We would much rather be with nature than stuck in front of a computer seeking outdoor adventure blogs. But, we regularly find ourselves spending time on quite a few sites that we think are worth it for ideas, inspiration and general good advice on camping, hiking, hunting, and other outdoor adventures.

And if you’re like us, you love everything outdoors related, too!

Well, good news… The Crossbow Critic went on the hunt for up and coming and already here outdoor, adventure and outdoor travel bloggers and blogs so that you can have one easy location to come to and find new sources of information and inspiration.

Here is something we like to remind ourselves when we spend too much time fiddling online…

There is no Wi-Fi in the forest, but chances are you will find better connections.

Without further ado, here are what we think are the top 20 outdoors, adventure and outdoor travel related blogs to follow. In no specific order, they are:

In 2011, Zach Davis dropped everything and spent 6 months thru-hiking the Applachian Trail. He had zero experience backpacking or surviving the outdoors. But he did have extraordinary mental toughness from years of psychology and self improvement training.

Appalachian Trials is a book and website to help you along your hiking journeys. There are resources for you to connect with other like-minded individuals as well as hear about and learn from others challenges and successes. We feel it is a must-see because of how important mental toughness is if you decide to really push yourself when seeking adventure.

Modern Hiker is a large blog/website that was started by Casey Schreiner in 2006. It features 100s of trail write-ups with detailed information for you to experience them yourself before ever hitting the dirt.

They are that thorough – there is also an accompanying App for the trail guides complete with GPX files (GPS data you can use in your own GPS device). Modern Hiker is one of the oldest and most well regarded hiking blogs in California and has been featured in LA Times and named the best outdoor adventure blog by USA Today readers. Check it out, you might find yourself planning a trip to Southern California for your next hiking adventure.

Jeff Hester created SoCalHiker.com to help people navigate the trails of Southern California. It goes like this: he hikes the trails himself taking photos and getting a feel for the hike. Then he writes a guide with all the information he gathered including best gear to bring so that you can more easily and safely do the hikes yourself.

And he has managed to create an amazing depository of these guides. Each one has 25+ images including elevation and location maps as well as GPX file downloads. It’s a great resource blog for you to check out.

The Adventure Post is a blog that was founded in 2011 by Wendy and Marcus. Its purpose is to share trip reports and gear reviews for the aspiring adventurer to get the information they need to get started.

You’ll find great reviews and recommendation for everything from heart rate monitors to compression socks. Be sure to head on over there to read some of their articles.

Outdoorend is a wide ranging outdoor blog with information on how to survive the outdoors to the best tips for outdoor photography. They strive to be the one stop shop for outdoor enthusiasts and we recommend you check out their blog this year.

The Campsite Blog

The Campsite blog shares gear reviews, travel stories, interviews and is run by 2 Canadians – Alannah and Jen. They do a series called “Stoke The Fire” which is great and shares a post that is meant to stoke discussion. They’ve also got a nearly 1000 strong community over at Facebook that is pretty active.

The best thing about Lets Be Wild adventure blog is the pictures. Every post has huge high quality images of something wild and adventurous. It’s worth checking out on that merit alone. But in addition to that the 7 contributing writers and editors make great effort to surface the most inspirational content and they do an amazing job of covering locations across the world. Well worth a check out.

The Adventure Blog shares videos, pics, has cool gear insights and talks about what some incredible adventurers are doing around the world at any given time. It is definitely one of the spots to go for motivation and inspiration.

Across & Abroad is run by David Webb, a travel writer and magazine editor living in Vancouver, BC. There you will find great photography, advice on travel and adventure gear, a bunch of unique videos by David himself and more. Head on over and check it out.

Hiking The Trail was created by Adam Nutting to update his friends and family (and journal) in one central place while he hiked the Applachian Trail in 2013. The website now serves as a great outdoors adventure blog with tons of gear reviews, pictures and thorough information on many different trails from around the US.

Leigh McAdam started Hike Bike Travel 4+ years ago to write about her interests of adventure and destination travel. Since then she has written professionally for 100s of publications across North America.

