Hiking 101: How to Find Amazing Hiking Trails
discover resources to find amazing hiking routes and backpacking trails.
This is part I in my hiking and backpacking series for beginners.
We’ve all been there: you see that epic picture on Instagram or Pinterest and wonder, where is that!? How can I go somewhere so pretty, too? To protect the land, many “influencers” will not tag locations or share the trail they are on and while this is mildly exclusionary, it also keeps trails free from bombardment. So what’s a person to do to get to those amazing places? Research, my friend!
If you want to get out and explore the great wilderness but maybe aren’t sure where to start, or if you are looking for new strategies to find epic hiking routes and backpacking trails, then this handy guide has you covered.
In this guide, I share my treasure trove of tools to find routes. Some of these tools require very little brainpower, while others take more work. Find what works best for your adventure style and get out there!
Table of Contents
1. Hiking Websites
2. Google Earth
3. Pinterest & Blogs
4. National Park Service
5. Guidebooks
The simplest way to find a hike is to peruse hike-specific websites. These offer extensive options, photos and detailed summaries. On some apps and websites, they’ll even provide planning tools like upcoming weather, nearby hikes, interactive maps, elevation profiles, and more.
For those in Washington State, Washington Trails Association is an indispensable gift from the hiking gods. It has a Hike Finder Map, trail reports from the community for up-to-date trail conditions and blog posts to inspire your next trip. Not every state in the U.S. has such a reliable and expansive resource, but some do.
Here are my favorite comprehensive hiking websites:
All Trails
All Trails offers a broad range of hikes all over the world and is user-friendly . It covers small trails in city neighborhoods to day hikes and multi-day backpacking routes.
The app is great though it will often yell at you to get a Pro account ($30/year), but here’s a tip: you can still download maps and use them offline (add the hike to a list to access it without needing internet to “search” while on trail).
Favorite Features:
Adding hikes to your own lists
Offline maps and elevation summary
Hiking Project
This one is a visual person’s dream. Not only does Hiking Project color-code trails by difficulty on their maps mbut the elevation profile is handy as well. This is my personal favorite, especially for backpacking, as it covers all logistical details (even including land managers!).
Most of the 240,000 miles of trails they offer are in the U.S., though you’ll find a smorgasbord from all over the planet.
Favorite Features:
Photos available on their maps to know what to expect (very helpful for campsite selection!)
Easy to use maps
The Outbound
Hiking is their main thing but The Outbound has all sorts of outdoor adventures. There is a sprinkle of options around the world but the bulk is concentrated in the U.S. and Canada.
For me, this one is more like an inspiration starting point; I like their suggestions and type in the area I’d like to go and see what they suggest. As for actual planning, there aren’t many reviews and trail information is limited.
Favorite Features:
The ability to “follow” a hiker (not literally…). If it’s someone that’s your speed, check out their profile and see where they’ve been for ideas.
Sometimes you just need to see the big picture and Google Earth does just that. In terms of finding hiking routes, for example, I’ll hover over a region and find a few lakes I may want to check out. I then look around to see if there are trails around (usually seen as faint, green dashed lines, though these are not to be confused with creeks which are light blue). From there, I’ll pop the name of the lake or area into a Google search and see what comes up. If it seems do-able, I’ll do more research and make it happen. For example, Jade Lake in Washington is a beautiful and searing blue color, however, it is also quite busy. To find a similar colored lake, I take to Google Earth!
This is a fun to discover and plan your own routes rather than rely on the recommendations of popular hiking sites. I also find that it gets you to some remote and less crowded spots, which is always a bonus since I’m usually going into the wilderness for solitude. Plus, Google Earth is a highly entertaining way to virtually travel while also providing a good lay of the land for your next adventure!
Alpine Lakes Wilderness in Washington State, as seen from above
This is my go-to method for finding hikes when traveling outside of Washington State. Since I’m usually unfamiliar with a place I’ve yet to go, I rely on the experience of those that have already been there. I also like that I can save a “pin” to a folder for future reference, such as while I’m on the road.
Personally, I take a funnel approach to hunting for hikes on Pinterest since I often end up with a whole lot of tabs open as I’m (happily) bombarded with options. Start with a general search, like “Hikes in France,” and see what comes up. From there, I click on different pins which take me to travel and adventure blogs where I can read about the trail in more detail.
Many times I come across lists of “Best Hikes,” which is helpful to generate ideas but not quite as much for determining logistics. In this case, I note the trail names and regions and go back to the Pinterest drawing board by getting more specific with my search. For example, I then search for “Mount Blanc hikes France,” which comes up with things like “What It’s Like to Hike the Full Tour de Mount Blanc” and “Tour de Mount Blanc: What to Bring.” After reading these blogs and websites, I’ll have a better idea of what to expect.
If you want to skip Pinterest and go straight to blogs, I like to reference Barefoot Theory and Clever Hiker. Outside of personal blogs, you can also check out outdoor recreation businesses. While they typically focus on gear and hiking tips, you can sometimes find great nuggets of inspiration. A few favorites are the Therm-a-Rest Blog and REI Co-Op Journal.
If you’re heading to a U.S. national park, then check out the National Park Service website, which has a plethora of helpful resources. It’s a down-to-business kind of site so don’t expect any fancy frills and interactive maps. Instead, you will find helpful lists and documents offering accurate trail information and recommendations. They also include up-to-date conditions, trail closures, campsite photos, where to find water sources, and whether permits are needed as well as how to get them.
You can find hiking and backpacking information by navigating to Menu > Find a Park > Things to Do. I like to find lists of all the hikes available and then narrow it down by distance and elevation. After I have a few contenders, I look up more information about them (via Google, Pinterest, etc.) and find if permits are needed.
Example of an NPS hiking list for Capitol Reef National Park
This is arguably the most archaic and time-consuming way to find hikes but it’s a tried and true method that is not to be dismissed. It is also a nice way to get off-the-beaten-path and learn from the experts. Outdoor recreation stores often have a book section and there is, of course, Amazon, libraries, or wherever one wishes to get their reading fix.
A few publications that stand out are: The Mountaineers, Lonely Planet, and Falcon Guides.
Epic Hikes of the World by Lonely Planet