Congratulations, Top 10 Reviewers of 2025

Congratulations to Trailspace's Top 10 Reviewers of 2025!

These 10 community members' reviews were rated tops in 2025. Collectively they contributed more than 101 gear reviews to the Trailspace community, and our top two reviewers—Elizabeth and Shane—wrote half of those reviews!

We're grateful to them, and to everyone who shared a review of their outdoor gear in 2025. First-hand, independent reviews help others gear up and get outside safely and comfortably.

We asked our Top 10 reviewers about their top outings of 2025, plans for 2026, and anything else they wanted to share with the Trailspace community. 

Top 10 Trailspace Reviewers of 2025

#1 Liz McCoy
Weeki Wachee, Florida

 

photo fromLiz's JMT/Mt Whitney trip report

2025: My top outing in 2025 was hiking the High Sierra Camps in Yosemite National Park, including Clouds Rest and Mount Hoffman. It was absolutely amazing! 

 

2026: Permit status APPROVED for 4/28/26 start date of the Pacific Crest Trail! My bucket list hike of a lifetime! Mexico to Canada, let’s do this!!

 

I would like to share that I always look to Trailspace for gear updates and new gear reviews to help me decide on gear purchases. I love reading and writing trip reviews. It is a great platform to look back on my hikes and share with my family and friends.

 

We only get one life to live on this beautiful planet, with so many hidden gems to explore. Get outside! Immerse yourself in nature and feel the ground beneath you, climb high on some mountains and take in a sunrise or sunset, listen to the winds blowing through the trees, the birds singing their morning songs, and the gentle footsteps of the wild animals foraging for food. Being out in nature balances us as human beings and fills our hearts with much needed peace and joy. Thanks again for letting me be a part of this community!

2025: My wife and I backpacked the Rae Lakes Loop in Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks. The weather in August was perfect there. The highlights of the trip include swimming in the alpine lakes, seeing a bear up (too!) close, sleeping under a full moon, and long snack breaks with Snickers along the most scenic spots of the trail.

I also did a Boundary Waters Canoeing Area trip in May 2025. Although Minnesota weather in May can be brutal, the week we were there was perfect as far as weather goes. The lakes were glassy, the company and coffee were great, and I took plenty of naps after long mornings canoeing many miles. 

2026: My 2026 plans include a week on the Ice Age Trail here in Wisconsin. My wife and I also hope to backpack the Wonderland Trail around Mt. Rainier, where we used to live. We are already scheming how to snag the permit! And I’ll take advantage of nice Wisconsin weather in the spring, summer, and fall and run a few half marathons, trail races, and my annual fall marathon.

Keep enjoying the outdoors with gratitude for the sights and experiences, be a positive influence on the people you meet, stay active, and bring good snacks when you get out!

2025: Top outing in 2025 was my 55-day, 450-mile / 725-km Long-A** Section hike on the New Hampshire and Maine sections of the Appalachian Trail, starting out with my wife (trail name: Waffle) who, sadly, had to exit a few days before the NH-ME state line, so I had to finish on my own. But as old White Mountain hands we rendezvoused with a whole bunch of old friends, some of whom we hadn’t seen in 40+ years! One highlight: resupply help and therefore a physical meetup with Trailspace chief Alicia.

We also spent a week with family on Gran Canaria, a nice escape from the pre-winter darkness in Norway, with some great day hikes in high-elevation pine forests, bamboo-choked ravines, and desert-like coastal valleys.

2026: The winter weather will shape my ski activity for the season, but as always, I’m hoping to ascend and descend some mountain tops as well as put in many XC and meadow skipping days here in Trondheim. We’ll do some hut-to-hut hiking in southern Norway this summer. Here’s to another good outdoor year!

 

#4 Bob Withrow
Central Cascades, Oregon

2025: The highlight of 2025 has to be having an opportunity to trek to Everest Base Camp and being able to spend two nights up there. It was a wonderful, if not brutal at times, experience. A shout-out to Ang Jangbu and his staff at Beyul Adventure in Nepal for providing me such a rich and amazing experience! 

“Where all pretend to be thinking alike, it's likely that no one is thinking at all.”
—Edward Abbey

 

#5 Andrew Friedman
Cabin John, Maryland

2025 was a year of local hiking for me due to work and family commitments. Plenty of miles and time outside, just stuck to Maryland and Virginia. I'm grateful for good health and some unexpected encounters with animals and birds I don't often see—a barred owl seems to have taken up residence in some of the local trees, so many more sightings than usual.  

