Jen’s in the home stretch for her quest to visit all 433 units of the National Park System. She’s only 50ish from finishing, which more getting marked off next week.

I’m now “current” on the 433 park units, and—mostly due to Jen’s quest—have now been to 226 of the 433 at least twice. #goquesting

We just HAD to see the "skyscraper" state capitol in Bismarck, ND, "by law" the tallest building in the state.

This Art Deco beauty stands 241' 8" tall, with meaningful & functional design elements throughout.

Designed by DeRemer, Kurke, Holabird & Root. Built in 1934 after a fire destroyed the 1st building.

The top (18th) floor has a collection of historic photos. 1st floor showcases notable ND folk.

Bonus: The petunias spell "North Dakota" 🤩

#OnePhotoClub
#GoQuesting
#StateCapitols

#WildlifeWednesday from #opcOnThisDay in 2022, a visit to what is now called White Horse Hill National Game Preserve in North Dakota.

I visited because it used to be called Sullys Hill National Park, and well, I have a quest to visit all “former” (decommissioned or transferred) National Park units in the US (because of course I do).

https://rscottjones.com/quests/former-national-park-units-quest/

#GoQuesting #NorthDakota #NationalPark

#opcOnThisDay in 2019, I completed my decades-long quest to visit all 400+ national parks in the US with an all day boat tour in Glacier Bay National Park.

Of course, I had to riff a little on my somewhat-infamous park number signs…

#NationalPark #GoQuesting #Alaska

Impressive state capitol building in Helena, MT.

#OnePhotoClub
#GoQuesting
#StateCapitols

This is my personal take on a /uses page. It also functions as my Default apps for 2024 post.

Since online reviews are so gamed and broken these days, I wanted to post my stuff so you can ask questions of an actual user of these items. I also post product reviews on my Public Notes website. Please note that these are not necessarily my recommendations, just what I own and use.

So if you have questions about any of these items, please feel free to contact me.

I’m still adding items! Last updated on April 2, 2024

Devices + Hardware

• Apple MacBook Air M3 (24GB RAM, 1TB SSD)
• iPhone 13 Pro Max
• Apple AirPods Pro (v1)
• Anker Life Q30 headphones
• Apple Watch Series 8 (45mm)
• Kindle Paperwhite (2019 version)
• Blue Yeti mic
• Synology DiskStation DS224+ NAS (Seagate Ironwolf 12TB RAID)

Software

Some of my favorites apps are:

• Obsidian – home of my second brain, personal memories vault, and travel journal
• Drafts – quick notes and thoughts
• Notion – we use this to organize most of our life (including our travel dashboard)
• Things 3 – my task management app
• iA Writer – where I do my longer form writing
• Reeder 5 – my trusty RSS reader
• Omnivore – my “read later” app, and also where I send many of my newsletter subscriptions
• Libby – Ebooks and audiobooks from your local public library. Yes please!
• Mona – the primary app I use for Mastodon.social
• Ice Cubes – the primary app I use for OnePhoto.Club
• Avenza – downloadable recreational maps
• what3words – really simple way to describe a specific location

Online Services

• Hey – paid email service, love their workflow
• WordPress – self-hosted, has run this site since its first release
• Micro.Blog – interesting blog/social service, I’m using it for rsjon.es
• ConvertKit – the email newsletter service I use for this site
• ButtonDown – Email newsletter I’m testing for #OnePostcard
• Dreamhost – have had this hosting account for 2+ decades now. Good enough for me
• Super – I use this to convert Notion pages into the #GoQuesting website
• Porkbun – domain registration, slowly migrating from now-defunct Google Domains
• Masto.Host – Use this to host the OnePhoto.Club mastodon instance
• Obsidian: Sync + Publish (I’m a Catalyst support too)

Photography

• Nikon Z5 – my amateur entry into “both mirrorless “fancy” cameras
• Nikkor 24-200 f/4-6.3 kit lens
• Nikkor 24-50 f/4-6.3 kit lens
• LowePro Photo Active TLZ 50 AW case – I use this with the 24-200 lens
• LowePro Photo Active TLZ 45 AW case – use this with the 24-50 lens
• Peak Design Slide Lite and Leash camera straps
• Olympus TG-4 Tough camera – I’ve long used “tough” cameras for outdoor adventures, but this one is primarily for snorkeling trips.

EDC items

I don’t carry much, but here are my items.

