Dan Nelson

My personal and professional lives have always revolved around the outdoors. As a kid, I hunted, fished and hiked the wild country around the Snake River canyons and Blue Mountains of southeastern Washington. I bought my first fly rod at age 13 (1979) using money earned mowing lawns.

After leaving college in 1989 with a BA in History, I put in a short stint as a general-news beat reporter for some daily newspapers before becoming executive editor of Washington Trails magazine. While there, I continued writing for the Seattle Times Outdoors section, providing features, a regular gear review column, and all the paper’s fly fishing coverage (and continue to do so today).

I also started working with several national outdoor magazines, including Backpacker where I expanded my work as a gear review specialist. I also provide fly fishing and general outdoor gear coverage for Men’s Journal magazine and my own online journal, AdventuresNW.net.

I’ve authored a dozen guidebooks, and launched a number of popular guidebook series with the Mountaineers Books, including the Best Hikes with Dogs series.