Overland Expo West 2018 (Flagstaff, AZ) May

Where in SoCal and which route are you taking?

 

Yeah I'll be rolling in to the onsite camping on Thursday afternoon when they open up. I have 2 other friends convoying up with me so we can set up side by side and make our usually "compound". We also want to be able to just walk over from our campsite with a beer in our hand and not tempt fate with the whole DUI thing by having to drive in from an offsite camp. I'm looking forward to the social aspect of this event, which I really enjoyed last year with all of the people camped around us. There are some fascinating stories of true adventure from around the world out there in the other people who came to share in the same interests. Very humble though, except for the vegans we had next to us who reminded us all of the time that they were vegans.

My only request with my camp group (same goes for my friends) is that there are no little kids running around our area. We want the adults-only camping experience. This is actually a favor to the kids and their parents, as I have very little filter anymore and some of the things that come out of my mouth may actually scar the emotions of delicate children and helicopter parents.

 

Ok guys, Flag local here. We have some great options for food in this little town.

Here are some dining options for those that will want to go out and eat.

Tacos:
La Santisima Gourmet Taco Shop, apparently the best tacos on the face of the planet.

Mexican:
Oscars: next to sprouts, Fresh Baja Mex style
Tacos Los altos:East side and west side
Criollo: Downtown
Ralibertos: off cedar/forest rd
Salsa Brava: Tex Mex
Lafondas: if you want greasy tex mex go here.

BBQ:
Satchmos: Authentic Southern Style BBQ. Off of 4th st and 7th ave
Bigfoot BBQ: Typical Southern BBQ (Not authentic) Downtown shops

Italian:
Oreganos: Blah, Greasy/ Overly Salty, crap parking
Fat Olives: Yum (owner also owns Salsa Brava)
Strombolis: Meh (west side)
Grimaldis: Phoenicans Italian (Sawmill Complex)

Thai:
Pato Thai: Downtown
Dara Thai: Cheapest / Local Fav /best in town (huge selection)
Mia's: just south of dara on San Fran.

American:
Tinderbox:San Fran
The Mayor:San Fran
1899:NAU
The Tourist Home: San Fran


Organic/ Healthy bites:
Mountain Oasis: Downtown
Mix: Downtown/ Old Town Shops
Whole Foods: Sawmill
Sprouts:

Chinese/Mongolian:
Monsoons: Downtown
Golden Dragon: East side off of steves

Burgers:
Mama Burger: off Ft valley and humphreys (best in town for a carhop style burger)
Diablo: Downtown/Spendy but good (not your typical burger but awesome) Try the señor smoke or the marilyn
Five guys:Typical five guys
Grand Canyon Cafe: huge burger, lots of fries(i'd exhaust other options first)
Bunhuggers/Sportmans: Greasy, lots of fries but delicious.
Smash Burger: It's a smash burger, I'd go to Mama burger

Sammiches:
Crystal Creek:


Pizza:
Fratellis: Need I say more
Nimarcos: it's not fratellis
Alpine:Good but soggy
Fat Olives: Woodfired Artisanal style (Light fare)


Breakfast:
Country Host: this would be my first pick Butler and the I-40 Easy access to the expo Farmers breakfast is great.
Miss Zips: Bomb Chkn fried steak: second pick East side off 66
Mike and Rhondas: Meh, you get a lot of food : Two locations
Grand Canyon Railroad cafe:Near the ExpoWest side wall mart parking lot (Awesome Juevos Rancheros)

And Last but not Least

Breweries:
Mother Road: Tower Station, hands down the best local IPA Off Phoenix Ave south of the tracks, next to Bike Revolution
Historic: Downtown
Flag Brew: They're ok
Wanderlust: Eastside
Dark Sky Brewing: Good selection, good flavors.
Beaver Street: Meh, usually too busy for my taste
Hops on Birch: This is actually a bar in downtown but they have a great selection.
Mcgaughs smoke and bottle: on San Fran just north of butler great to go selection.
The State Bar: Great Selection, but it's a bar.





I will keep adding to this as the expo draws closer, Have fun you guys and be safe in our little mtn town.

 

Heading from Glendale area out the 15 to the 40

 

You had better add the relatively new La Santisima Gourmet Taco Shop (119 S San Francisco St) to the Mexican category or a category all of its own - Tacos. They have locations here in the Phx area, and put that one in last summer. It's hidden and a bit out of the way, but OMFG if you want true gourmet tacos, then you had better go here at least once in your life. They also make about 30 different salsas from scratch. These aren't $1 tacos, though. Expect to shell out some coin for a mind-blowing meal.

 

Tickets purchased! Heading out of Tucson Friday morning!

 

Is there a location off site that some are camping. I am coming up Saturday morning and want to camp with a bunch of people. I know there was talk about camping near Edge of the World.

 

I got on site camping pass

 

Anybody camping off site?

 

I'm planning on it. Not sure where though.

 

Same. Just gotta look into it more

 

I'm trying to get with other az people as they have suggested some places, but nothing is official yet. I'll post in this thread whend we get something locked in.

 

Big group forming for the on-site camping. Don't rule that out.

 

Don't want to pay for on site camping when there is the beautiful forest right there.

 

This is so true on so many levels.

 

Come on, guys. You can camp dispersed any other time of year. This is a special event and an exception to the regular camping rule. Why would you want the hassle of camping off-site and then that big pain in the ass process of having to get in through the huge line of trucks and park far away just to go see the show? Just set up a different campout with the dudes on a different weekend. You either have to tear down camp or leave someone behind to guard everything, too. There are so many interesting people camping on-site that are a real treat to talk to and actually learn about expo topics and experiences.

If you're just trying to save a few bucks, the hassle of being offsite just doesn't make sense to me. But I camp solo in very dispersed places a LOT, and it's a treat to me sometimes to be back around new people that I can learn something from. In my opinion, the really creative and useful expo ideas/rigs were all parked out in the paid camp area, actually making use of their stuff and very willing to talk to you about it. Great parties at night, too, without drunken 2am shots fired into the woods.

 

I'm gonna camp inside mike's house

 

Isn't it like 130 bucks to camp onsite? That could buy me truck parts at the expo.

My girlfriend and I are only going to expo for one day so camping on site is not worth it for us. We'd have to tear down camp in the morning anyway. It's just a stop on a road trip. I was just looking to see if anybody else was camping around the area and wouldn't mind if we joined for one night. Plus the last two years have been miserable at the grounds. No wind protection at all since it's a field. The trees in the forest do a good job of cutting out wind.

 

This years venue is new. And the onsite camping will all be in the forest surrounding the county fair grounds where this years venue is at... Just sayin

 

Oh I thought it was on the fairgrounds. So can't I just camp in the forest nearby for free? Why pay?