Outdoors

Depictions of catlike animals are visible on stones under a rotating, starry sky.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

These 15 Photos Capture the Beauty of the Night Sky

Stars shine in these heavenly images from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

A footpath weaves through ferns and trees on Denecourt Trail No. 6. The designer made sure the paths meandered around interesting features.

The Invention of Hiking

Follow the Frenchman who remade the woods surrounding a royal estate into the world’s first nature preserve

Why Texas Just May Be the Best State for Fall Foliage

With its rolling prairies and limestone cliffs, historic towns and oak-filled nature parks, Texas Hill Country is a land apart

This Spectacular Canadian Wildlife Reserve Is So Remote, You Can Only Get There Five Weeks a Year

Among serious adventure seekers, word is spreading about Torngat Mountains National Park—an Inuit-run reserve in Labrador, Northeastern Canada

Clay's team captured 15 female gnus for study. Following controlled exposure to male mating calls in an experimental setting, the quadrupeds (and their offspring) were released back into the wild.

How Noisy Males Control the Gnu’s Cycle

New research shows that ovulation in Serengeti wildebeests is accelerated and synchronized by the yammering of eager males

The Epic Quest to Ride the World’s Biggest Wave

Welcome to the new Mt. Everest of surfing, a notoriously dangerous break off the coast of Portugal

The Desert Pavilion at the Brooklyn Botanical Garden.

This Friday, You Can Visit More Than 150 of the Best Gardens in the U.S. for Free

Celebrate National Public Gardens Day May 11

You Can Get Free Admission to Any National Park This Saturday

Washington D.C. in Spring

Cherry Blossom Forecast Update: When Will Washington, D.C. Reach Peak Bloom?

Little Redfish Lake at night with the Sawtooth Mountains in the background.

The U.S. Now Has Its First Dark Sky Reserve

The World’s Steepest Zip Line Offers Breathtaking Views Over St. Martin

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Armenia

Spot the Ultra-Rare Caucasian Leopard in Armenia's Caucasus Wildlife Refuge

Impressive local fauna is thriving again in Southern Armenia's new Caucasus Wildlife Refuge

How Armenia Plans to Become the Next World-Class Hiking Destination

Epic new trails in the Armenian Highland are putting the country's outdoor offerings on the map

A Cruise Ship Chef Hunts for Big Fish. Will He Succeed?

As luxury liner Europa 2 docks into port, its chef de cuisine has a major challenge ahead: prepare lunch for his very discerning clientele

Since 2016, it has opened up its expeditions to the public.

Family Travel

You Can Help Scientists Study Great White Sharks Off the Coast of Cape Cod

The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy is offering boating expeditions open to the public now through October

Park Ranger Leonard Landa with the bear that killed Michele Koons.

The Deadly Grizzly Bear Attacks That Changed the National Park Service Forever

Visitors to Glacier National Park had long conditioned the predators to seek food from humans, making the maulings somewhat inevitable

Switzerland Just Opened the World’s Longest Pedestrian Suspension Bridge

You won't — but you definitely will — want to look down

Armenia

Unraveling the Mystery of the "Armenian Stonehenge"

A "flukeprint" is a patch of calm water on the surface created when a whale flaps its tail as it cruises along just out of sight.

How to Spot a Hidden Whale

Just as a hunter leaves a trail in the snow, a whale forms prints on the water’s surface

From left: A pole on the grounds of a waterfront home on Haida Gwaii; wooden masks carved by the Kwakwaka’wakw First Nation on display at the U’mista Cultural Centre in Alert Bay, off Vancouver Island.

Canada

See Canada Through Fresh Eyes on a First Nations Tour

The mountains, forests and waters of British Columbia are given new meaning on a journey led by members of its indigenous communities

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