Our Story

Hey y'all,

I'm Evans, and I'm the guy who started Mount Inspiration.

A Bit About How I Got Here

In 2008 I was 19 years old: a lost and confused college sophomore. I was going to school in the town I grew up in and, aside from summer trips to see my dad in New York, had never really been anywhere. 

Then, in the middle of class one day, the thought popped in my head: "I have to go." So I did.

I called my best friend, and 72 hours later we were on the interstate driving West, with no real idea of how far we would go or where we would end up. We slept in the back of my Ford Explorer with my dog, ate rice and beans, and explored the United States from Phoenix to Flagstaff, Los Angeles to Las Vegas, Yosemite to San Francisco for 3 exhilarating, adventurous months. We finally ended up (with barely any money left) in San Diego.

It was there we found jobs teaching surfing and, though our travels had shown us much of our country, this opportunity showed us much about ourselves; things we otherwise may have never known. I like to think I regained my zest, positivity, and became a kid again. I also learned how to surf.

From there, I spent a semester at the University of Hawai'i, a couple months surfing in Costa Rica, another year back at surf camp, and ended with another trip bumming across the country in the ol' Explorer. After two and a half years of exploring, it was time to finish school.

A month after college, in Fall of 2012, I decided to hike as far as I could on the Appalachian Trail before finding warmth for the Winter. That hike led me to Asheville, North Carolina, a place I fell in love with and many years later, still call home.

It was here I saved enough to hike the entire Appalachian Trail (starting back from the beginning, of course!) from April 1 to August 15, 2014. This experience, by far, had the most profound, paradigm-shifting on me of all my adventures.

I bought an '84 Volkswagen Van shortly after my hike, and spent some time continuing to live the nomadic van-life. But something was missing.

An Idea Becomes a Company

I needed to remind myself, and others, what it was about that hike that was so life-changing. I needed to send a message of sustainability, preservation, protection, and conservation to the world too. 

It was on my 2014 Thru-hike that I coined the phrase, "Everything you carry should be light." After that hike, I began exploring the world of graphic design. I had always been a guitarist and musician, and for the first time in my life, found myself falling deeper and deeper in love with the visual arts as well -- needless to say, I became obsessed.

"Everything you carry should be light" became my personal mantra, a way of living. It was the first design I made and sold on stickers around Western North Carolina. It was then I began to see just how a company that celebrated the wonder of our world could really exist.

Mount Inspiration was founded in July of 2015, with the goal of using sustainably made products and business practices to spread messages of light, love, hope, and positivity. I also think that donating a portion of our profits to environmental non-profits is a no-brainer: I call all these core operating values a "holistic company model." From our buying process to our sustainable choices, to our mission, vision, and unique designs, I like to think that we are pretty darn different from most companies in the world. 

Mount Inspiration now makes sustainable, unique, positive apparel for outdoor enthusiasts and nature lovers. We use soybean inks and cleaners to screen print our original, outdoor inspired designs onto clothing made from organic & recycled materials.

I don't live in my van anymore, and don't have any big trips planned in the near future: reason being I'm busy spreading good vibes, creating a more positive society, and encouraging people to express what they love about the natural world and great outdoors through awesome clothing. I do still hike, run, camp, and get outside whenever I'm not working on building a company, though!

I hope you'll join me on my quest to inspire the world to Think Outside.

Much love,

Evans Prater

Creator, Mount Inspiration  (see a video about the company) 

Values: Appreciating the healing and transformative powers of being in nature, and respecting and protecting the natural world so all can experience this power. 

Purpose: Revolutionize the apparel industry through igniting the already trending switch to sustainable (that is organic and recycled) materials. 

Mount Inspiration - The Movie

Mount Inspiration from Amplified Media on Vimeo.