Give Your Gear a New Life

Valentine’s Day is just a few days away! Still coming up with last-minute plans? Don’t worry—you’re not alone. We’re here to help with four easy wins to make any date a success. Hammock picnic for the win! (Budget: $50)There’s no better way to picnic in our opinion than in the comfort of a Roo Double (Bonus: it’s currently 30% off). Step one: Pick out the ultimate secluded hammock spot. Step two: Charge your bluetooth speaker and curate a playlist with all your favorite songs. Step three: Hit up your favorite local market for a bottle of wine, some fresh fruits, crackers, and cheese, and you’re ready to go! Don’t forget to pack your Dragonfly bug net to keep those pesky flies away, and bring a headlamp if you plan to stay for sunset.     Hike to your morning coffee. (Budget: $15)Coffee dates are easy wins, but they can get pretty boring. And no one wants a boring date. Pack up your favorite bag of local coffee and hit the trail with your brewing supplies for an early sunrise to take this coffee date to the next level. Bonus points for dropping by your favorite bakery or pastry shop! Take your Field Blanket along so you’ll have a comfy place to enjoy your morning.     Rent a van for a weekend getaway! (Budget: $300-500)As much as we love to romanticize it, we can’t all live full time on the open road. Luckily, companies like Outdoorsy make it possible to get a small taste of van life. Surprise your valentine with a weekend getaway for two at one of your favorite local parks, and book an awesome RV or decked out van to make the experience unforgettable. Remember to bring your Firebelly if cold weather is rolling in!     Venture out to see the stars. (Budget: $50)This date will only cost you as much as a tank of gas and a six-pack of beer, but the payoff will be just what you and your valentine are looking for. Unfortunately most of us live in areas with high levels of light pollution, and seeing the wonders of the Milky Way is impossible at home. Take a trip outside the city to a nearby state or county park, and bring your Swiftlet along so you can gaze for hours at the night sky. Find amazing places to see the stars near you by checking out Space Tourism Guide. They’ve put together stargazing guides for cities like Austin, Denver, Los Angeles, New York City, Seattle, and on and on and on.  Celebrating Valentine's Day in Austin? Check out these two guides for spending some time outside in The Capitol City: 5 Hidden Gems on Austin's Barton Creek Greenbelt Everything you need to know for 36 hours in ATX

The ultimate hammock basecamp We teamed up with TAXA Outdoors to put a Kammok spin on their Woolly Bear habitat. The result is a go-anywhere, do-it-all trailer that's ready for any hammock adventure. We could all use a little more time outside, and the Kammok Edition Woolly Bear is the perfect tool for getting out and staying out. The Camp Chef's Dream Kitchen One of the biggest barriers to getting outside is the comfort you leave behind at home, one of the most crucial being a fully functioning kitchen with everything you need at your fingertips. The Woolly Bear kitchen offers the best of both worlds, with clever organization, plenty of workspace, and the ideal outdoor setting. Now you can get outside with confidence and cook to your heart's content. A Gear Closet on Wheels The Kammok Edition Woolly Bear has a place for all your camping essentials. No more packing and repacking: Load up once, and you're always ready for the next outing. Introducing the Outpost We knew a Kammok Edition Woolly Bear wouldn't be complete without a robust, full-size hammock setup. The Outpost easily attaches to the cargo deck of any Woolly Bear and allows you to hang a full-size hammock in virtually any setting. The Outpost's lightweight frame make it a cinch for anyone to deploy, and the tool-free setup means it's ready to go with the press of a button. Adjustable legs and a 360 degree swivel mount allow you to hang your hammock on any landscape, from smooth blacktop to the roughest backcountry campsites. Create the ultimate hammock basecamp by attaching up to six Outpost hammock stands to your Woolly Bear. With the addition of a rooftop tent, your Woolly Bear can comfortably sleep up to nine happy campers. Arriving Spring '22: Outpost 2.0 will allow for attachment to your vehicle's roof rack or a single tree.

