2024 in Review: Best, Worst, and In Between
A chaotic year-end roundup including my favorite tested apparel, an overview of travel (and why I don't take many press trips anymore), and some books I super hated
I forgot I was doing a monthly recap, so here’s the best and worst of my year. I’ll do full posts in the next few weeks covering my favorite gear, apparel, and books!
2024 by the Numbers
-Two outdoor industry conferences: I attend Outdoor Market Alliance’s February conference each year in Denver, and greatly enjoy seeing some of my writer friends and catching up with the brand and agencies I work with year round. I get to see Zach Davis, my old boss at the Trek, and finally met Kelly, the editor who took over my job when I left my full-time position in 2020.
Outdoor Media Summit in Missoula was new to to me this year, and I attended some great talks (including one of my close freelance friend’s panel) and it was well worth the drive.
-Two press trips: I’ve pared back on press trips in 2024. I used to jump at every chance to travel with PR agencies and brands, and I still deeply appreciate the invitations and offers. But after five back-to-back trips in 2023, I started feeling weary. Not tired of the trips themselves, just tired from being in groups of people I didn’t know, on busy schedules. I missed having the freedom of traveling on my own, and I already had a lot planned so I truly didn’t have much time for brand trips. So I ended up being very selective about the trips I accepted, and I turned down any trip where they required coverage. I still traveled every single month in 2024, but most of the trips were on my own dime.
The two trips I took were to Tennessee (weird, I know). I accepted the TN trip because Hannah and Amelia were going, and I was excited to get some early-season gravel biking in. But the trip was INSANE. Words cannot describe it. Someday someone will pay me to write about it, but for now, here’s a photo that sums it up.
The other trip was a chill ski trip to Aspen with Primaloft. I accepted this because my partner was living abroad in Japan and I was bored, plus I absolutely love Backbone Media, who hosted the trip. It was a blast.
-Three international trips: I went to Costa Rica in May and let Matt plan everything. It was really expensive, I sucked at surfing, and I got sick. We went to Slovenia and Italy for hiking and backpacking in August, which tbh I also wouldn’t necessarily recommend at that time of year.
The backpacking and hiking was beautiful, but the Alps in the summer (along with everyone else in the world) was certainly a choice. I went to Mallorca in November for a writing retreat and spent a week on my own beforehand. My first time traveling abroad by myself and it was totally fine.
-30 houseplants: I only lost one plant this year (RIP Debbie) and she just kind of gave up and died after seven years. Becoming better at taking care of plants has been one of the biggest joys of my year. I have an especially happy pothos and hoya in my room, and a flourishing grape ivy.
-1 perfect cat: To know him is to love him
35 books read: The books I loved this year were equal parts excellent writing and compelling stories. I didn’t have a lot of patience for slower reads (sorry) and I had zero patience for bad writing. In 2025 I’d love to read one book a week! Hold me to it! I’m linking to a few best and worst books below, and I encourage you to buy from local bookstores, Thriftbooks, or Bookshop.org and not A*azon!!!
Biggest Glow Up
Spending my time how I want to, in a way that feels valuable. So much of 2023 was spent mired chasing affiliate links for my clients and wading through the abyss of SEO. I made a deliberate change, and spent most of 2024 with a deliberate division of time and effort. I focused on pitching more ambitious stories in my own voice, on FaceTime calls with other writers, at a writing retreat, and pursuing projects that matter while balancing enough of the necessary work to pay my bills and afford an absurd amount of travel. I live an incredibly privileged life to be able to do this, and I am aware of that. I am also immensly grateful and hope to continue that this year.
Biggest Flop
Being part of a group project. Hasn’t ever worked, probably never will work.
Favorite Books:
Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls took my breath away. I didn’t want it to end and I’m pretty sure I sat there with my mouth agape after I finished it. T Kira Madden’s scorching series of connected essays is moving, captivating, and endlessly relatable as someone who also grew up as a girl in the 90’s and 2000’s. Her way of storytelling, linking events and emotions, and approaching universal feelings from an entirely new direction is astounding.
Piranesi was a total surprise, like most of my other favorite books this year. This book is technically magical realism and featured the most heartbreaking and beautiful main character I’ve read in a long time. I don’t want to give anything away, but you should read it. As a side note, I really couldn’t get into Jonathon Strange and Mr. Norrell, the author’s universally lauded magnum opus.
The Snow Child was another random book I pulled off my boyfriend’s shelf because I was bored one night. I ended up reading it in one day (and filing an article late) because I couldn’t put it down. Like my other favorite books this year, The Snow Child was equally incredible writing and vivid, compelling storytelling. I spent the whole book questioning what was real and what wasn’t, but the author was skilled enough to have any outcome be equally plausible.
