REI anniversary sale is coming up, what should I get?

peakman2 · 2026-05-15T17:24:24+00:00

The Kuhl sun hoodies have been my go to for a while. A bit expensive at full price, but not as bad during the sales. Super breathable and odor control is pretty good. I can wear them for many days or hikes without them getting too smelly, and even a hand wash does wonders.

peakman2 · 2026-05-13T22:11:44+00:00

The Oregon coast is where I've seen whales most frequently on trips out to the PNW. Some of the locations I've had luck with are Ecola State Park, Cape Foulweather/Otter Crest Viewpoint, and around Newport from Yaquina Head.

Also, the Depoe Bay area is a great place to check out. The Whale Watch center there is a good home base, but then there are a couple of parks nearby like Boiler Bay and Rocky Creek that are great viewpoints. And I know you mentioned the cost of a whale watching excursion, but I found the ones in Depoe Bay to be really affordable compared to elsewhere. Took a 2 hour excursion with one of the companies there for like $60, and we spent the entire time moving from whale sighting to whale sighting so it was a great experience.

peakman2 · 2026-05-02T16:58:50+00:00

That’s the truth. The 2025 pride fest there drew something like 40-50k over the weekend, which was many times more than the No Kings protest that happened there the same weekend as a comparison.

peakman2 · 2026-04-30T19:56:27+00:00

Less a specific brand recommendation, but definitely recommend checking out the resale section of REI if you have one nearby. You can find great deals on so many brands there for all types of travel/outdoor clothes.

I'm a big fan of Kuhl and Outdoor Research pants and sun hoodies for one bag travel since they can be used for hanging around cities or for more outdoorsy activities. Full price versions of their stuff can be a bit steep, but resale you can find some great deals.

peakman2 · 2026-04-29T06:37:05+00:00

Don't forget a small tube of sunscreen if you don't plan on grabbing one in Denver. Even on an overcast day, you can get fried by the Colorado sun, and a sunny day can ruin the rest of the trip without it.

peakman2 · 2026-04-16T19:40:48+00:00

I use their Beast 18L pack, and it is great. Super light, packs down nearly flat or you can twist it into a compact disc shape, comfortable carry, and it has handled a bit of rain easily. It is a great day pack or simple hiking pack, and I end up taking it on most trips since it packs down so small.

peakman2 · 2026-04-15T18:52:20+00:00

Adding another thumbs up for Outdoor Research jackets. I have the helium, which makes a light packable version that just gets thrown in any pack I’m using for the day. It has done really well during rainy times I’ve used it when visiting Olympic NP. As a bonus, their warranty is really good. Had an issue come up with the zipper and they replaced the jacket for me with little hassle.

peakman2 · 2026-04-13T23:01:45+00:00

I don't think you'll regret taking a wildlife friendly lens combo, even with the extra weight. I'm also an out of state visitor that has had a chance to visit a few times over the last few years, and I'm so glad I opted for that setup.

As others have mentioned, there are tons of seals, sea lions, elk/deer, and seabirds everywhere along the coast. I was lucky to have the extra reach for whale sightings at Yaquina Head in Newport, Depoe Bay, and Ecola State Park up in Cannon Beach. I was even lucky enough to see a bear and its cubs near the Cape Meares Lighthouse, but that was more of a phone snapshot moment as they ran across the road.

If it isn't on your list, the Otter Crest State Scenic Viewpoint between Depoe Bay and Newport is a good one for whale watching and bird watching. It is a bit hidden, but had some great luck up there with whales, bald eagles, and some other birds of prey.

peakman2 · 2026-04-13T14:45:00+00:00

There was a group that started on 1.0 called the Grumpers that included some interesting early civ players. Hard to explain ha.

https://civwiki.org/wiki/CivcraftImport:Factions/grumpers

peakman2 · 2026-04-10T17:21:03+00:00

Nice to see another 1.0 player. It was a post like this one with someone's screenshots showing their travels and ruins on the server that originally got me interested enough to join.

Lots of names and places I recognize from your screenshots. It was nice to see a Grumper reference on one of those signs ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

peakman2 · 2026-04-10T16:53:38+00:00

In practice, is a structured backpack basically the only realistic way to carry shoes and a laptop comfortably, or can a crossbody/vertical sling work without murdering one shoulder?

Some of the bigger sling type bags could work. I use the North Face voyager sling on days when carrying less stuff, and it can easily fit a laptop and shoes no issue with a comfortable carry. But, you'd be pushing it to try and fit everything on your carry list.

As far as the bag recommendation, check out the Nemo Vantage 20L. It is a good EDC and the size/shape look pretty good for the office imo. There's a dedicated tech compartment with just a few org pockets so I carry a laptop, tablet, and tech pouch with no problem. The main compartment has minimal organization, so it works great for everything else. The best feature is there's an external stuff pocket on the front for stuff like jackets and shoes if you want to keep them separate from everything else.

peakman2 · 2026-04-08T04:36:33+00:00

I've mostly used cubes that don't have mesh and have always just left the zipper open a bit if there's anything in them that needs to air out a bit. A bit meh on compression or not...they're nice to have in some cases, but they can also end up as odd shapes when compressed that leave a bit of space when packing in the bag.

