Camping

The Magic Of The Woods

In the last post on balancing being a dad and a dreamer, I discussed my conundrum of spending time outdoors with my boys as wells as having my own personal athletic ambitions. Soon after that post, I took my boys out for two nights of backpacking. Clarity came. The conundrum was gone. Getting outside often […]

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Why Journey?

by Andy Amick

In the last two posts (Initial Thoughts and Embrace Sunrises), I’ve written about the balance between enjoying a journey rather than focusing so much on the gear used for the journey. What I didn’t mention is why go on a journey at all? Why go bikepacking – putting camping gear on a bike making it […]

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Pushing Through “The Resistance” On Overnight Trips

by Andy Amick

It’s almost a given for me to experience “the resistance” about two hours into any type of overnight or multi-day trip. Whether I’m with a group of friends, with my kids, or solo, my mind hits a roadblock with thoughts of home, my wife, and my family. Once I push through this mental state, I […]

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Finding A Sleeping Pad For Side Sleepers

by Andy Amick

I’m a side sleeper. One who prefers to curl my legs way up into an almost fetal position when I’m sleeping. The other night while testing out my Tour Divide sleep setup, I woke up several times with pain in my bottom knee when sleeping on my side. It occurred when sleeping on either side […]

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Bikepacking 202 – Pack Only What You Need

by Andy Amick

Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler. – Albert Einstein For bikepacking, this can be interpreted as “pack only what you need, but nothing you don’t”. Of course, it’s much easier said than done. For analytical thinkers or tinkerers, solving this puzzle is one of the lures of bikepacking because it’s an ever […]

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A Glimpse Into The World Of Bikepacking

by Andy Amick

Are you curious about bikepacking but unsure about how gear is packed on the bike or some of the logistics? While testing out some gear in my yard, I decided to do a full camp setup and time lapse the process of waking up and switching from camping mode to bike riding mode. Ideally, the […]

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A 3 Pound Bikepacking Sleep System

by Andy Amick

The sleep system is the one set of gear that allows for turning long bike rides into bikepacking trips. It’s also one of the areas with the most options, configurations, and price points. My first bikepacking (in the backyard) trip utilized a 5 pound tent, a 5 pound sleeping bag, and 2 pound sleeping pad. […]

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Action – The Key To Great Experiences

by Andy Amick

Sometimes, the best decision is simply taking action rather than doing nothing at all. As Wayne Gretzky said, “100% of the shots you don’t take, won’t go in”. Do we know what tomorrow or even the next minute brings? Nope. But if you don’t try something new, you can guarantee that it won’t involve the adventures […]

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Dreaming Of Multi-Day Trips With Kids

by Andy Amick

Hopefully, you’ve already made you plans and reservations for this summer’s trips. If you haven’t, what are you waiting for? Over dinner the other night, my kids and I started talking about trips and places we would like to explore. Yes, these are the dinner conversations we have, especially when my wife is out of […]

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Toothpaste Dots Are Not My Friend

by Andy Amick

Or as my kids would say – Epic fail!! Making the dots was easy, but actually using them for toothpaste was the hard part. Some experiments in lightening your camping setup result in failures and that’s ok. They either become too lightweight and don’t hold up, or they are too uncomfortable. For this attempt, the […]

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