Least Favorite Books:
I Have Some Questions for You made me so mad. I finished the last page and chucked it across the room. Makkai’s previous book, The Great Believers received universally rave reviews, and the only thing I can think of is that no one wanted to edit her? Or they just gave her free rein to write this abomination? The absolutely inane plot devices made it impossible to suspend my disbelief, she created these banal, one-dimensional characters, the plotting was lazy, and the stupid side quests with the protagonist’s idiot husband were so unnecessary I cannot believe they made it past the first draft. The whole book reads like a first draft actually. The only redemption to my wasted time is that my brother read at the same time and also hated it, so we spent a cathartic hour drawing on FaceTime and talking about how bad it was.
Braiding Sweetgrass might get me into trouble (everyone is supposed to like this book) but I felt like Kimmerer was lecturing the reader about how far we’ve come in the wrong direction. Which, to be fair, is true. But laying so much direct blame on the plebeian consumer while largely ignoring the effects of capitalism and consumerism that got us here is an outdated approach. This book was written in 2013, and you can tell. I don’t think it’s aged well, and while she has a lot of poignancy in her messages, it just felt too long.
Time’s Mouth is another example of the writer publishing successful previous novels (read Lepucki’s California) and falling apart after. Did no one do developmental edits on this book? The concept was intriguing but the story went nowhere. I finished the whole thing because I thought she could tie it all together, but I have no idea what the point of this book was.
Favorite Tested Apparel
I have been loving Stio’s Turnbolt Jacket this winter. It’s puffy, cozy, and I have it in a lovely cream-and-brown colorway. I avoid wearing my ultralight puffies for day-to-day wear. Not because I am worried about damaging them, but because I don’t want to look like I’m trying to prove something walking from my truck to yoga class.
I just posted about this on IG, but I wear some version of Janji’s Rover Merino top for most of my travel and activities. A lot of base layers and tighter-fit hoodies don’t accomadate my broad shoulders, and this four-way stretch top fits well and is comfortable for travel, running, and skiing.
I literally cannot afford most of the clothing I get sent, so I love recommending any Baleaf dupes you can get your hands on. They make excellent running tights, running shorts, base layers, sun shirts, and mid layers. Right now I love these fleece-lined joggers.
Speaking of things I can’t afford, Oiselle has never sent me a flop piece of apparel. The Pocket Jogger Shorts were my go-to this summer. Thigh chafing be gone.
And since so many people on IG asked, here is the giant fleece dress thing that Matt calls my Sheep Suit and my mom gifted me for Christmas as the person who knows me the best.
Favorite Tested Shoes
I test shoes as part of my job (and especially with a massive shoe project with my job at Switchback Travel), but it felt like a chore to road run in anything but the Saucony Triumph 22s. I felt more of a difference in energy return and cushioning with these than I did with any other tested shoe this year.
For trail shoes, I reached for the Brooks Catamount more than any others this year. I’ll always wear Altras for long-distance backpacking, but the Catamount are super light without sacrificing durability and felt more nimble for running and hiking. Just ignore the absolutely heinous colors.
I’m not backing out of my love for Chacos, but I did rediscover the Teva Originals this year and love the extra squish of foam underfoot that feels more cushioned without losing support. I have them in a fun throwback pattern and the Velcro feels like a return to first grade without being bullied.
Favorite Tested Gear
Not to be completely out of touch, but I was sent a $169 ballpoint pen from The James Brand and I will never be the same. I just ordered ink refills because I guess I’m a person who enjoys expensive pens now.
I jumped on the bandwagon with the Cotopaxi Allpa travel bag and I hated it. It was like carrying a cinderblock on my back. Then I tried the roller bag from the same line and it’s my go-to carry-on. It’s super easy to organize, has squishy sides to cram in the overhead bin, and opens like a clamshell.
As a reminder that I regularly write for Popular Mechanics, I received a rechargeable jump starter / air compressor that saved our bacon when we got back to my truck shuttle after five days in the remote Utah desert and found a flat tire. I felt like such a baddie as I sauntered over, checked the pressure, attached it to the tire, (secretly hoped it would work), and watched it inflate my tire enough to get back to pavement.
Favorite Cat
Heisenberg
Least-Favorite Cat
No such thing as a least-favorite cat you cretin
December’s Reading List
I Am a Cat Lady (VQR)
Smells Like American Spirit (Slate)
Friend or Faux? An Investigation Into AI Companionship (The Verge)
Cities Say They Store Property Taken From Homeless Encampments. People Rarely Get Their Things Back (ProPublica)
Uncovered: How the Insurance Industry Denies Coverage to Patients (ProPublica). This seems like a pertinent series for no reason at all