Long Lasting Hikes

One of our favorite things about summer? Light! Make the most of longer days with any of these three longer hikes, from an iconic rock formation to a lesser known peak, and an island traverse perfect for a quick backpacking escape. Long may you roam!

Week: 06.22.2017
Regions: Southern CA

Potato Chip Topper

Hike to Potato Chip Rock

If you associate potato chips with unwanted calories, get ready for a re-education. You’ll burn a lot of energy on the hike to Potato Chip Rock—a one-of-a-kind boulder jutting out from the top of Mount Woodson in north San Diego County. Before you gain bragging rights (picture wa
Read the full story

Park it in Nevada

Nevada National and State Parks

Ready to go big this summer? We’re talking road-tripping the most mountainous region in the Lower 48: Nevada! This place is made for adventurers who prefer their pit stops to be national and state parks. Nevada is a wide-open land with a gem of a park—mountainous Great Basin Nati
Visit our sponsor TravelNevada

Bag Los Pinos

Hiking to Los Pinos Peak in Cleveland National Forest Southern California

Bag Los Pinos! This 4,500-foot peak in southeastern Orange County’s Cleveland National Forest can be pleasantly private. Reaching it on a 5-mile (round-trip) hike is a grind, with grand rewards.
Read the full story

Island Traverse

Backpacking and camping on Santa Cruz Island on Channel Islands National Park

Backpackers traversing the seaside mountain range on Santa Cruz Island in Channel Islands National Park
As the largest of the Channel Islands, Santa Cruz also has bragging rights to two mountain ranges. For a grand (and grandly scenic) tour, lace up the boots and go on a 15-mile (one-way) backpacking trek that traverses the eastern side of the island.
Read the full story

Trending Stories NorCal

View all Stories
  1. Camp at Goose Lake in the Lakes Basin

    Duck, Duck, Goose!

    Try to get a first-come, first-served campsite at one of the Lakes Basin’s lakeside campgrounds. We love Goose Lake Campground, where there are just 13 sites and no motorized boats.

    View

  2. This Is Paradise

    Granite mountain-scape, superb sunset views, crystal lakes, and shoreline campsites … the trip to Paradise Lake in Tahoe National Forest lives up to its idyllic name.

    View

  3. Aloha from California

    Say Aloha without leaving California with a 7-mile out-and-back hiking adventure to Lake Aloha in El Dorado National Forest. You can also camp here, a premier place for stargazing.

    View

  4. Sequoia Re-opens Crystal Cave

    Step inside Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park's hidden world by visiting the newly re-opened Crystal Cave—the only cave in the parks open to the public. Closed for four years, this rare marble karst cavern is welcoming visitors once again, but only through the summer season!

    View

Trending Stories SoCal

View all Stories

  1. Can't Top This

    San Francisco’s Presidio was already a fantastic place to hang out for the afternoon, a beautiful site within the largest urban national park in the United States (the Golden Gate National Recreation Area). And Presidio Tunnel Tops is like a cherry on top. Make that two cherries on top, with the newly opened (July 2025) Outpost Meadow, a 1.5-acre green space located at Old Mason Street across from the Crissy Field Marsh in the Presidio.

    View

  2. Underground Garden

    Looking to escape the summer heat? Head to Fresno and discover its cool secret: the Forestiere Underground Gardens–an enchanting garden and architecture oasis like no other.

    View

  3. Oh Ryan

    Sure, it’s those whimsical trees that give Joshua Tree National Park its marquee billing; but this beautiful landscape also has surrounding mountains and its night sky—one of the darkest in Southern California and designated an International Dark Sky Park. Joshua Tree has four allowable stargazing parking lots, and a newly opened haven for spending the night nearby...

    View

  4. Easiest Best Hike in the World

    Choose the easiest and most view-rewarding hike in Yosemite. Okay, we’ll go first: the combination of hiking to Sentinel Dome and Taft Point. Both of these lookouts are within a couple miles of each other on Glacier Point Road

    View