Laura Killingbeck

1 month ago | adventurecycling.org | Laura Killingbeck

No matter where I am in the US, there’s always an Adventure Cycling route close by. When I lived in Michigan, I pedaled out my door onto the North Lakes route. In Arizona, I was just a few miles from the Great Divide. When I visited my friend Alison in San Francisco, I biked from her house onto the Pacific Coast Route. And in Massachusetts, I got to host my friends Kaisa and Christoffer as they pedaled down the Atlantic Coast Route.

Jan 10, 2025 | adventurecycling.org | Alissa Bell |Laura Killingbeck |Kyle Dunlin

Photo by Laura IrwinIf bike touring with panniers is like traveling with a big roller suitcase, bikepacking is like traveling with only a carry-on backpack. The goal is to have everything you need and also to need everything you have. Bring less stuff! Ask yourself “What would happen if I didn’t bring this?” If the answer is unremarkable, then leave it at home. Repackage consumables like toiletries, food, and chain lube into smaller containers and remove extra packaging.

Oct 14, 2024 | adventurecycling.org | Chris Walker |Laura Killingbeck

This story originally appeared in the 2025 Nov/Dec issue of Adventure Cyclist magazine’s Final Mile essay anthology. On the outskirts of Shanghai, the buildings began to grow skyward. Factories morphed into apartment complexes. Apartments stretched into office towers. It felt like I was cycling into a man-made canyon, its glass and steel walls a potent reminder of China’s booming economy. It was December 12, 2013, and I was as anxious as I was excited. I knew my buddy Morgan was, too.

Aug 29, 2024 | adventurecycling.org | Hollie Ernest |Laura Killingbeck

Climate change is increasing North America’s dramatic wildfires each year, with apocalyptic smoke-darkened skies and scorched landscapes. In 2021, smoke from California wildfires reached as far as New York City, while ashes from Colorado fires fell on coastal regions. “Unfortunately, because smoke can travel thousands of miles, you don’t have to be close to the fires [to be adversely affected] by wildfire smoke,”  said Dr. Mary Prunicki, director of air pollution and health research at the Sean N.

Jul 2, 2024 | adventurecycling.org | Hollie Ernest |Laura Killingbeck

This is a ride report for the Short Route: Eureka, CA: Redwood Coast Loop while the author and her husband were developing the route. Sweat dripped down my nose and landed on my handlebars. Gnats whirred in my ears, determined to steal my sanity. By slapping them, I slapped my own face, and when I slapped my ear too hard my hand got tangled in my helmet strap. I cursed the added weight of the bottle of wine and steak in my pannier. Won’t steak be fun, I had thought. Won’t that be romantic.