HI! My name is Ashley. In Fall 2024 I moved from Georgia to Salt Lake City, Utah with my partner, Mack, and our 3 rescue bunnies. Mack and I met camping a couple summers ago, and after driving our rigs – he has a Tacoma and I have a 4Runner – out to Utah in Spring 2024, we quickly decided we wanted to make a permanent move. We feel so blessed that every day we look out our kitchen window to the Wasatch mountains, and are able to trail run, mountain bike, or go wheeling literally from our doorstep.
I was raised by parents who not only instilled a sense of adventure, but also never taught me to fear anything. One of my favorite memories with my family is a month-long trip we took across the country, camping out of our Toyota and visiting all the big national parks. Growing up, my parents encouraged anything I had a healthy interest in. When I wanted a motorcycle at 18, they never tried to talk me out of it, but instead found a tiny, old dirt bike I could learn to ride and enrolled me in an intensive motorcycle course. They always made sure that I had the knowledge, gear, and preparation to do whatever I wanted to try safely and correctly, although they received criticism for allowing their daughter to do ‘dangerous things.’
Naturally, I grew into a fiercely independent woman with a love of travel and adventure. I found I loved trip planning and finding out of the way places almost as much as the travel itself. Some of my favorite trips include Alaska (I was born in Sitka), the British Virgin Islands, and Utah which I first visited in November of 2018. I also found a deep love for endurance sports. I have done 3 full Ironmans and quite a few ultramarathons. Trails are where I am happiest, whether it’s running or biking!
In 2020, I purchased a 4Runner to get me and my gear to the trails. Unbeknownst to me at the time, I actually had COVID, and it would change the trajectory of my life. For two years after, I was unable to bike or run due to long-COVID complications. I was mentally struggling, and I still felt that deep NEED to be in nature. So I started camping and building up my 4Runner to take me to remote locations. I had many amazing adventures on the East Coast, but I felt the call to return to Utah.
By Spring of 2022, I sold that motorcycle for gas money, and embarked on a solo life changing road trip to Utah. On that trip, I discovered that I could find my strength and resilience again in nature. There were many times that I felt afraid and vulnerable, even getting stuck in the snow on the side of a remote road. But I remembered this wasn’t my first time being afraid of the sheer remoteness of an adventure. Many times, I had been 10+ miles into a trail run on the Appalachian Trail and would come across a bear, or a questionable person, or more often than not, absolutely NOTHING, but the tricks my mind would play on me. I would remember a quote from one of my favorite books, Wild By Cheryl Strayed: “I knew that if I allowed fear to overtake me, my journey was doomed. Fear, to a great extent, is born of a story we tell ourselves, and so I chose to tell myself a different story from the one women are told. I decided I was safe. I was strong. I was brave. Nothing could vanquish me.” I learned on that trip how little I had to fear, but also how much I had to gain from nature, both in learning about myself, but also discovering the one thing we’re really on this planet for… to experience and preserve the beauty around us. Some might say, ‘Utah is just a state’, and a very ‘brown’ one at that. But for me, it represents so much more. It means freedom, and accessibility to trails and places that bring me peace and remind me of my ‘why’. So if you see me on a trail, please say hello, and let’s share some trail magic!
Rooftop tent camping and overlanding are about freedom, challenge, and connection with nature, but they don’t have to come at the expense of your wellbeing. This guide shares how Ashley maintain keeps healthy, cooks creative meals, and strong energy while travelling, plus gear and product ideas to help you do the same.
HI! My name is Ashley. In Fall 2024 I moved from Georgia to Salt Lake City, Utah with my partner, Mack, and our 3 rescue bunnies. Mack and I met camping a couple summers ago, and after driving our rigs – he has a Tacoma and I have a 4Runner – out to Utah in Spring 2024, we quickly decided we wanted to make a permanent move. We feel so blessed that every day we look out our kitchen window to the Wasatch mountains, and are able to trail run, mountain bike, or go wheeling literally from our doorstep.
I was raised by parents who not only instilled a sense of adventure, but also never taught me to fear anything. One of my favorite memories with my family is a month-long trip we took across the country, camping out of our Toyota and visiting all the big national parks. Growing up, my parents encouraged anything I had a healthy interest in. When I wanted a motorcycle at 18, they never tried to talk me out of it, but instead found a tiny, old dirt bike I could learn to ride and enrolled me in an intensive motorcycle course. They always made sure that I had the knowledge, gear, and preparation to do whatever I wanted to try safely and correctly, although they received criticism for allowing their daughter to do ‘dangerous things.’
Naturally, I grew into a fiercely independent woman with a love of travel and adventure. I found I loved trip planning and finding out of the way places almost as much as the travel itself. Some of my favorite trips include Alaska (I was born in Sitka), the British Virgin Islands, and Utah which I first visited in November of 2018. I also found a deep love for endurance sports. I have done 3 full Ironmans and quite a few ultramarathons. Trails are where I am happiest, whether it’s running or biking!
In 2020, I purchased a 4Runner to get me and my gear to the trails. Unbeknownst to me at the time, I actually had COVID, and it would change the trajectory of my life. For two years after, I was unable to bike or run due to long-COVID complications. I was mentally struggling, and I still felt that deep NEED to be in nature. So I started camping and building up my 4Runner to take me to remote locations. I had many amazing adventures on the East Coast, but I felt the call to return to Utah.
By Spring of 2022, I sold that motorcycle for gas money, and embarked on a solo life changing road trip to Utah. On that trip, I discovered that I could find my strength and resilience again in nature. There were many times that I felt afraid and vulnerable, even getting stuck in the snow on the side of a remote road. But I remembered this wasn’t my first time being afraid of the sheer remoteness of an adventure. Many times, I had been 10+ miles into a trail run on the Appalachian Trail and would come across a bear, or a questionable person, or more often than not, absolutely NOTHING, but the tricks my mind would play on me. I would remember a quote from one of my favorite books, Wild By Cheryl Strayed: “I knew that if I allowed fear to overtake me, my journey was doomed. Fear, to a great extent, is born of a story we tell ourselves, and so I chose to tell myself a different story from the one women are told. I decided I was safe. I was strong. I was brave. Nothing could vanquish me.” I learned on that trip how little I had to fear, but also how much I had to gain from nature, both in learning about myself, but also discovering the one thing we’re really on this planet for… to experience and preserve the beauty around us. Some might say, ‘Utah is just a state’, and a very ‘brown’ one at that. But for me, it represents so much more. It means freedom, and accessibility to trails and places that bring me peace and remind me of my ‘why’. So if you see me on a trail, please say hello, and let’s share some trail magic!
Rooftop tent camping and overlanding are about freedom, challenge, and connection with nature, but they don’t have to come at the expense of your wellbeing. This guide shares how Ashley maintain keeps healthy, cooks creative meals, and strong energy while travelling, plus gear and product ideas to help you do the same.