 

#6 Randy Givens
Ridgefield, Washington

 

2025: I completed the Oregon section of the Pacific Crest Trail in 2025. The Three Sisters Wilderness portion is arguably the best bit, although the Rim Trail along Crater Lake National Park was stunning. Finally started the desert section of the PCT in So. Cal after pooh-poohing it for years—it far exceeded my expectations.

 

2026: Hopefully to complete the Washington section of the PCT (it's half done already), but first I need a total hip replacement, so I'm really hoping for a quick recovery.

 

I've been squeezing in section hikes of the PCT along with all my other trips which allows for choosing the ideal time of year for no snow, easier river crossings, and good flower displays. The desert is still dry regardless of time of year, but way more interesting than I ever imagined.

 

#7 Lone Stranger
Maine

2025: Finishing the Boundary Loop on my second attempt was clearly the highlight of the year and pretty high up there for lifetime achievements. The emotional sensation of completing the loop after coming close before failing last year was impossible to convey with words. Tears were required heh.

 

2026 is going to be a flexible year in many ways, including on trail. I'm planning small trips all over New England, although I may do the Long Trail in Vermont once or twice depending on if Sean can go. I expect to be gearing up for a longer hike in 2027, so I should be testing and reviewing more this year.

 

Thanks to all who keep posting reviews to keep this place alive! I've been too busy hiking to test new gear the last few years. Glad you folks have been picking up my slack!

 

#8 David/Not Lost-Really
Baltimore County, Maryland

2025: My highlights for 2025 were 20 orienteering races—especially the longer ones and ones that I did well on. I love orienteering because I get maximum adventure in minimum time—problem solving while exploring undisturbed nature at speed. 

A century fundraising ride through Maryland and Pennsylvania that I missed and did solo (I may have enjoyed it by myself more than with the group)!

 

I hadn't run in Schenley Park in Pittsburgh since high school but got a few nice trail runs there during the fall, in and around all of the ravines and across the historic bridges, a Tufa bridge from 1908 and many small and seemingly impractical bridges from 1938 that were funded by WPA. I ran my first cross-country race since middle school, a turkey trot on Thanksgiving morning. It was a tough, but fun, course. I also had a bunch of nice hikes with my Scouts and Cub Scouts. 

 

2026: Orienteering National Championships is in Maryland this year! I'm looking forward to the sprint and long races, plus I'm planning on doing a short rogaine and hoping to do the century fundraising ride again. I'm also working on making an orienteering map at one of the nearby state parks. Once the base map is ready, I'm planning on doing my field surveys to create the super detailed map while exploring the park.

 

#9 Brian Nordberg
Salt Lake City, Utah

2025: We had several amazing trips this year. The Sawtooths (Idaho) had amazing sunrises. The Teton Crest (Grand Teton National Park) where we finally crossed Paintbrush Divide; the last attempt was too snowy. British Columbia was amazing, but we did not have enough time to do it right. So, we will be heading back.

2026: The trans Zion trail is high on our list for 2026. Getting back to Glacier also needs to happen. Otherwise, nothing planned right now.

This year I was put on furlough for a few months. Aside from the economic impact, it was amazing. It’s always been hard to take off more than a week at a time. I’ve realized I need to work less and take more vacation time. So, 2026 and beyond, I’ll be taking this to heart and getting out more.

 

#10 David Link
Camino, California

2025:  My top outdoor moment of 2025 was returning to Hetch Hetchy in Yosemite after a too long absence. 

 

2026: I just retired, so every day is an outdoor day moving forward! After four years of a one-hundred mile a day work commute, I'm looking forward to getting back into shape and spending more time outside.

 

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As a thank-you for their efforts, we're sending each top reviewer a special-edition embroidered Top 10 beanie from Minus 33, plus The Deuce or DirtSaw Deuce spade from TheTentLab.

Want to be a top reviewer in 2026? Share a gear review on Trailspace. Whatever your experience level or background,  every outdoor voice—including yours—adds to the community's knowledge.

Appreciate helpful, independent reviews? Whenever you like a review, find it useful, or learn something new, give it an upvote.

The 2025 Top Reviewer rankings are based on the overall volume and quality of reviews written by each reviewer, as measured by the total number of reviewer reputation points earned from December 1, 2024 through November 30, 2025.