u/Lucky_Yam6126

Outdoor Research Foray 3L
XL
Viper/Atlantic
$165

Outdoor Research Ultima Soft Shell Hoodie
XL
Atlantic
$170

Smartwool All Season Intraknit Base Layers
XXL
$60 each. $240 for the lot of 4.

Smartwool Hemp Shirts
New with tags
XL
$100 all three

Women’s Smartwool Thermal Mock Neck
XL
100% merino
$70

Women’s Smartloft Insulated Jacket
XL
$85

Smartwool Active Mesh Polo
XL
$40

I just wrapped up about 33 hours in Houston. My days off from work are Wednesday Thursday, and I try to do as much as I can on my days off to maximize my life. Doesn’t always happen but I try.

Last year, I decided to do more “weekend warrior” trips. I did Washington DC, NYC, Chicago. Fly in the morning of my day off and fly back the next night before going back to work. Losing nearly 200lbs also helped me gain the energy to do all of this as well. I feel like a brand new person.

I still do longer trips, I did Alaska by land and cruise which was phenomenal at the end of August. Perfect weather. I just wrapped up a week in Washington (Olympic + Rainier) at the beginning of June when I turned 33.

So I was looking at Google Flights and saw that a RT to Houston (Lobby) from my hometown of Orlando was only $120 and non-stop with Southwest. So I booked it. Started planning my itinerary after that.

I flew in Wednesday morning and arrived at about 9am. Went to my hotel (Hilton Americas) and dropped off my backpack and took my camera with me and off to the Houston Zoo. Basically had it to myself, nobody was there felt like, which was nice. From there I walked over to the Museum of Natural Science. Spent hours looking at cool shit and taking photos. I love history.

Back to the hotel to freshen up, it’s hot as hell. Then went to an African dinner spot (ChopnBlok), phenomenal.

Slept like a baby and got up early and headed to Space Center Houston, originally booked an Early Access tour but due to sudden construction, it was canceled. Made the most of the day though and did every other tram tour and exhibit and was out by 4pm to head back to the airport and fly back home to Orlando.

This was also my first ever solo trip, usually I go with friends but they bailed. It was kind of..invigorating? Eating dinner alone was weird but I liked it. Getting more comfortable with myself.

This style of traveling doesn’t suit everybody, I get it, but I’d rather do this than be at home in my city for the weekend at times.

Photo context:

Image 1 - Space Center Houston

Image 2 - Space Center Houston

Image 3/4 - Houston Zoo

Image 5 - Museum of Natural Science

Image 6 - Houston Zoo

Image 7 - Space Center Houston

Image 8/9/10 - Houston Zoo

Image 11/12 - Museum of Natural Science

Image 13 - View from my room at the Hilton Americas

Image 14/15/16/17 - Mission Control Room - Johnson Space Center

Image 18 - Space Center Houston

Image 19/20 - Saturn V Rocket

>Mafia: Definitive Edition will be available on PlayStation®5 and XBOX Series X|S with 60 FPS gameplay and technical improvements

On sale at REI and had a gift card, only paid $80. Insane amount of cushion.

Women’s Smartwool Smartloft Hybrid Jacket XL. Unworn, unwashed, unused. No tags. $125 OBO.

Men’s Smartwool Smartloft Hybrid Hoody- Unused, unwashed, no tags. $175 OBO. XL

Smartwool Mens 1/4 Zip Smartloft Hoody - used, few times. $100 OBO XL

Smartwool Men’s Intraknit All Season Base Layers. Barely used. XXL. $75 each or $250 for the lot. They retail for $125 each.

Smartwool Active Mesh Short Sleeve Shorts. Brand new with tags in bag. $50/each or $85 for both. XL.

Outdoor Research Super Alpine Down Parka. XL. Brand new with tags and bag. $350.

Smartwool All Season 1/4 zip. XXL. Used. Black and blue. $50/each or $85 for both.

Smartwool All Season Intraknit Base Layer XXL. Used once. $75 each. $250 for the 4 of them. They retail for $125 each.

Smartwool Active Mesh Polo XL. New with tags. $50.