It’s that beautiful time of year again where sunny days and crisp spring air are inviting us outside. Here in Austin the wild flowers are blooming, and the creeks are filling with fresh rain—hopefully enough to keep the limestone falls sustained through the summer. Christian, our teammate up in Denver, just marked the coming of spring by waxing his skis and putting them away, trading them in for a pair of hiking boots he’ll be tackling some fourteeners with on the weekends. We hope you’re taking note of similar changes wherever you are, maybe the snow melting in the mountains, clearing the way for your next summit or filling the rivers for your next white water trip. Whatever the case, it’s time to start making those campsite reservations and packing up for the next adventure. Photo by @MoonMountainMan. Swiftlet & Roo Single No car camping site is complete without a comfortable place for an afternoon siesta, and we all know that means bringing a hammock along. If you’re going to a beach or desert campsite, the Swiftlet is the perfect solution for a treeless hang. Even in a pine forest, finding the two perfect trees for your hammock isn’t always easy. A Swiftlet combined with a Roo Single gives you the versatility you need to hang anywhere. Use the short bar for chair mode at the picnic table, and then switch to the long bar for lounge mode and a post-lunch nap. At night, you’ll be able to hang by the campfire or lay back and star gaze if the conditions are right. Shop our Memorial Day Sale for 20% off Roo Singles! Mantis One of the most convenient shelters you’ll ever pack is the Mantis all-in-one hammock. Ditch the bulky ground tent and opt for the minimalist camping approach. The Mantis is perfect for spring with a breathable body that allows you to enjoy the breeze while also sporting a built-in bug net to keep out pesky insects. If rain or high wind is in the forecast, the rain fly will make sure you stay out of the elements. Clear skies ahead? Keep the fly in the stuff sack, take in the view, and fall asleep under the stars. The Mantis’ ease of setup and all-in-one design make it the perfect choice for new hammock campers and experts alike. Now through May 31, get a free Ridgeline Organizer when you purchase a Mantis—the perfect place to stow your water bottle, headlamp, and other essentials you want easy access to. Firebelly 30 Trail Quilt This may be the most fought-over item at your campsite. The Firebelly is made with buttery-soft fabric that is just as durable as it is snuggly. Poncho mode makes it perfect for wearing around camp, and just like the name suggests, you’ll stay warm with or without a blazing campfire.The Firebelly is also adaptable to any condition: Use it as a top quilt in warmer conditions or as a minimalist sleeping bag on those especially chilly nights. If you’re hammock camping, the Firebelly 30 can be used as an underquilt as well, ensuring a warm night no matter what. This trail quilt might exchange hands quite a few times at camp, but if your name’s on the tag, you’re the one that gets to take it into your tent at night—lucky you.  Insulated Pongo Pad and Puffin Pillow Camping has a bad reputation for leading to rather uncomfortable sleeping. From day one here at Kammok, we’ve been designing products with the aim of changing this misconception, and our Insulated Pongo Pad and Puffin Pillow are no exception. No matter your preferred shelter, the comfort that this dynamic duo provides is unparalleled. The Pongo offers three-season support, with insulation for those colder nights and warm weather comfort as well. Add the Puffin to your kit, and you have a velvety-soft pillow that you can inflate to your liking. And you won’t believe what these two will do for your hammock game. Both the Insulated Pongo Pad and the Puffin Pillow fully integrate with our hammocks for a bed like no other. The comfort level is so high that you may prefer it to your plush pillow-top mattress at home. During our Memorial Day Sale, get 25% off our Spring Camp Kit that includes the Pongo, Puffin, and a Firebelly 30 for the ultimate sleep combo. A Frisbee and a Deck of Cards Camping lends itself to lots of down time—slow afternoons spent enjoying nature with your friends. That's why we love it! A frisbee is easy to pack and makes for a fun activity that everyone can be a part of. A Kammok fan reached out to say they always bring a frisbee to camp and pointed out that they can never go flat (major bonus points, especially where there's an abundance of cacti). We love having a frisbee on long road trips when all you want is to stretch your legs and get a break from driving. Similarly, a deck if cards is lightweight and takes up minimal space, but the payoff is huge. We love Uno, but a standard deck is great for all sorts of games. Personal favorites of ours are Spades, Euchre, and Tiến lên, or Vietnamese cards. Cards are great for rainy nights in the tent or around the table after dinner, and if you always have a deck in your pocket, you're always ready for a game. Hopefully all this talk of camping has gotten you jazzed for the next adventure. Now seriously: Head over to your favorite park’s reservation site and plan your trip.

