In 2007, I moved from Denver, Colorado to the other side of the planet. Jakarta, Indonesia. I didn't know the language, the culture, or a single person there. And I literally went with $150 in my pocket. The only thing I knew was that there was supposedly a job waiting for me to teach kids English.

From Borobudur to Bali, trains and trails across Java and beyond, it was unlike anything I'd ever known or experienced. And somewhere in it, I found the thing every traveler eventually finds… you never really want it to end. You come home, but some part of you stays out there, whispering to leave again. So in 2008, I moved to Japan. Indonesia called me back once again in 2012. And then again in 2017, I left for Southeast Asia with no plans but to freely wander. Only destinations, and the willingness to get lost as many times as the universe would let me.

In travel, adventure, and hiking, your gear is everything. In my adventures, I began to feel a desire to either find or create my perfect backpack. I wanted to finally have the pack I always wished I'd had. And so eventually the Quest 40 Liter pack was born. Not overpriced. Not overbuilt. Designed just right—light enough to forget you're wearing it, strong enough to trust on any adventure.

In 2018 after I created REIKA, I started to put international travel behind me for a while and set out to explore deep into not only my homeland Colorado, but the entire Southwest and parts of the Pacific Northwest. Armed with my lifelong passion of photography, I entered wander mode once again. All the photos you see are my own. I went there. I captured the moments. Whether home or abroad, the beauty and magic is immense, if you are willing to go discover it.