Womens Hybrid Smartloft Jacket XL. New not used. No tags. $100.

I got the XL. I’m 6’3” and 240lbs. Snug but not too snug. Feels wonderful.

Perfect hoody to add to my rotation and couldn’t beat the price. The chest pockets are giant and there’s two!!!

The Dynasty color is super unique too, I love it.

So I traveled to Olympic National Park/Mt Rainier National Park in early June this year. Temperatures ranged from as low as 30 to as high as 75. I had rain, snow flurries, windy weather every day. Quite a bit of range.

I spent months and months perfecting my layers and I’m happy to say, they worked so well. I tried to take as little as I had to, so I prioritized merino wool as much as I could. Also the dilemma of hiking books or trail runners? How about both?

Also; we stayed in Airbnbs with washers so I cold washed and hung dry periodically for this stuff

So for base layers

- 3x Ibex 24 Hour Long Sleeve. These were on sale and I got them for $45/each. These were excellent. They dried fast, wicked moisture perfectly, and didn’t smell after a few days. They’re 100% merino.

I bought a Smartwool All Season Intraknit base layer ($125). I didn’t use this as much, one, because the sizing ran super small, even being 2XL. It held onto smell much easier. (It does mix poly with wool).

- Underwear (Smartwool 88/12 blend) x 5

- Socks (Darn Tough Hike Crew) x 5

Midlayers

- Patagonia R1 Air Jacket - The absolute perfect midlayer. Never overheated, never smelled (incredible honestly), breathed incredibly well for hiking and movement. Super light.

- Outdoor Ferrosi Hoodie, perfect for travel days, light days when you don’t need super warmth/some drizzle.

Outer layer

- Outdoor Foray 3L, super great rain jacket. No complaints. Easily packable into backpack when not used. Downpour? Not wet. Light rain? Not wet. Snow? Protected. Loved it. The poncho style worked great when needed to dump heat. Blocked wind. Chest pocket was useful.

I took a Smartwool Smartloft Hybrid Hoodie but this was a little too warm for most days, didn’t use it much. Great jacket but again, not useful.

Pants

- 1x Ketl shenanigan - perfect for airplane, travel days, higher output days and warmer ones.

- 2x Outdoor Research Voodoo pants - the standout winners. I picked these up thrifting and I’m sad now that they’re discontinued because wow they were amazing. I swapped them out every other day and damn near wore them every single day I could. They stretch, they blocked wind but also didn’t overheat and were breathable. They shed off rain and dried so quickly. The fit was also perfect. I wish they still made these.

Shoes -

On Cloudrock Mid Waterproof Boots - great cushion, great stability, great waterproof. Was worried I wouldn’t use them but ended up using them every day outside of the airplane. They didn’t need any break in time either, comfortable and perfect out of the box.

Nike ACG Zegama - good cushion, low drop, great for mountain scrambles. Didn’t use much other than some lounging days because I didn’t take any sandals/etc

Backpack

- Osprey Talon 26L. Comfortable, lots of pockets, easy to access. Waist belt, sternum strap, thick cushioned straps. Can’t go wrong with Osprey.

Any questions, please ask! Willing to help as much as I can. I’m no writer, so I hope this was good enough and helpful!

TRIP REPORT!! 06/02/26-06/10/26

Hello everybody! Just got back from an insanely fun adventure around Washington from Mt. Rainier National Park to the entire Olympic Peninsula. My dates were June 2nd to June 10th. 

I flew out from Orlando on Tuesday June 2nd and arrived in Seattle around 12PM. From there, we got our rental (Turo) (Toyota 4Runner TRD Off Road). We left the airport and grabbed from coffee from Kappa Espresso, incredible Ethiopian brew!

From there we made our way towards Mt. Rainier National Park. We checked in to our cabin in Ashford and dropped off our items before making a drive up the mountain towards Paradise. Made some stops along the way and were treated with such an amazing view of Mt. Rainier during golden hour. Took a little stroll of Skyline loop and made our way down because we had an early wake the next day.

