https://www.outdoorunc.com/ Everything that changed since you last went out. en-us Thu, 24 Sep 2026 17:57:55 +0000 https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/the-closure-was-extended-and-the-fire-has-nearly-stopped-growing/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/the-closure-was-extended-and-the-fire-has-nearly-stopped-growing/ Trail reports Thu, 24 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +0000 103 acres added in a day against 618 the day before. Containment holding at 15 percent, personnel down for the first time, and the park's closure list… https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/two-yosemite-closures-that-have-nothing-to-do-with-the-fire/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/two-yosemite-closures-that-have-nothing-to-do-with-the-fire/ Trail reports Thu, 24 Sep 2026 08:40:00 +0000 Everyone is watching the Dome Fire, so two ordinary closures are going unnoticed. The trail between the wilderness center and Lembert Dome is shut for… https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/two-much-bigger-fires-have-been-burning-on-los-padres-all-summer/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/two-much-bigger-fires-have-been-burning-on-los-padres-all-summer/ Trail reports Wed, 23 Sep 2026 12:00:00 +0000 The Timber Fire is 25,000 acres and 59 percent contained after six weeks. The Plaskett is nearly 30,000 and all but out. Neither got a fraction of the… https://www.outdoorunc.com/public-land/comment-deadlines-worth-knowing/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/public-land/comment-deadlines-worth-knowing/ Public land Wed, 23 Sep 2026 11:30:00 +0000 The Fish and Wildlife Service rule that opened 1,450 hunting and fishing opportunities across 32 refuges and rescinded non-lead requirements at nine of… https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/the-closure-order-runs-out-at-midnight-tonight-and-the-fire-is-still/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/the-closure-order-runs-out-at-midnight-tonight-and-the-fire-is-still/ Trail reports Wed, 23 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +0000 3,795 acres on mapping done this morning. Handlines are holding on the west. The order that shut Chilnualna Falls expires at 11:59, unless it is extended. https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/the-procession-for-the-pilots/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/the-procession-for-the-pilots/ Trail reports Wed, 23 Sep 2026 08:40:00 +0000 A procession of first responders accompanied the two pilots killed on Sunday from Mariposa Airport to Modesto on Monday. Firefighters, law enforcement… https://www.outdoorunc.com/bbq/competition-barbecue-now-has-a-million-dollar-prize/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/bbq/competition-barbecue-now-has-a-million-dollar-prize/ BBQ Tue, 22 Sep 2026 11:00:00 +0000 A Las Vegas final with a seven-figure purse, a back-to-back grand champion in Memphis for the first time in 42 years, and a new open-fire title alongside… https://www.outdoorunc.com/screen-channel/food-network-built-a-barbecue-show-around-the-part-that-actually-hurts/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/screen-channel/food-network-built-a-barbecue-show-around-the-part-that-actually-hurts/ Screen & channel Tue, 22 Sep 2026 10:45:00 +0000 Nine two-person teams, a whole hog to break down, four proteins on a rolling schedule and no rest. Pitmasters premiered in July. https://www.outdoorunc.com/camping/the-biggest-rv-show-of-the-year-says-smaller-again/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/camping/the-biggest-rv-show-of-the-year-says-smaller-again/ Camping Tue, 22 Sep 2026 10:30:00 +0000 A folding camper under 700 pounds returns after a decade away, a no-slide overland trailer gets bigger, and two new van lines arrive from a mainstream… https://www.outdoorunc.com/overlanding/this-year-s-showcase-build-is-a-midsize-truck-and-it-goes-to-auction/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/overlanding/this-year-s-showcase-build-is-a-midsize-truck-and-it-goes-to-auction/ Overlanding Tue, 22 Sep 2026 10:15:00 +0000 A Nissan Frontier PRO-4X under a 350-pound pop-up topper, built as an argument against the oversized rig. https://www.outdoorunc.com/off-road/a-motorhome-company-built-an-off-grid-truck/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/off-road/a-motorhome-company-built-an-off-grid-truck/ Off-road Tue, 22 Sep 2026 10:00:00 +0000 Winnebago's ARKA claims fourteen days without hookups, sleeps four and seats six. The mainstream RV industry has noticed where the buyers went. https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/two-pilots-killed-when-a-water-dropping-helicopter-went-down-on-the/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/two-pilots-killed-when-a-water-dropping-helicopter-went-down-on-the/ Trail