Wandering Azimuth
Hello World!
Welcome to Wandering Azimuth, we're still building!
A Place for Exploration
Welcome to all! I have been designing this website for a while, but the concept has been in my head for years. When I was a kid, my dad kept a website to update the family back east about our outdoor adventures ranging from day hikes in the Bitterroots to full on expeditions to places like Mount Saint Helens. That website has since been removed, though bits of it are still on the Internet Archive and he has all the files locally. At any rate, I guess this is my way of continuing that legacy and maybe allowing it to grow beyond just little posts for the family.
What I'll Post
Trip Reports
Mainly, I'll be posting trip reviews and trail reports with the intent of not just letting my family see it, but making it available for any and everyone who needs a little extra information on a hike or simply wants to live vicariously through me. Ideally, these will include detailed information on trail directions, GPS tracks, photos, and elevation profiles. Ideally.
Gear Reviews
Beyond trip reports, I'll try my best to give honest reviews of any gear that I use. Normal gear review pages like Outdoor Gear Lab are up-to-date and review the latest and greatest equipment as soon as it comes out. But I'm poor (for now) and can't afford such luxuries as buying the hottest new glitz to test. So essentially what you'll be getting here is a working man's review of gear that actually gets used and is, at this point, all purchased with his own money (or gifted during the holidays). Some of it may be years old and out of production, but at least you'll know it's been thoroughly tested! If any gear company, big or small, is reading this, I'd love to test out your gear. Just shoot me an email and we can figure something out.
Blog Posts
The last style of post you'll see on this site is just general musings about life. I tend to have a lot of shower thoughts and what better place to put them than out on the internet for all to see? These might get pretty personal to me, so don't worry if not everything is literate. Just bear with me and leave your own biases at the door. This website is my world, you're just living in it!
In addition to the quarter-life crises articles, I'll post about my opinions on various hiking styles, ethics, and other tidbits I think someone just getting into the outdoors might find useful (or even maybe the veterans of the woods too).
For Now
This website may be live, but it is still very much a work in progress. Expect things to move around sometimes and test posts to appear and be removed during development. I am currently hosting this on my own server in my house, so the website may even be fully down periodically. Don't worry though, if it's down know that I'm working my hardest to get it back up again.
The Boilerplate
Be sure to also check out the "About" tab for more specific information on who I am and why I'm here.
If you'd like to throw the beggar some cash to keep this site maintained and maybe even purchase new gear to review, you can donate to my cause by buying me a coffee. Any amount is appreciated!
In the meantime, feel free to voice your opinions and suggestions for this website to me through my email:
And with this post, off we go! Keep an eye out for big things to come, and even bigger peaks to climb!
- Michael