cool : American Adventurist

Photography Credit: Richard Soohoo took the vast majority of the photos.

Overland Expo West 2019 may have just ended, but here at American Adventurist we’re already looking forward to Overland Expo East 2019 and beyond. That’s because Overland Expo continues to be an event that raises the bar year by year with more and more awesome people, new gear, and epic vehicles. The big news of course is that Overland Expo turned ten in 2019, and after nine years of cultivating an outstanding global event, Jonathan and Roseann Hanson have passed the torch over to Lodestone Events.

At the time of this writing, feedback has been extremely positive on the new management which is a huge feat in and of itself considering the cult following surrounding this event.

By the numbers, this tenth birthday was by far the biggest Overland Expo event yet with over 22,000 people attending to check out the more than 400 exhibitors, 1,500 adventure vehicles, and 330 classes. In other words, Overland Expo just continues to grow with no plateau in sight– and things are only looking up from here. Based on the number of new faces and vendors we saw at this year’s event, there are obviously a great deal of people who are getting the appeal of this ~~car camping~~ overlanding thing that we love so much.

This year, Flagstaff did a great job of showing why the locals say “If you don’t like the weather, just wait five minutes”, and I’m pretty sure someone out there has already started calling OXW19 Snowblowverlandchanceofrainandsomesun Expo. We’ve had Blowverland Expo and Snowverland Expo, and now we’ve had Just a Little Bit of Everything Expo – but even with the changing weather, the show was still awesome, and thoroughly enjoyed by so many people – so lets dig in to the photos, because we all know no one really reads these articles anywho.

Speaking of photos, BIG thanks to Richard Soohoo for all of the amazing photos here. He worked very hard to help cover everything for you!

The Venue

Fort Tuthill County Fairground was packed full of Overland-Awesome for the event. Well planned changes in layout from last year provided a larger continuous vendor area, and a nice new skills area which were huge hits with old hands and first-timers alike. There was definitely a more centralized feel to the venue this year.

Classes

Overland Expo is the place where you can learn anything that relates to the skills you need to adventure and travel. With over 450 session-hours of instruction at this year’s event, there was no shortage of expert mentors and new things to be learned. From classes on obvious topics like first-aid and vehicle recovery to more advanced topics like international fly-and drive-trips and how to not end up in jail at border crossings, Overland Expo assembles some of the best subject matter experts on the planet to teach you what you need to know before you go.

Vehicles

One of my favorite things about Overland Expo are the rigs that come to the event each year. From Sherps to the Rivian R1T electric truck, to monster military trucks to scramblers and Honda Trail 90’s, there’s something here on two wheels, four wheels, or more than four wheels to blow any enthusiast’s hair back. OEMs, complete vehicle builders, one-offs and plenty of company vehicles compliment the assortment of awesome DIY rigs on display. More than once, I’ve found inspiration for one of my vehicles from a vehicle on display at Overland Expo.

Gear

There’s so much awesome gear on display at Overland Expo. From well established names in the industry to small companies just getting started, there are so many cool things to see. This is where new ideas see the light of day for the first time, and little projects become big sellers. Here’s just a small sampling of the awesome newness that was on display.

Goose Gear will soon be importing these awesome, German-made 50TEN modules. We can’t wait to see one of these fully built out with their interior know-how.

The Poolahoop keeps your bog roll exactly where you need it when you’re answering the call. This isn’t a new product, but we love the display and seeing people’s reactions to a mannequin on a can. Check out Hinterland Industries to get your own Poolahoop.

Dogs on motos is a thing, and Rex Specs makes a whole line of goggle sizes for your furry, four legged adventure buddy.

Pack rafts are an awesome way to add a new waterborne option to your overland travels. Hike in and raft out. Check out Kokopelli Rafts for more.

Warn had a bunch of new gear on display. From new rigging with their Sidewinder and Hyperlink offerings to new Warn winch covers and bags.

Again in 2019, the #Patchgame continues to be a big part of the Overland scene. If you didn’t walk away with at least a handful of relevant morale patches or utilitarian gear tags you missed out on an Overland Expo tradition.

Blue Ridge Overland Gear had a new backback on display. This bag works with the same style of packing pouches that the tool bag and first aid kits use. BROG has also updated their pouches to make the contents easier to see. We also spied this fridge cover in the back of their van…

Mosko Moto makes some of the best motorcycle luggage around. They’re now stepping into the apparel market and I have to say that I’m really eager to try their riding gear out. Cut to fit over armor (versus having it as part of the garment) the Mosko apparel looks and fits great.