Meet Briana Cohen, an active rider in our monthly Taco Tri community events and a winner of the Greg Siple Award that helps young adults get in the saddle and out on the road by providing the skills and the gear needed for a lifetime of bicycle travel adventure.  As a recipient of the award, Briana organized an outreach project, Fearless Tandem, an introductory workshop to bicycle travel for the students at the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired. When Briana asked our team if we would get involved with her Adventure Cycling project, we couldn't have been more thrilled to raise our hands up. Briana has been an outstanding community leader, a positive spirit, and an absolute joy to bike alongside.  We sat down with Briana after organizing this massive project to get her take on what #timeoutside means to her, what the students walked away with from this experience, and tips to get yourself started into the world of Adventure Cycling.   There are many forms of cycling and it goes by many names. What exactly is Bicycle Traveling or Adventure Cycling? “Bicycle travel is traveling by bike as a form of adventure and exploration. The adventure begins when you start pedaling, and you are able to openly experience the land and environment in an intimate way. The bike is a mechanism to get you where you want to go - whether to a local or state park, scenic view, quaint town, or to remote places that are not easily accessible. The bike gets you there and there are no limits to where you can go. Bike travel is not much different from cycling, since you are still experiencing the joys and exercise of riding, but there are added layers of exploration, freedom, self-discovery, and fun depending on your adventure.” Biking has been a large part of your life. You started biking as a young kiddo for fun and now it's your form of transportation to commute to work and venture on self-contained rides in the Pacific Northwest. How has that molded your experience for the outdoors and what does time outside mean to you?  “I value the outdoors because there’s space for everyone and endless natural beauty. When I spend time outside, I enjoy the fresh air and feel at ease, whether I’m on my own or with lovely people. Biking allows me to reach farther distances than I can’t otherwise, while still being outside.” “So many favorite moments outdoors on the bike. The first time I rode with the Lend Your Legs ride with Texas School for the Blind: it was my birthday and I rode alongside a girl who is blind on the back of a tandem who was completely overjoyed as we went down a hill. She threw her hands up and shouted as if she were going down a roller coaster. She could not see where she was going, but she could experience the thrill. The burst of excitement she felt from biking has always stuck with me.” Why did you apply for the Greg Siple Award? “What led me to apply goes back to last summer when I did a workshop with VieCycle to learn about basic bike maintenance and the art of bike touring. One woman who led the class said anyone can do a bike tour and the bike you already have is good enough; so after the class I went on my first bike camping trip. I did not have any gear for camping and before that weekend, I never imagined I could ride 75 miles in a single day. I borrowed a tent and panniers the night before from someone on Team Snacks and set out for Palmetto State Park. I learned a lot about myself and abilities, and gained newfound freedom knowing I can ride anywhere, anytime.” “The trip was awesome and transformed my perspective; I applied for the award because I wanted more people to have that moment of discovery. I thought back to the blind rider going downhill on the tandem, and immediately knew what my project would be. My reasons for applying to The Greg Siple Award were to 1) feed my love of biking and traveling, 2) inspire others to ride, and 3) spread bike access and awareness.”   The Fearless Tandem workshop and community ride was a great success! What did the students learn from the workshop? “Students learned about tandem bikes basics, cycling resources, parks and trail conservation, and the principles of Leave No Trace. They shared their favorite memories spending time outside and also heard stories from a blind athlete and partner who discussed linking up with sighted guides to explore, stay in shape, and race tandems with Paracycling. They got to take home hammocks, reusable water bottles, t-shirts, wooden camping spoons, Adventure Cycling memberships, stylish socks, and other giveaways.” “Students walked away with the tools and confidence to go on their next adventure, which was the group bike ride later that day. The workshop served to inspire them; the gear to equip them; and the ride to have fun with the community. The Lend Your Legs ride has the students pair with cyclists on tandem bicycles to ride. Over 70 people joined for the ride! It was so cool to have such a large group come together and you could tell that bike travel is accessible to anyone. Someone even sent me a direct message on Instagram saying he and his partner had a tandem bike we could use - and they brought it so another student could ride. I love when the community supports each other like that.”   During the community ride, we stopped at a park to take a break and raffle gear. A student won a Field Blanket. Now that the event is over, any plans for doing something similar or more community events to get more people to spend time outside? “Always! I’m aiming to continue the momentum of the Fearless Tandem project to provide sustainable cycling resources, access, and awareness. I’ve also been instructing some city cycling classes for beginners so they feel more comfortable and confident riding in Austin. After receiving this award, I switched my job to a role in which I lead group rides with a team for anyone to join.” Do you have any suggestions to get riding or involved in the adventure cycling community? Anything else you’d like to share? “Bikes are a revolutionary tool, not just as a means to get places or for recreation, but to open people up to the outdoors and an upbeat community. The best thing I can recommend is to get out there and ride! You don’t need a fancy bike or gear and there are lots of great trails in and around Austin to check out. If you want to do some bike travel throughout the US, check out Adventure Cycling Association, which runs the Greg Siple Award and has maps featuring rural and low-traffic bicycle routes.” “Applications for The Greg Siple Award 2020 will open on November 1st, 2019! Anyone between the ages of 18 to 30 can apply. I definitely would recommend for anyone who is interested in bike travel to apply! Feel free to reach out to me with any questions! My project page can be found here.”     If you asked our team what #timeoutside means to them, you’ll receive a slurry of answers. It comes in many shapes and sizes, different experiences, emotions and memories. It molds how we interact with the world and community around us. Briana radiates our Kammok values of community, love, and adventure. We’re proud to support her and everyone in our community who inspire others to spend time outside. Photos provided by the talented Ali Mae.