• Ekster Parliament wallet – [not an affiliate, but use code RPG-OWE-ERC for 10% off]
• Victorinox Signature Lite swiss army knife – tiny, very lightweight with scissors, small knife, small screwdriver, ballpoint pen, pen light
• Zebra F-701 ballpoint pen (0.8mm, black) – my go-to “cheap-ish” pen. I must have 10 of these stashed in bags, car, notebooks, etc
• Mini carabiner pill container – Lives on my keychain, contains an important pill for Jen

Electronics accessories

• Anker USB-C 735 charger – our primary travel charger
• Anker 715 (Nano 65W) charger – faster charging plugs that live in my laptop and bike pannier bags
• Anker Nano portable charger for iPhone – handy battery pack that connects directly to the phone
• Wireless Portable Charger 30,800mAh battery pack – perfect size and capacity for our overnight charging kit during camping trips.
• Anker 737 power bank – big and fancy, but can quick charge my laptop during camping roadtrips, which is what we bought it for.
• USB-C portable charger for Apple Watch – we use these while traveling
• tomtoc tech pouch – our main “chargers and cords” kit that we bring on longer trips
• tomtoc storage pouch – I have several of these set up as kits. One lives in my laptop bag, we use another for our overnight “tent” charging kit
• Samsung T7 Shield 2TB Portable SSD (and pro case) – photo downloads/backups while traveling

Adventuremobile

• 2015 Subaru Outback 2.5i Limited – still what I consider the best all-around “roadtrip vehicle” – great gas mileage, can get us to 90% of the places we want to go, easy to drive/park/turnaround, easy to reach rooftop bins or toss a kayak up top, safe, and AWD.
• Thule Atlantis 1600XT rooftop bin
• Thule BowDown kayak rack
• Thule BigStack kayak rack
• Exped MegaMat Duo 10 sleeping pad – perfectly fits the Subaru
• Napier Sportz Cove 61000 SUV tent – we use this to sleep with the rear gate open
• Window screens – keeps bugs out and lights dimmed while sleeping in the vehicle
• 200W power inverter – primarily charge larger items like laptops

Travel items

• Eagle Creek Gear Warrior 37L international wheeled carry on
• Eagle Creek No Matter What 110L rolling duffle bag
• REI Co-op Ruckpack 28 Pack – our primary “personal item” when traveling
• Eagle Creek Pack-It Specter Quick Trip toiletry bag – quick trips with flights
• Sea to Summit Hanging Toiletry Bag (large) – longer trips with flights
• Patagonia Black Hole Cube (Med 6L) –
• Eagle Creek Pack-It Specter Tech Clean Dirty Half Cube
• LifeStraw Go 650 ml Water Filter Bottle (22oz)
• humangear GoBites Uno Spork
• Philips One battery toothbrush (my review on travel toothbrushes)
• Matador FlatPak Soap Bar Case – great for shampoo bars
• North Face Flyweight Pack – lightweight, packable backpack
• North Face Flyweight Duffel – lightweight, packable duffel we use to organize items after we land
• Chums SurfShorts travel wallet
• Repel travel umbrella
• PackTowl – use body size for these for showering/water sports, and face size for hand drying
• Intl travel plug adaptor – wouldn’t travel overseas without a dedicated one of these
• Mini massage gun – always great after a long day of driving, flying, or walking

Clothing for travel and the outdoors

• Merrell NOVA 2 GTX shoes
• Prana Stretch Zion II pants
• Columbia Omni-Shade shorts
• Chaco Z/1 Cloud sandal
• Crocs – topo clogs as camp shoes
• KUHL Renegade convertible pants
• REI Co-op 650 Down Jacket
• REI Co-op Screeline Cap
• Ex Officio Insect Shield wide brimmed hat (discontinued)

Camping, hiking, and backpacking gear

Look, after almost three decades of camping and backpacking, I have a lot of gear. Much of it is too inconsequential or too old to mention. So I’ve omitted a lot. You should also know that I tend to buy on the extremes: either premium offerings from name brand outfitters, or cheap stuff from Walmart or the Dollar Store.

This list tries to focus on things I use regularly, or that you might actually buy, or buy something similar to, these days.