There were a number of Ford Rangers at Overland Expo as well as lots of new Jeep Gladiators. It will be interesting to see how the aftermarket industry adopts these workhorse trucks. We’re keenly interested to see how they hold up long term when used off road as advertised.

Adventure Imports is a solid company known for bringing Aussie and South African brands like Maxtrax, Indeflate, and MSA 4×4 into the US. Their display was chock-full of rad new kit ranging from the new Maxtrax Extreme and Maxtrax recovery gear, to MSA’s line of well made outback accessories. Of note are their excellent drop fridge slides and drawer systems which were both very impressive. The MSA 4×4 drawer system is different than most as it is made from aluminum extrusions which allow for much bigger drawers, which are lockable with interior lighting. These drawer units have also been crash tested in Australia so they’re built for real world use. Consider us impressed!

Step 22 Gear continues to expand their quality line of recovery gear and soft goods. Their anchor straps are now offered in several lengths to fit any need and unlike some lesser brands, all their recovery gear is independently tested to failure. Step 22 also had a number of new bags, packing cells, and backpacks on display that feature all of the small touches and superb attention to detail that you would expect from Step 22. Did we mention that all their gear is Made in USA?

It’s always awesome to see what new vendors show up each year at Overland Expo, and this year we were pleased to see Flagstaff-based Wet Dreams River Supply at the show. Wet Dreams sells all kinds of top shelf gear to support the Grand Canyon river outfitters that are based in Flagstaff. From Cook Partner stoves, to custom made “river-rated” Aluminum boxes, their gear has proven to be Grand Canyon rated.

Rivian had their R1T on display at Overland Expo, and it drew quite a crowd. Say what you want, but EVs are coming to the Overland-O-Sphere very soon. Now if only I could afford one…

I’ve had the opportunity to see what a Sherp can do in the field, and they’re every bit as awesome as they appear on YouTube. It was great to see them at the Overland Expo West 2019.

Exhibitor Awesome

The main exhibitor area was a dizzying bazaar of gear and people. Words cannot do it justice so enjoy a few more photos from around the sprawling exhibitor areas at Overland Expo West 2019. You can ask questions in the comment section below if you want to know something in particular!

American Adventurist

We’re grateful that we had an amazing location to interface with our own American Adventurist community members and the greater global adventure travel community. This year we worked with kickass companies like Prometheus Design Werx, Exploro and Adrift Adventure to host a treasure hunt that sent our followers scrambling on foot across the San Francisco peaks in northern Arizona, and we worked with Falken Tires to host a give-a-way for a set of their tough as nails Wildpeak tires.

We were also given the opportunity to honor the men and women who wear the cloth of our nation for Armed Forces Day. We were honored to address members of the Arizona National Guard and all those currently serving at a brief commemorative ceremony at Fort Tuthill. American Adventurist and Overland Expo also produced free, limited edition Overland Expo West 2019 commemorative decals for active and retired service members. Freedom is not free – thank you for your service!

In closing, Overland Expo is an experience. Overland Expo West 2019 was three solid days jam packed full of awesome rigs, gear, and most importantly, cool people. If you want to learn about this Overland thing, this is where you need to go. If you want to meet smart people, this is where you need to go. If you want to check out some new gear and purpose built rigs, this is where you need to go.

Hopefully we’ll see you at Overland Expo EAST, October 11-13, 2019 at Infinity Downs in Arrington, Virginia. With a brand new venue and Lodestone Events in the game, we’re convinced that 2019 will be the best Overland Expo East yet.

American Adventurist would like to extend a sincere thank you to everyone who has worked to make Overland Expo what it is today. A special shout out to our members, supporters, industry partners, and of course, Overland Expo Directors Emeritus Jonathan and Rosanne Hanson, for making Overland Expo a thing.

In May we had the opportunity to take a long awaited 4-day trip to the western portion of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula aka the UP (or “Yoop” in local slang). It was an amazing trip that did not disappoint, and really spiked our interest to see more of this vast region!

First place we headed was to the Porcupine Mountains. We did a quick drive around the Wilderness State Park and cruised through to the other side to see the Lake of Clouds. Unfortunately, it was getting late and we hadn’t eaten lunch yet (which meant hangry was right around the corner for me), and we had a fussy baby on our hands. Then we realized there was a fee to get back there, so we decided to see it another time. I’m sure we missed an incredible picture op and view from all the descriptions and the pictures that we have seen. But, it gave us something to have to go back for! Headed out of the park towards Houghton, we stopped along the coastline to feed Kaylee and make some lunch in the form of carnitas tacos. They were delicious and the view was incredible!!

