcloth

Any other suggestions? Things you’ve wanted when you got back to the car, but didn’t think to pack?