reports Tue, 22 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +0000 Greg King and Ryan Cutter died Sunday afternoon southeast of Ostrander Lake. They were the only two aboard. https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/the-closure-has-grown-to-ostrander-lake-and-everything-south-of-it/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/the-closure-has-grown-to-ostrander-lake-and-everything-south-of-it/ Trail reports Tue, 22 Sep 2026 08:45:00 +0000 3,420 acres on the latest federal mapping, 15 percent contained, 784 personnel. The fire is now burning into a nine-year-old burn scar. https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/dome-fire-past-three-thousand-acres-with-containment-holding-at-fifteen/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/dome-fire-past-three-thousand-acres-with-containment-holding-at-fifteen/ Trail reports Mon, 21 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +0000 Six days on: 581 personnel assigned, the closure area now defined from Wawona to Chinquapin, and every road into the park still open. https://www.outdoorunc.com/public-land/two-national-days-land-on-saturday/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/public-land/two-national-days-land-on-saturday/ Public land Mon, 21 Sep 2026 08:40:00 +0000 National Public Lands Day and National Hunting and Fishing Day both fall on Saturday. Volunteer projects run at parks and forests nationwide for the… https://www.outdoorunc.com/fishing/nine-days-left-on-most-of-the-salmon-season/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/fishing/nine-days-left-on-most-of-the-salmon-season/ Fishing Mon, 21 Sep 2026 08:30:00 +0000 California's first complete recreational ocean salmon season since 2022 closes on September 30 in most zones, with a few running to October 15. The fall… https://www.outdoorunc.com/camping/forest-fee-comments-close-monday-week/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/camping/forest-fee-comments-close-monday-week/ Camping Mon, 21 Sep 2026 08:20:00 +0000 The Eldorado and Tahoe national forests close their public comment periods on proposed recreation fee changes at the end of business on September 29. Both… https://www.outdoorunc.com/gear/powered-hiking-is-quietly-becoming-a-product-category/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/gear/powered-hiking-is-quietly-becoming-a-product-category/ Gear Thu, 17 Sep 2026 16:00:00 +0000 Another hiking exoskeleton landed this month, alongside barefoot trail shoes and a travel pack under two and a half pounds. The weekly release cycle is… https://www.outdoorunc.com/gear/archery-s-2026-pitch-is-tuning-without-a-press/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/gear/archery-s-2026-pitch-is-tuning-without-a-press/ Gear Thu, 17 Sep 2026 15:40:00 +0000 The flagship compound bows this season are built so you can square them up yourself, which matters more to a hunter fifty miles from a shop than another… https://www.outdoorunc.com/screen-channel/both-big-survival-franchises-went-international-in-the-same-year/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/screen-channel/both-big-survival-franchises-went-international-in-the-same-year/ Screen & channel Thu, 17 Sep 2026 15:20:00 +0000 History ran a world championship in the Arctic. Discovery ran a forty-day showdown between countries. Neither was a coincidence. https://www.outdoorunc.com/hunting/the-biggest-refuge-access-expansion-on-record-came-with-a-lead-rollback/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/hunting/the-biggest-refuge-access-expansion-on-record-came-with-a-lead-rollback/ Hunting Thu, 17 Sep 2026 15:00:00 +0000 More than 1,450 new hunting and fishing opportunities across 32 states. Buried in the same rule: non-lead requirements at nine refuges, rescinded weeks… https://www.outdoorunc.com/hunting/two-free-saturdays-land-on-the-same-day/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/hunting/two-free-saturdays-land-on-the-same-day/ Hunting Thu, 17 Sep 2026 14:30:00 +0000 National Hunting and Fishing Day falls on Saturday September 26, the same day as National Public Lands Day. State agencies run free family events for it… https://www.outdoorunc.com/public-land/the-gate-price-changed-in-january-and-a-lot-of-coverage-still-has-it/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/public-land/the-gate-price-changed-in-january-and-a-lot-of-coverage-still-has-it/ Public land Thu, 17 Sep 2026 14:00:00 +0000 Two tiers of annual pass, a $100 surcharge at eleven parks, and fee-free days that are no longer free for everyone. https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/the-dome-fire-has-nearly-doubled-again-with-the-first-containment-line/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/the-dome-fire-has-nearly-doubled-again-with-the-first-containment-line/ Trail reports Thu, 17 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +0000 