I like playing outside.
I was never much of an outdoors person in my teens and 20s, but once I started my current day job, I had to adapt… fast.
As it turns out, I love hiking, camping, backpacking, trail running, snowshoeing, camping, paddling and everything in between!
Here’s where you can find information about all my outdoors adventures here in northern Arizona and beyond.
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GEAR I LOVE
Listed products may include affiliate links
Inflatable solar-powered lantern
Gregory Juno 24 hiking pack
Gregory 3D Hydro water bladder
GSI Outdoors JavaGrind
ISLE Explorer 3 inflatable paddle board kit
Therm-a-Rest Trail Lite
Rumpl puffy blanket
Sea to Summit dry bag
Goal Zero “Nomad 5” solar panel
REI Flexlite Air Chair
AeroPress Go Travel Coffee Press
Enamel camp mug
Sea to Summit “Alpha Light” spork
MSR “Titan” kettle
MSR PocketRocket Deluxe
NEMO “Fillo” pillow
Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL2 mtnGLO tent
Gregory Jade 53 packpack
Yeti Hopper Flip 8 cooler
Black Diamond “Momentum” harness
Yeti Roadie 24
Eureka Sprk+
Kula Cloth
Klymit Static V
Therm-a-Rest Z Lite Sol
Sawyer Squeeze
Mountain Series “Hiker” medical kit
Kahtoola “Microspikes”
Tubbs snowshoes
Nemo sleeping bag
ISLE Pioneer inflatable paddle board kit
Goal Zero Yeti 200 portable generator
Eno Single Nest hammock
Black Diamond Women’s Trail Series trekking poles
Lowa Renegade Warm GTX Mid
Hydro Flask water bottle
REI Half Dome 3-plus tent
Leatherman “Skeletool”
Nivea Sun Protect Super Water Gel SPF 50
Jeep Wrangler
Black Diamond headlamp
REI “Flash 22” day pack
Danner “Mountain Light” hiking boots
OUTDOORS AND REC GEAR GUIDE
Here’s all the well-tested and well-loved gear I use for hiking, camping, backpacking, paddling and more.
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TRYING TO GET OUTSIDE?
OUTDOORS 101
Wondering what I carry in my hiking pack, how I find trails and what’s in my gear closet? Here you go!
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What I packed: An overnight paddle trip on the Colorado River -
How I ended up with a new inflatable paddle board (AKA: Why ISLE has the best customer service) -
Our favorite adventure dog gear: Hiking and backpacking gear for huskies (and other outdoor dogs) -
How to make gear shopping less intimidating: Tips for buying recreation gear and apparel -
All of my outdoorsy stuff: Rec gear suggestions + what to wear recreating outdoors for beginners -
Backpacking gear: What I packed for my first backpacking trip: the Arizona Hot Springs/ Lake Mead National Recreation Area -
Brrrrr. How to make winter recreation suck a little less.
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MY OUTDOOR ADVENTURES
PADDLING
I love my inflatable stand-up paddle boards. Here are some adventures I’ve taken them on.
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Paddle boarding the Colorado River through Horseshoe Bend: An overnight touring trip from Glen Canyon Dam to Lees Ferry -
Paddle boarding Watson Lake in Prescott... with a brand-new ISLE inflatable stand-up paddle board! -
SUP pup: Ochi's first paddle board adventure! -
Some (LOWER!!!) Lake Mary paddling through the pine trees -
SUP and happy Fourth of July from Lake Powell! -
Paddling Clear Creek Reservoir -
I BOUGHT A PADDLE BOARD! Sunny days and sunsets on Lake Mary
BACKPACKING
One backpack, zero problems. Here are some of my overnight backcountry hiking adventures.
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Kelly Canyon (and Kelly Pocket Trail) - a mini weeknight overnight backpacking trip (and Ochi's first camping trip!) -
Exploring the Sonoran! Our weekend backpacking Sabino Canyon on the Coronado National Forest -
Backpacking the Superstitions: An overnight camping trip to the Superstition Wilderness Area on the Tonto National Forest -
An overnight adventure to the Arizona Hot Springs/ Lake Mead National Recreation Area
DAY HIKING
Everything from bare feet in Tevas to insulated hiking boots in snowshoes.
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Sibling visit part 2 (with a Grand Canyon excursion and some Sedona hiking!) -
A day trip to Tuzigoot National Monument (and Tavasci Marsh) -
The best Sedona trails: Easy Sedona hiking trails, moderate Sedona hiking trails and Sedona hikes for beginners -
Another Flagstaff fall in the aspens -
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (and some Traverse City, Mich. things) -
A spring Pacific Northwest trip (part 2): Some central Washington hikes, Wenatchee and Leavenworth -
A weekend in southwest Colorado: Durango and Silverton -
A snowy yurt weekend at Arizona Nordic Village -
A (moody) fall weekend in northern Arizona's aspen groves -
Another Grand Canyon post: Camping at the North Rim -
A shortcut through Death Valley National Park -
Day hiking on the Tahoe Rim Trail -
A wintery weekend day visit to Sequoia National Park -
A winter visit to Lassen Volcanic National Park -
Snowshoeing around the Sierra Buttes: Upper and Lower Sardine Lake -
When weddings give you an excuse to travel: Detroit Hockey and winter hiking in Michigan's Upper Peninsula -
Detail details! My Tahoe National Forest gig, three weeks in -
A quick morning in Yosemite National Park -
Petrified Forest ('Bark Ranger' Yukon's first National Park adventure!) -
Grand Canyon National Park: A North Rim camping trip (and an RPCV service project!) -
More Moab hiking: Canyonlands National Park -
A weekend hiking in Moab: Arches National Park -
Horseshoe Bend + Page, Arizona -
Saguaro National Park
CAR CAMPING
Why sleep in my bed when I can sleep in the dirt*?
*Or a tent, cabin, yurt or truck bed
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Kendrick Cabin (a night in a retired U.S. Forest Service Fire Guard Station from the 1960s!) -
All the way down Woody Mountain Road: A weekend at Fernow Cabin / Sedona's Edge of the World (aka East Pocket) -
A snowy yurt weekend at Arizona Nordic Village
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Another Grand Canyon post: Camping at the North Rim
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Camping at Ashurst Lake -
A low-key camping trip to Manzanita (also: Yukon's first camping trip!) -
Grand Canyon National Park: A North Rim camping trip (and an RPCV service project!)
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Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore + camping in Traverse City, Michigan
EVERYTHING ELSE
Skiing? Flying? Climbing? Spelunking? I’ll try pretty much anything, even if I suck at it.
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Flagstaff's Lava River Cave: An underground spelunking adventure for work -
A sunset Cessna flight over northern Arizona with my private pilot Ryan! -
So, I joined a climbing gym -
A ski weekend at Mount Hood, Oregon -
Spelunking in Атлантида! An underground adventure in Ukraine's crystal caves