For Andy Breland, life’s always been more about saddlebags than moneybags.

And if he can persuade folks to escape their busy lives and head to the wilderness, all the better.

Breland and his daughter Sydney recently opened Trailhead Supply in Kalispell to sell horse and mule packing, riding and camping accessories. The retail business at 860 N. Meridian Road, No. A11, is an extension of an online business the father-daughter team started a little more than two years ago.

Their inventory of gear runs the gamut, from Reinsman riding saddles to organic fly spray made with cedar oil. They sell weed- and seed-free forage for horses and grain-free food for dogs and cats. Along with camping supplies such as frying pans and propane stoves, the store sells fancy Western-style purses, jewelry and belts.

The Brelands take pride in the fact that about 85 percent of their products are made in the United States, and of those American-made products, 85 percent are made in Montana.

“If it’s Montana-made, it’s coming in,” Andy said.

The Brelands are in the process of designing their own pack saddles. As Sydney explained, “it’s taking all the good things and combining them into one Rolls Royce” of a saddle. The custom-designed pack saddles will be produced from Montana leather, with hardware made in the United States.

They’re willing to tackle most any custom gear request.

“We build stuff for people all the time,” Andy said. “Someone will come in and say, ‘Hey, what about...’ It’s all about trial and error on the trail.”

Trailhead Supply sells the outdoor lifestyle as much as anything.

“One of the reasons we started this was as a resource for the public,” Andy said. “To answer questions. It’s a gathering spot. The coffee’s always on.”

They’re building a kiosk that will be equipped with various resources needed for successful packing, such as a mapping program showing trail systems. Eventually the business will expand into a second room that will allow more retail display space.

As the Brelands explain their long-range plans, Tug Leberman stops by to see what’s going on. He declares Trailhead Supply is the “epicenter of the packing world USA.” He and Andy teach packing classes together and share the passion for the outdoors.

“We have people drift in all day long,” Andy said about the new store. In the back room, where the coffee pot sits, a couple of other fellow packers are shooting the breeze. It’s winter, after all, and not the weather for packing.

It’s the kind of camaraderie and lifestyle the Brelands were seeking when they moved to the Flathead Valley from Seattle in 1995. Andy, bearded and rugged-looking, said he felt like he never quite fit into the Seattle scene.

Once the family was established in the Flathead, it wasn’t long before they attended a clinic put on by the Back Country Horsemen of the Flathead, a trail group of which Andy is now president.

“We bought a horse, and they’re like potato chips,” Andy said. “You can’t have just one.”

He was operating a trucking company when the family — which includes wife Judy and another daughter, Melina — relocated.

These days, Andy works the graveyard shift a couple of nights a week at Target to help pay the bills. Sydney has another job, too, in medical billing. Judy is the “cheerleader” for the new business, and Melina lives in Seattle.

“We do whatever it takes to make this little thing run,” Andy said. “We don’t chase the dollar sign.”

 Andy has been involved with the Back Country Horsemen for years. He spends most of the summers doing volunteer packing for the Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and Continental Divide Trail Alliance.

Last August he and a good friend, Chuck Allen, rode 500 miles packing in the “Bob.”

“Packing is my drug of choice,” he said with a smile.

The Brelands also give back to the community by teaching hunter education. Andy, the lead instructor for the Kalispell hunter education program, is in his 14th year of instruction; Sydney has taught for 11 years.

“Whatever it takes to get people to leave the real world and get to the outdoors, we’ll do,” he said.

Trailhead Supply is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. The store number is 752-4437, or go online to www.trailheadsupply.com.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.