Overview

Good trips are built before they start.

Route, weather, batteries, water, timing. The details matter before the camera comes out.

78original photos
30+mapped stops
12favorite hikes
Why it is here

The connection is practical.

Fintech work and trail days both punish loose planning. The useful habits are simple: know the constraint, keep the kit lean, check the timing, and write down what actually happened.

Founder context → Market notes → Contact →
Route first

Figure out the constraint before chasing the view.

Carry less

Extra complexity gets expensive when conditions change.

Check the weather

Timing is part of the plan, not a nice-to-have.

Write it down

A good note preserves the decision, not just the scenery.

shot list Trolltunga great lakes Isle Royale trail Zion desert Death Valley southwest Arizona city Detroit home state Michigan
Connected Guide

Pick a place. See the shot, route, fuel, and tools.

Start with a place, then jump to the notes that matter before the next trip.

Click a pin
Places

Map Log

Home bases, parks, cities, trailheads, and roadside stops.

Scottsdale Detroit Isle Royale Death Valley Zion Acadia Banff Bruce Peninsula Grand Canyon Yellowstone Grand Teton Rocky Mtn Olympic Shenandoah Jackson Hole Norway → Croatia → England → Copper Harbor Lassen T. Roosevelt Badlands Memphis Everglades Smokies White Sands Joshua Tree Pinnacles Petrified Forest Saguaro Guadalupe Mtns Carlsbad Caverns Black Canyon Cuyahoga Indiana Dunes Gateway Arch New River Gorge Biscayne Picacho Peak South Cumberland Lake Mead Ann Arbor Flint Big Sur Tulsa OKC NYC Shiprock Joplin Great Basin New Orleans Flagstaff Oak Creek
Hikes

Routes

Routes I would do again, plus the thing I would pay attention to first.

Angels Landing

Big payoff, exposed sections. Go early, get the permit, and bring water.

Zion NP, UT Buffalo Park

Short Flagstaff loop for elevation, open sky, and a break between longer drives.

Flagstaff, AZ West Fork Trail

Oak Creek Canyon route with creek crossings, shade, and red walls. Start early.

Oak Creek Canyon, AZ Greenstone Ridge

Remote Lake Superior route where logistics matter before the camera comes out.

Isle Royale NP, MI Trolltunga

Long day. Still on my list, and weather matters as much as the camera.

Norway Mount Perry via Dante's Ridge

Death Valley scale without treating the desert casually. Heat and timing decide the day.

Death Valley NP, CA Misery Ridge

Named accurately. Loose gravel and stairs straight up, no shade anywhere. The top pays for it.

Smith Rock SP, OR
Food

Stops

Road food, Detroit staples, and stops I would actually send someone to.

Lafayette Coney Island

Detroit staple. The kind of stop that tells you where you are.

Detroit, MI Buddy's Pizza

Detroit-style pizza. Familiar, specific, repeatable.

Detroit, MI Sweetwater Tavern

Detroit chicken wings spot worth saving for a downtown food run.

Detroit, MI Tacos El Gordo

Fast, loud, and worth the stop when the route runs through Vegas.

Las Vegas, NV Rogue Creamery

Rogue River Blue, the first American cheese to win the World Cheese Awards. Grilled cheese off the press.

Central Point, OR K'Nyaw Paw

Sushi and poke on the Washington side of the Columbia Gorge — not where you go looking for either. Worth the stop.

Stevenson, WA Home Team BBQ

Easy recommendation for the Southeast route list.

Charleston, SC
Tools

Planning

The short stack I actually use before, during, and after a route.

Route

Find the trail, sanity-check the detour, then save the map before service disappears.

AllTrails RoadsideAmerica NPS app
Map

Offline topo, backcountry context, and a backup when the main route gets weird.

Gaia GPS onX Backcountry
Weather

Sky, wind, and flight conditions before committing to a sunrise, stars, or drone window.

GoodToStargaze UAV Forecast
Field ID

For the plants, birds, and roadside details that make the stop worth remembering.

iNaturalist Merlin Bird ID
Stay

Route-adjacent lodging when a park room, campsite, or oddball stop beats another chain hotel.

Hipcamp NPS planning
Gear

Layers, batteries, water, and the last-minute thing I forgot until the night before.

REI Backcountry
Next

Not Yet

Future routes and skills. These are targets, not places I am claiming.

US targets

World targets

Skills