Highlighting Members of the Eureka! Community: Kelsey Kagan
At Eureka!, we keep a close eye on our community, looking for our loyal brand followers and the people that are really living the Eureka! lifestyle. So, when we noticed Kelsey Kagan traveling, camping and cooking up and down the west coast, we knew we had to find a way to make her part of the Eureka! community. Since that time, Kelsey has become a part of the team, helping us showcase our products in the way they were designed to be used. She’s part field tester, part storyteller and part chef.
Now it’s time for us to shine a light on her:
Where did your love for the outdoors begin?
“Right in my own backyard. I grew up in a major metro city, and between work and shuttling their kids around to soccer tournaments and club meetings, my folks didn’t have a lot of opportunities to take us far outside city limits. When I was old enough to handle a shock cord, I started pitching a tent in our lawn and sleeping outside with the faint murmur of nearby traffic lulling me to sleep and a flickering streetlight standing in as a starry night sky.”
What’s your favorite part of being on the road?
“It shifts my perspective on necessities. A few miles down a dirt road, all of the excess of city life blows away in a billow of dust behind my tires. I’m brought back into a primitive mindset of what I need and what is important: good food, clean water, crisp air in my lungs, and a couple of road companions to share the journey with.”
What’s your favorite Eureka! product?
“My trusty Ignite Camp Stove”.
How do Eureka! products make your life easer?
“I’m usually cooking to feed my own belly, and space in the camper is limited. The Ignite stove is ideal for my setup because it has two powerful burners, so I can simultaneously boil noodles while I sauté veggies, and it packs up into a compact package for storing while I ramble around backroads.”
How do you inspire others to get outdoors? What advice do you have for them?
“The outdoors are everywhere. We are inundated with images of mountain expeditions and great feats of adventure, and those are spectacular to be sure, but don’t discount a long walk in your own neighborhood with your family, admiring native trees lining the streets, or a picnic in your local park with friends.
Beyond that, for folks who want to try out solo camping, I always suggest starting with a close to home campsite, somewhere they already feel comfortable. My first go of it was to a state park 45 minutes from our home, which was conveniently close considering I realized that I forgot my tent and had to drive back to get it just before nightfall. Now I regularly venture thousands of miles for a month at a time, and I almost never forget something as crucial as my tent!”
Where can people follow along?
My Instagram channel is: @kelseykagan.
Kelsey is just one of many loyal brand followers of Eureka! and we make it a priority to highlight those that pursue the Eureka! lifestyle and get out into the great outdoors. Eureka!, like the entire family of brands within Johnson Outdoors, values the importance of our community of consumers. To learn more about avid followers of the rest of our innovative brands, head over to Johnson Outdoors’ new Outdoor Adventure Blog.