On Wednesday, we got up around 5am and made our way to the Skyline loop trail. Did a bit of it, full of snow. Got some great shots of Myrtle Falls and the mountain. From there, we went back down and checked out of the cabin to make our way to Seattle to pick a friend up from the airport. From there, we got on the Bainbridge ferry. Other than insanely bad traffic at 4PM, it was a seamless process and the ferry ride was super fun!!

From there, drove over to Port Angeles and checked into our Airbnb. 

Thursday morning was Storm King day! Got up around 530am and made our way to the trail. Mostly empty besides 2-3 cars. Storm King was no joke, but I made myself push to finish it. I didn't lose 180lbs for nothin! After we made it to the top, we came back down and did Marymere Falls. Lovely falls! After that, we stopped along Lake Crescent and got some good views. The water looked so blue!!

We got some groceries and pretty much cooked at the Airbnb to save money. We spent a ton of money on coffee stands, there's so many! 

Friday morning we got up at 430am and went to Hurricane Ridge since the Hurricane Hill road would be open (Fri-Sun). Absolutely nobody else was there. It was perfect. We made it to the top through the fog and snow flurries. We were treated with some insanely nice views after we made our descent with the fog burning off. From there we made our way to stop at the Salt Creek Rec Area. Did some tide pooling with lowish tide. 

Saturday morning was our big day. We got up 6am and headed to Sol Duc Fall. Lush forest vibes with a very nice waterfall. Had some light drizzle and felt so serene. From there we headed up the coast through Neah Bay towards Cape Flattery. Plenty of stops along the way to see some great ocean views and maybe even a bald eagle, we did! Cape Flattery was single handedly the most beautiful thing besides my wife, that I've ever seen. A sight to behold. 

From there we stopped in Port Angeles for dinner at Yodelin Broth Company. Amazing salmon rice bowl. Then over to Wellys for ice cream. 

Sunday morning, we dropped our friend off at the Sequim Transit Center to take the bus over to the Bainbridge ferry. Super easy for him to use and only $10. From there, we checked out of Port Angeles towards Forks. We stopped along the way at Madison Falls (super super easy and beautiful). Then over to Devils Punchbowl which was an easy detour also and beautiful. Made it to Forks and did some twilight peeping and more grocery stopping. Checked in and got some rest. Watched The Ritual (perfect for a hiking trip to spook you out lol)

Monday morning, we got up at 6am and headed to Hoh Rain Forest. Absolutely empty and serene. Skipped all the trails and did Hoh River Trail. Went a few miles and came back. Saw some elk the entrance! From there, drove out to Rialto Beach and did Hole in the wall. Great tidepooling.

Tuesday morning, we made our way down to Quinault for our last night at the Lake Quinault Lodge. We stopped at Kalaloch Lodge, Ruby Beach, Tree of Life along the drive. Checked into Lake Quinault and did a 8pm hike of the cascade falls loop across the street. 

Wednesday morning we woke up and had breakfast at the Roosevelt Room. Great salmon hash bowl. Great ambiance. 

Now for the long drive towards Seattle. But first! A detour through some small towns. Got coffee in Hoquiam. Cute town. Then drove past Seattle and did Snoqualmie Falls before heading back towards Seattle. Took our time and had some dinner but boarding the 11pm flight back to Orlando.

Overall an incredible time but man, one week isn't enough. I NEED to come back and do more. There's so much. If you have any questions, let me know!! Happy to answer. 

CLOTHING:

You can pack much much less if you have lodging with a washer. Also wearing merino wool.

I had a few pairs of pants 

• Outdoor Research Ferris/Voodoo pants
• KETL Shenanigan Pants

Base Layer shirts 

• IBEX 24 Hour Long Sleeve
• Smartwool Long Sleeve

 

Mid Layer 

• Patagonia R1 Air

 

Outer Layer 

• Outdoor Research Ferrosi Jacket 
• Outdoor Research Foray 3L (Rain Jacket)

Socks and Underwear

• Smartwool

 

Shoes (You can get away with trail runners but don't do waterproof if they're low-cut. Water will get in and won't dry in this climate)

• Nike ACG Zegama 
• On Cloudrock Mid Waterproof Boots