From 100 acres Tuesday to 1,177 Wednesday and 1,976 by the latest federal mapping. Ten percent contained, and a management team now in command. https://www.outdoorunc.com/public-land/parks-are-free-today-if-you-live-here/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/public-land/parks-are-free-today-if-you-live-here/ Public land Thu, 17 Sep 2026 08:30:00 +0000 Constitution Day is one of the fee-free dates on the National Park Service calendar, so entrance fees are waived today. New for 2026, that waiver applies… https://www.outdoorunc.com/camping/smoke-is-travelling-further-than-the-fire/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/camping/smoke-is-travelling-further-than-the-fire/ Camping Thu, 17 Sep 2026 08:15:00 +0000 Smoke from the Dome Fire reached Douglas County in Nevada on Tuesday, well east of the fire itself, and satellite mapping shows it and a second fire… https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/dome-fire-closes-chilnualna-falls-while-the-rest-of-yosemite-stays-open/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/dome-fire-closes-chilnualna-falls-while-the-rest-of-yosemite-stays-open/ Trail reports Wed, 16 Sep 2026 15:00:00 +0000 A hundred acres north of Wawona Dome, moving away from the community — but the best-known trail out of Wawona is shut. https://www.outdoorunc.com/off-road/hyundai-has-a-ladder-frame-coming-and-the-boulder-is-the-tell/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/off-road/hyundai-has-a-ladder-frame-coming-and-the-boulder-is-the-tell/ Off-road Wed, 16 Sep 2026 12:40:00 +0000 A surprise New York concept previews the company's first body-on-frame platform in America. The truck it underpins is a 2030 proposition. https://www.outdoorunc.com/overlanding/field-notes-weigh-the-rig-before-you-buy-anything-else/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/overlanding/field-notes-weigh-the-rig-before-you-buy-anything-else/ Overlanding Wed, 16 Sep 2026 12:30:00 +0000 The most common build mistake is not a bad part. It is four good parts that together put the truck over its payload. https://www.outdoorunc.com/fishing/field-notes-fishing-a-restricted-river-without-killing-fish/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/fishing/field-notes-fishing-a-restricted-river-without-killing-fish/ Fishing Wed, 16 Sep 2026 12:20:00 +0000 Hoot-owl rules limit when you can fish. They do not tell you how to handle what you catch. https://www.outdoorunc.com/hunting/field-notes-planning-a-hunt-around-a-testing-requirement/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/hunting/field-notes-planning-a-hunt-around-a-testing-requirement/ Hunting Wed, 16 Sep 2026 12:10:00 +0000 Sampling is not the hard part. Getting the head to a station before the meat spoils is the hard part. https://www.outdoorunc.com/camping/field-notes-what-a-campsite-actually-costs-and-where-you-can-sleep-free/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/camping/field-notes-what-a-campsite-actually-costs-and-where-you-can-sleep-free/ Camping Wed, 16 Sep 2026 12:00:00 +0000 The booking fee is not the camping fee, fee-free days do not cover camping, and dispersed rules are stricter than most people assume. https://www.outdoorunc.com/bbq/field-notes-getting-more-out-of-the-grill-you-already-own/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/bbq/field-notes-getting-more-out-of-the-grill-you-already-own/ BBQ Wed, 16 Sep 2026 11:50:00 +0000 Most complaints about pellet grills are solvable without buying another one. https://www.outdoorunc.com/off-road/field-notes-the-three-things-that-keep-you-off-the-recovery-bill/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/off-road/field-notes-the-three-things-that-keep-you-off-the-recovery-bill/ Off-road Wed, 16 Sep 2026 11:40:00 +0000 Tire pressure, a full-size spare, and knowing the closure before you drive to it. https://www.outdoorunc.com/bbq/traeger-keeps-adding-lineups-and-the-field-keeps-filling-in-behind-it/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/bbq/traeger-keeps-adding-lineups-and-the-field-keeps-filling-in-behind-it/ BBQ Wed, 16 Sep 2026 11:30:00 +0000 The Westwood series arrived in April, the Woodridge grew a Pro Plus, and the company is no longer the only serious name on the shelf. https://www.outdoorunc.com/bbq/what-a-pellet-grill-actually-buys-you-and-what-it-does-not/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/bbq/what-a-pellet-grill-actually-buys-you-and-what-it-does-not/ BBQ Wed, 16 Sep 2026 11:20:00 +0000 Set-and-forget convenience is real. So is the reason competition cooks still run stick burners. https://www.outdoorunc.com/bbq/an-old-flat-top-recall-worth-checking/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/bbq/an-old-flat-top-recall-worth-checking/ BBQ Wed, 16 Sep 2026 11:10:00 +0000 Roughly 37,000 Traeger Flatrock flat-top propane griddles, SKU 1DFL42LLA, were recalled