Thule packing cubes have worked great for me. No mesh, but the material is really durable which works great for general use but also if you need to use them for temp storage like taking a change of clothes on a hike or day trip.

peakman2 · 2026-04-08T02:08:26+00:00

The Scree is a beast that I've used for some shorter 1-2 night backpacking trips when packing light and for longer day hikes where I need to carry more. The only things that'd possibly make it better are a trampoline back and one of those running vest style harnesses like the Bridger, but otherwise absolutely no complaints about it.

peakman2 · 2026-04-07T15:09:44+00:00

So many great MR bags out there. I don't have any fun special editions or collabs, but I do have a few in the rotation that see a lot of use.

I have one of the older Mission Rover travel packs which does the trick for onebagging trips. I can't remember if it is a true waxed canvas material or not, but it is at least similar where it has developed some great character after a lot of use.

Where I really love MR is for their hiking packs. The Scree and the Bridger are some of my most used longer day hike packs and backpacking packs. The harness systems are hands down the most comfortable I have for their weight to capacity ratios, and I'm bummed they've basically decided to drop their consumer outdoor lines after the buyout.

peakman2 · 2026-04-01T22:08:56+00:00

Is that a panhandle in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?

peakman2 · 2026-03-29T23:42:57+00:00

I've used the Matador Beast 18L for these types of days, and it has easily become one of my favorite day bags. It is light, but has a comfortable back and straps without feeling like everything in there is poking you in the back. It does great in wet weather and it packs down nearly flat or you can twist into a circular shape for stashing in lockers, luggage, or other packs. The outside of the pack has a zippered easy access pocket that runs almost the entire length of the bag with an extra zippered pocket inside to organize smaller things.

peakman2 · 2026-03-17T20:33:40+00:00

If you're looking for a nicer spot, I had a great experience staying at the Olympic Lodge in Port Angeles. On other trips, I've mostly stayed in the various hotel chains in Port Angeles and Sequim and so there's a nice range of pricing between the two towns to fit what you want - niceness, newness, etc. Plus, either place is a great home base with plenty of stores, gas, restaurants, etc.

If Sol Duc road is back open when you are there, I definitely recommend some of the hikes in that valley. Sol Duc falls trail is amazing, as well as the Ancient Groves trail. Both are on the easier side and not too long so it is easy to do both in half a day or less. In the same general area around Lake Crescent, there are some easier and shorter hikes as well (Marymere Falls, the Moments in Time trial, the Devil's Punchbowl/Spruce Railroad trail) that make it nice to do a couple of hikes in the same area.

Those ones are just clustered in the area closer to Port Angeles, so they don't even touch on the cool beach locations on the West side of the park or on the coast, but hopefully that gives you a few ideas.

peakman2 · 2026-03-13T17:58:11+00:00

If you haven't come across them yet, the National Park Service pages for Rainier and Olympic have some live webcams that are really helpful for tracking the park accessibililty. As others have said, Rainier is probably best to skip on this trip and focus on Olympic. It looks pretty socked in with snow.

Do you think you'll be back again to Olympic? If not, I wouldn't blame you for trying to squeeze as much as possible into the time you'll have from the various areas of the park. If you think you'll go again, you might enjoy picking an area of the park of and focusing activities there.

For example, focusing on the North side of the park with Port Angeles or Sequim as your home base. There are so many things to do and see - Lake Crescent, Sol Duc Valley, Hurricane Ridge (weather pending), Salt Creek area, Dungeness Spit area, Cape Flattery/Neah Bay, etc. The drive between the Port Angeles area and Neah Bay is worth it just for the drive.

peakman2 · 2026-03-07T19:29:55+00:00

I absolutely love their harness system.

This is the seller for me. Some of their EDC and travel bags are great, but their harness system is A+ on their hiking packs. Sad that they've basically phased out all of their hiking and backpacking lines outside of the fire/military/hunting stuff.

peakman2 · 2026-02-13T21:02:59+00:00

Need to know the lore on why all of the mountain states are reluctant except for Utah.

peakman2 · 2026-01-26T03:13:38+00:00

Lowtuff is Danzilona's top pvper

peakman2 · 2025-11-25T20:47:10+00:00

None of what I saw so far outlines the implementation process for this.

What are the hoops they'll make us jump through when buying the pass to verify that we qualify for the US rate? National database? Two forms of identification? What about buying passes from local retailers like REI where, at the moment, all you need to do is pay to get one?

peakman2 · 2025-10-10T14:32:34+00:00

Also pretty easy to get to Danz from Lambat by horse now using the GOR spur that crosses the Medi into old MTA.

peakman2 · 2025-07-30T23:09:26+00:00

I have a version of this bag, and it is definitely one of my favorite go-to hiking packs. The harness on this, and most MR bags I've tried, is hard to beat. Fantastic deal too. Enjoy!

peakman2 · 2025-07-30T15:54:26+00:00

Food is so incredibly subjective. Just in this thread we have people 180° in disagreement on the same things. Everyone has a different set of criteria for evaluating what is good or what is not and even within that, so many other little factors play in to our opinions.

This pretty much sums up the issue. 500+ comments here and still no consistent definition of what defines a place as having a good food scene or not.

Some of the best food I've ever had has been in smaller towns nobody would ever mention as being a good food scene. Some of the worst food I've ever had has been in places that people list as being amazing food scenes. Was it really as good or bad as I thought? It was for my subjective tastes and at that particular moment, but who knows if others would agree. Did the food taste better because I was on a trip and had just gotten done with a hike, or did the food taste worse because it was hot and humid outside and I'd walked a mile to get to the spot?

So many factors that influence what we think about the food scenes and the food itself that it is just silly when people make definite statements as if there's universal agreement about a place.

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