The one thing we noticed about Lake Superior was that it reminded us of the ocean. It is HUGE, has the waves of the ocean, the breeze of the ocean, but lacked the smell, the salt, and crabs scurrying around. We decided instead of pushing through we had better find somewhere nearby to camp. We came across the Ontonagon Township Park where we were able to camp right on the beach. I highly recommend the campground if you are in the area. We walked around, explored the beach and after making dinner, we settled by the fire and watched the sun go down. We ended the night with smores before headed to bed. We slept like babies to the sound of the ~~ocean~~ lake. We didn’t even need the sound machine for Kaylee.

Lake Superior Fun Facts:

· Lake Superior contains 10% of all the fresh water on the planet Earth.

· It covers 82,000 square kilometers or 31,700 square miles.

· The average depth is 147 meters or 483 feet.

· There have been about 350 shipwrecks recorded in Lake Superior.

· Lake Superior is, by surface area, the largest lake in the world.

· It contains as much water as all the other Great Lakes combined, plus three extra Lake Erie’s.

The following morning we had some bacon and eggs cooked on our trusty Tembo Tusk skottle and then packed up to continue up north. We drove through the town of Houghton where we stopped at the Suomi Café, known for Finnish food, and tried their famous Pasty and Pannukakku. They were both scrumptious (write up of this café will be under our Good Eats section soon on our site at Lone Star Adventurer).

After stopping for our snack, we hit up the Quincy Mine across the river from Houghton in Hancock, MI, before continuing our journey to High Rock Bay. Once again, pressed for time, we only perused the outside of the mine. The Quincy Mine was founded in 1846 and was the country’s leading copper-producing mine from 1863-1867. Mining operations have been closed since 1945. On the premises, you could see remaining hoist houses, shaft houses, and even able to look down one of the mining shafts.

We left the mine and were given a tip to check out the Gratiot River County Park located off Gratiot River Shortcut Rd in Allouez, MI. It is was trip down a couple mile long dirt road trail that suddenly opens up to a beautiful view of Lake Superior’s 8,489ft sand, slate, and cobble shoreline. There are several dispersed campsites back here if you are lucky to nab one. We walked the beach and found lots of interesting rocks.

After checking out the area, we backtracked to the US-41/I-26 and towards Eagle Harbor where we checked out their lighthouse. The red brick Eagle Harbor Lighthouse sits on the rocky entrance to the harbor and is a working lighthouse as it still guides mariners across the northern edge of the Keweenaw Peninsula. The original lighthouse was built in 1851 and was replaced in 1871. It is said that you could occasionally see the northern lights displaying their beauty from here.

Following this, we stopped at the Jampot (a must see stop if you are in the area) which is a Catholic monastery of the Byzantine Rite operated bakery. They offer a variety of jams, jellies, preserves, fudge, and baked goods including giant muffins, lemon cakes, delicious peanut butter & jelly brownies and one of the best fruitcakes we had ever had. I could literally eat this every day!

We came across a few waterfalls on our travels, one of which was right before the Jampot on the right. Leaving the Jampot, we headed even further north. Refueling in the quaint village town of Copper Harbor, we hit the dirt trail to High Rock Bay.

With no cellular service and going off of Gaia maps and friends’ gpx tracks, we went down the trail for what seemed like over an hour until we reached the stop sign at the end of the trail. We were going to camp right at the point, but because the wind was strong and cold off the ~~ocean~~ lake, we chose to go a little further back, but did manage to take in a photo op first. We had some dinner and watched a movie on our good old iPad (peaking out the window at the beautiful view due to the freezing wind chill) and set out in the morning to walk around and explore. Before leaving the next morning, we worked our way down another very tight trail to check out the Keweenaw Rocket Range.

The Keweenaw Rocket Range is an isolated launch pad located in Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula. It was used between 1964 and 1971 for launching rockets for meteorological data collection. NASA, along with the University of Michigan, conducted the project to collect measurements of electron density, positive ion composition and distribution, energetic electron precipitation, solar X-rays, and Lyman alpha flux. The collected data was later to be compared to five other sites in the US.

We knew our trip was coming to an end, but we still had one more night and we didn’t have a set plan for it. We stopped by to check out the Gay Bar in Gay, MI that people were telling us to visit. When in Gay, you go the Bar.

We decided to work our way closer to home so that we could get back home in Illinois semi-early the next day. We ended up stopping in the Ottawa National Forest nestled along the Sturgeon River before hitting the pavement for good.