Sleep

• REI Kingdom 6 tent – the “mansion” we use when expecting to spend extra time in the tent due to weather, bugs, or wind
• Big Agnus Big House 4 tent – our go-to for car camping
• Marmot Limelight 3P tent (old version) – our “travel camping” tent
• MSR Hubba Hubba NX 2 Tent – 2-person backpacking
• REI Co-op HunkerDown 20 sleeping bag – love this for car camping
• Marmot Meteor 15 down sleeping bag – my warm bag
• Mountain Hardware Phantom 32 sleeping bag – primary backpacking
• North Face Cat’s Meow (circa 2000)
• Exped MegaMat 10 sleeping pads
• Big Agnus Copper Spur HV UL 1P (2019 version) tent – solo backpacking
• Big Agnes Insulated Air Core Ultra sleeping pad – backpacking and travel camping
• FlexTailGear usb air pump
• Klymit Drift camp pillow – best car camping pillow
• Ikea Vitmossa fleece throw blanket – we bring 3-4 of these each trip to cover the coolers while driving and as extra warmth near the campfire and tent (and to block the full moon or morning sun)

General

• Mountainsmith Day lumbar pack (early 2000s model) with Strapettes
• REI Ridgeline 65 backpack
• Gregory Z30 daypack (old version)
• Black Diamond Spot-400 R (my review)
• Osprey Hydraulics Reservoir (3L)
• Leki Micro Vario Cor-Tec TA trekking poles
• Aqua-tainer 4 gal (and faucet kit)
• MSR MiniWorks EX filter
• Platypus GravityWorks filter
• Sawyer Squeeze filters
• REI Flexlite camp chair
• Camco 58041 propane firepit (and 11lb squatty propane canister) – a great alternative to wood campfires, and the only option during fire restrictions
• Morakniv Craftline Pro S Allround Fixed-Blade knife

Food

• Yeti Tundra 35 cooler
• Ozark Trails 25 cooler
• Coleman basic two-burner stove (25+ years old, still works great)
• GSI Outdoors Bugaboo cook set (original set, now discontinued)
• GSI Outdoors Infinity backpacker mug
• GSI Outdoors Halulite Minimalist II System cookset
• Jetboil Flash Java Kit
• MSR PocketRocket stove
• Camping stove fuel adaptor – use 1lb propane canisters with backpacking stoves
• CamelBak Chute Mag vacuum insulated water bottle (I use both 20oz & 25oz)
• Aeropress Go Travel Coffee Press
• BrüMate Hopsulator Trio insulated coozie – we use these things every damn day at home and bring them camping too

Kayaking

• Pelican Trailblazer 100 sit-in (2018 model, discontinued)
• Werner Skag-It paddle
• Astral V-Eight pfd (old version)
• Emotion Spitfire 9′ sit-on-top kayak
• Ozark Trail cooler (discontinued)
• S.O.L. Survive Outdoors Longer Rescue Howler Whistle

eBiking

• REI Co-op Cycles Generation e1.2 Electric Bike
• Laser Coyote Kineticore bike helmet
• Kryptonite Evolution 1090 Integrated Chain Lock
• Kryptonite 525 Kryptoflex cable
• REI Junction pannier – use this every time we bring our computers to happy hour to do some work
• NiteRider Lumina 900 Boost bike light
• Lezyne Sport Floor Drive Pump – ABS1 Pro
• LeafPond bike drink holder – best overall water bottle holder I could find
• Portland Design Works Sparrow Cage
• Tiakia Bike Phone Mount Holder
• Park Tool IB-2 bike tool

Personal care

• Henson AL13 Razor – so much better than buying disposable
• Green Bell G-1205 Nail Clipper – didn’t realize how much better “decent” clippers are than the cheap ones I’ve always owned

Home & household

• Wyze Cam Pan – we use these in my dad’s assisted living room, and at home when we travel
• Wyze Wireless Video Doorbell Pro
• Nixplay 10.1″ Smart Digital Photo Frame – we stream vacation pics
• Moen White Flo Smart Water Leak Detector (and sensor cables) – with audible alarm, app notification, text message, and phone call there’s no damn way to miss a water leak
• LUXE Bidet NEO 120 – living the bidet life

https://rscottjones.com/uses/

#GoQuesting

#President #opcSpecialTheme 📸

Thanks to @tthrash, I managed to adopt a travel quest to visit one major site (birthplace, home, library, memorial, gravesite) for each US president #GoQuesting2160.

Here are four Presidential Libraries I’ve recently visited, each quite a bit different than one another. #fdr #bush #reagan #clinton #goquesting #travel #history