Team Bio: Baker

Owner of Bourn Adventure and Bourn Adventure Gear | 2012

Baker spent approximately 11 years in the military as an Infantry soldier (11B). He did two deployments overseas before getting out of the service and receiving an honorable discharge from the United States Army with the rank of Staff Sergeant (E-6).

​He also spent approximately 10 years in law enforcement and worked in several special operational units, to include: Narcotics, S.W.A.T. Team, Tracking Team, and Task Force Officer for the United States Marshals Service.

He left law enforcement with the rank of Sergeant (SGT) to pursue overseas work, which he still currently does. ​

Baker, along with his wife Ashlie, started what is now known as Bourn Adventure in 2012. Before the rebrand to Bourn Adventure in 2017, the business was known as Bakes FJ, which focused on their adventures in the Toyota FJ Cruiser they owned. Their journey took them to all lower 48 states and parts of Canada. Unfortunately, while on a winter road trip they encountered a mighty snowstorm which led to the FJ Cruiser being totaled following an accident. To read that story, please click here: The Roll Over    

Over the years their website and their adventures have grown. They have even added a 2017 John Cooper Works MINI and a 2005 Lexus GX470 to their fleet of adventure vehicles. They make a good pair traveling together as Ashlie helps cover up the odd smells and weird noises made by Baker.
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To learn more about their history, please click here: The Bourn Adventure Story

Horseshoe Bend, AZ

​Shortly after buying his 2012 Toyota FJ Cruiser he rediscovered his desire to travel. Initially, he set his sights on getting to know America better and launched a campaign he called, Explore America. Over the course of several years, he did just that! 

Through the use of the National Park System, Museums, camping, hiking, off-road events, and other activities in various location across the United States, he truly has Explored America. Although he has visited all lower 48 states, some several times over, and more than 100 areas associated with the National Park System, he knows there is still so much more to explore within America's borders.

More recently he has had the opportunity to travel abroad. When possible, he has Captured the Journey at places like Petra, Jerash, Sinkhole Park, and Mt. Longonot, just to name a few. He has visited more than 30 countries, although not all of them were conducive to tourist activities. 

Adventure in Kenya

Through his adventures around the world, he has had the opportunity to meet and interact with so many great people from all walks of life. He is a firm believer in never missing an opportunity to meet a new person and hear their story. 

He knows not everyone has the financial or physical ability to Explore America or travel the world. Although these adventures are fun, his motivation for documenting them and providing that content to others via Bourn Adventure is personal. ​

Here is what he had to say about it: 

" As recently as 100 years ago tourist travel was not a realistic option, especially across great distances. If someone wanted to see a new place, it was a true commitment filled with danger, high financial cost, and often times physical risk that the majority of people could not afford. The only other option was to read about such places in a book, but even that was not always a viable option as most people could not read well enough to comprehend what was between the covers. Not to mention, books, as we know them today, were not the norm then. 

We live in an era now where travel is relatively safe, affordable, and quick. Today, the majority of people can take a trip without too much of a time or even life commitment as our means of conveyance has improved dramatically. We now have the freedom of movement that no other people in recorded history had. On top of that, the quality of life while traveling is so much better now than it was when a person was confined to the belly of an old wooden ship and tossed about while navigating the ocean or even on the back of an animal.

The majority of journeys then took several days, weeks, or even month to complete. Most people took them out of necessity, not desire. Today we can fall asleep comfortably in a vehicle and wake up several hours later in a new place; refreshed and ready to go. In terms of travel, what once took months to do, we can now accomplish in less than a day. In my opinion, we should seize this opportunity to travel and explore as people before us would have given their lives (some did), just for the possibility to experience a portion of what we can today. 

Having said that, due to financial, physical or other reasons beyond their control, some people are still unable to travel. Fortunately, through the use of modern technology, almost anyone can explore the world through the internet. 

One of our goals with Bourn Adventure is to bring a world of information and destinations to the fingertips of those who can not experience it on their own. We want them to travel through our adventures and live through our stories.

We also aim to act as a resource for those who are planning their own trips, whether it be domestic or international. Our hope is they can use the information we have gathered and the content we have created as a guide to help them identify places to visit. " 

City of Jerash in Jordan

Bourn Adventure has a plethora of informative and entertaining content in the form of articles, pictures, and videos. Each week more information is added or updated to their website. If you do not know, Baker and Ashlie also own and operate Bourn Adventure Gear, which is the retail side of Bourn Adventure. 

To learn more about that, please click here: Bourn Adventure Gear 

He is passionate about what he does and loves sharing his adventures. He trusts his motivation will encourage others to do the same and he looks forward to what the future holds for him, Bourn Adventure, and all those influenced by it.

​Bourn Adventure is more than just a website, it is a life style!

Gallery

Articles Written by Baker

• Petra
• Adventure: U.S. National Parks
• Yellow Stone National Park
• Got Our Cryp-toes In The Water
• Vehicles: The FJ
• Vehicles: The MINI
• Vehicles: The R1
• Travel: Subtle Hints
• Review: Scheel-mann Seats
• Travel: Foreign Currencies
• Design: Our Evolution
• Toyota Jamboree 2015
• Devils Tower
• The Hoover Dam
• B.A.G. Shipping Cost Explained

• Grand Canyon National Park
• Adventures: 2018 in Review
• Vehicles: The Roll Over
• Products: The Patch Game
• Vehicles: The GX
• Vehicles: The CTS-V
• Postcard Adventures
• Review: Metal Tech 4x4
• Review: Nitto Trail Grappler
• Products: Stickers and Decals
• Events: A MINI Adventure
• Badlands Off Road Park
• Zion National Park
• Niagara Falls
• Adventures: 2018 In Review

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We don't just design adventure based products, we live them!
-Bourn Adventure Gear

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