She has also written a book titled Discover Canada: 100 Inspiring Outdoor Adventures. It could be an understatement to say she is an expert. Head on over to check out her insights.

Direct from Camo is the New Black‘s about page: “Camo is the New Black is a growing community of sportsmen and women who’s mission is to increase access to hunting, fishing and the outdoors for women.”

Whitney started her mission in 2013 and has been featured in many publications. She has nearly 1,500 people in her Facebook community. Check out her website to read on interesting topics like unique game recipes, awesome camping photos, fishing tips, pro gear, hard to find gifts for your favorite hunter (including which one of a kind broadheads and bolts), and so much more.

Weapon-Blog is a website dedicated to all weapons. It can be funny but also informative. It has a strong Facebook community of nearly 9,ooo. It won the 2011 Gunnie Awards Best Gun Blog and continues to post near daily. There’s posts on government regulation and news, hunting gear (such as compound bows) & accessories, weapon safety, must have gifts, and more.

Michael Lanza started The Big Outside to offer advice and tips for aspiring adventurers. All things from gear tips, to safety awareness to trip planning. Michael has tons of experience in the field as he was the primary gear reviews and Northwest Editor of Backpacker magazine.

He has written a book called Before They’re Gone: A Family’s Year-Long Quest to Explore America’s Most Endangered National Parks. The website also features tons of images and information from that very same year long quest. Very inspirational. Be sure to check out The Big Outside.

Heather originally started Just A Colorado Gal in 2005 to share her experiences while riding her bike around America. Then she occasionally did the same while she was in South America. She has a Journalism degree and decided in 2012 to give the blog more attention.

Now she writes about all things from mountain biking to the best gear for living an outdoorsy life. You’ll see that she posts a few times a week so be sure to check out her blog often.

Philip Werner started Section Hiker to create a resource of information based on his expertise and interest in hiking and backpacking. His website features 100s of trip reports from the Appalachian Trail, the Long Trail and more.

He has been completing the Appalachian Trail section by section (hence the website name) since 2007 and has currently completed 1200 miles of the 2200 mile trail. There is a huge amount of information on backpacks, tents, tarps and other gear that you need from beginner to expert on the site. Check it out.

Keith Foskett’s blog has received numerous awards and accolades and he has also written several books about his journeys. He is a long distance hiked more miles than any of us could dream of. Check out his blog for inspiration, information and detailed trail blogs, photos and videos.

Hike Blog Love

Hike. Blog. Love. is about a hiking families adventures together. There’s Hiking Mama, The Hubby, Baby Boy, Little Man and Big Brother. Hike Blog Love has been around since May 2009 and features over 1000 articles of their adventures and more outdoor adventure and family oriented content. Check it out for the awesome photography and top class writing.

Anywhere At Home was created by Angel and Michelle to share their outdoor adventure stories. It is a very professional looking design that has lots of original photos from their camping, biking and hiking in cool places.

There’s also great videos with beautiful scenery from inside caves in Oregon to views in Costa Rica. Be sure to go straight to their ‘Start Here’ page to get started fast and on the right track.

Play Outside Guide was started by a self professed Geography geek (she has a B.Sc. in Geography) who lives in Calgary, Canada. The blog features advice on camping, hiking, wilderness survival and much more. She has 2 kids that love adventures with her so a lot of the topics are family friendly. Enjoy 🙂

Wrapping Up

To pick these 20 websites as our favorite 20, we first had to scour through 100s of awesome outdoorsy site and then some. So please appreciate the fact the above 20 stood out. During the 12 hours it took to pick and then present the best 20 outdoor adventure bloggers and blogs it made me really appreciate the time and effort some put into helping others.

It is really inspiring. (It also makes me feel lazy seeing the 100s of miles these individuals travel on a monthly basis).

Do you enjoy reading about awsome new hiking trails? Do you love looking at pics and watching videos of anything from camping trips to undiscovered whitewater kayaking spots? Do you love first hand reviews of cool new gear for your next bass fishing weekend trip? All to help you thrive while enjoying the outdoors? Then you are sure to enjoy the above sites just as much as we did.



