The outdoor magazine for better days in the great outdoors

Outfarer is an independent outdoor mag covering hiking and backpacking, camping, camper vans and RVs, biking, trail running, mountains, snow, water, nature, and travel. It is written for people who plan their own trips, whether they are just getting started or have been at it for years, and who would rather have a clear answer than one more opinion.

Every guide starts with a practical question, the kind you ask the night before you head out: how much time to allow for a loop with a lot of elevation gain, what the rules say about camping outside campgrounds, how to make stream water safe to drink, how to read the numbers printed on a headlamp box. We explain the rules, the ballpark figures, and the simple techniques, with worked examples and tables when they help you decide.

Our method comes down to a few principles: open, cited sources, official texts read in their current version, and numbers explained rather than just stated. Gear is compared on the specs published by its makers and on criteria set out in advance, and a first-hand story is always told by the person who lived it. When information changes, the article is updated, and every correction is noted at the bottom of the page.

The magazine comes in four editions: French, British English, American English, and German. Each one is adapted for its readers, with the right units, examples, and, where needed, local rules, without ever changing the scope of a piece of information. Articles are signed by their authors and reviewed before publication when the subject calls for it.

For activities you learn with an instructor, such as scuba diving or sea kayaking, our articles help you understand them and choose who to learn with, never replace instruction; others, such as mountaineering or backcountry skiing, stay out of our pages. For everything else, browse the sections or start with the latest guides.