because burner control knobs can be incorrectly labeled, which can… https://www.outdoorunc.com/gear/the-knife-industry-spent-2026-competing-on-engineering/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/gear/the-knife-industry-spent-2026-competing-on-engineering/ Gear Wed, 16 Sep 2026 11:00:00 +0000 A hidden slider took overall honours in Atlanta, Microtech shipped its first production fixed blade, and the steel conversation moved to MagnaCut and… https://www.outdoorunc.com/gear/rei-put-prices-on-the-plush-camp-trend/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/gear/rei-put-prices-on-the-plush-camp-trend/ Gear Wed, 16 Sep 2026 10:50:00 +0000 The co-op's Westward line is the clearest statement yet that car camping and backpacking are now different businesses. https://www.outdoorunc.com/gear/snow-peak-refreshes-the-tortue/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/gear/snow-peak-refreshes-the-tortue/ Gear Wed, 16 Sep 2026 10:40:00 +0000 The Tortue Pro arrives in a 2026 edition on Snow Peak's new-arrivals shelf. The Japanese company, still headquartered in Sanjo in Niigata prefecture and… https://www.outdoorunc.com/off-road/the-two-convertibles-keep-climbing-past-each-other/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/off-road/the-two-convertibles-keep-climbing-past-each-other/ Off-road Wed, 16 Sep 2026 10:20:00 +0000 Wrangler still undercuts Bronco at the door and over the top, and Ford has a heritage-workwear edition coming for 2027. https://www.outdoorunc.com/fishing/fall-stocking-starts-and-michigan-changed-the-rules-last-week/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/fishing/fall-stocking-starts-and-michigan-changed-the-rules-last-week/ Fishing Wed, 16 Sep 2026 10:10:00 +0000 Hatchery trucks roll in the last week of September across the Northeast, while a pair of Michigan fisheries orders took effect September 10. https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/the-east-is-still-rebuilding-what-helene-took/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/trail-reports/the-east-is-still-rebuilding-what-helene-took/ Trail reports Wed, 16 Sep 2026 10:00:00 +0000 Detours, demolished shelters and closed trailheads from North Carolina to New York, as the northbound season winds down and southbounders come through. https://www.outdoorunc.com/gear/car-camping-went-plush-and-stopped-apologising/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/gear/car-camping-went-plush-and-stopped-apologising/ Gear Wed, 16 Sep 2026 09:50:00 +0000 Big sealed vestibules, foam-backed chairs with wooden arms, and sleeping bags that fold over you like a quilt. https://www.outdoorunc.com/camping/tahoe-rim-construction-and-a-campground-already-shut/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/camping/tahoe-rim-construction-and-a-campground-already-shut/ Camping Wed, 16 Sep 2026 09:40:00 +0000 Several trails in Spooner Lake Backcountry close during weekday construction hours this season, affecting North Canyon Road, the Marlette Lake and… https://www.outdoorunc.com/hunting/michigan-rebuilt-its-public-hunting-map/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/hunting/michigan-rebuilt-its-public-hunting-map/ Hunting Wed, 16 Sep 2026 09:30:00 +0000 The state relaunched MiHunt, its interactive map of land open to public hunting, in time for the fall seasons. It is the tool for sorting what is actually… https://www.outdoorunc.com/camping/national-forests-are-quietly-repricing-the-campground/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/camping/national-forests-are-quietly-repricing-the-campground/ Camping Wed, 16 Sep 2026 09:10:00 +0000 A wave of fee proposals is moving through Western and Eastern forests at once, and two of the California comment periods close September 29. https://www.outdoorunc.com/hunting/montana-is-already-in-season-with-a-rewritten-rulebook/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/hunting/montana-is-already-in-season-with-a-rewritten-rulebook/ Hunting Wed, 16 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +0000 Archery opened September 5, wolves and black bears came in on the 15th, and the commission changed how lions and hounds are handled. https://www.outdoorunc.com/screen-channel/alone-australia-left-the-southern-hemisphere/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/screen-channel/alone-australia-left-the-southern-hemisphere/ Screen & channel Wed, 16 Sep 2026 08:40:00 +0000 Season four put ten Australians into Sapmi, in northern Finland, chasing $250,000 through a subarctic winter. https://www.outdoorunc.com/overlanding/last-expo-of-the-year-is-october-23/ https://www.outdoorunc.com/overlanding/last-expo-of-the-year-is-october-23/ Overlanding Wed, 16 Sep 2026 08:30:00 +0000 Overland Expo East runs October 23 to 25 at Oak Ridge Estate in Arrington, Virginia, in the Blue Ridge during peak colour. Organisers advertise 300-plus…