This year’s trip out west shifted to become more about the destination than the journey as we traveled to Overland Expo West 2018. We normally like to take our time and experience sites we’ve not seen yet when we travel. It took us a speedy two days to travel from our home in Missouri to Flagstaff, Arizona.

Because we knew we were taking such a speedy trip, we decided to rent a small SUV instead of taking our Jeep or Subaru. The Jeep we have confidence in, but it’s probably not the best vehicle to push 70 mph. The Subaru needed some much-needed maintenance. It was overdue for a timing belt and there was an oil leak. Instead of taking it, we dropped it off at Stewart Auto Services in Springfield, MO so they could give it some much-needed care while we were gone.

We ended up renting a Volkswagen Tiguan for a little adventure. We moved into the Tiguan in between a family event, then headed west on Sunday, May 13. We traveled mainly on Interstates instead of our preferred highway, byway, or backroad route.

This trip, we decided to take Oscar, our little special needs dog. Just weeks before we were going to leave, his back legs became paralyzed. He needed more supervision and attention than what Lucy and Tucker need, so we brought him along. Our dog sitting team consisting of our daughter and parents took shifts caring for Lucy and Tucker in our absence.

Since we were in a rental vehicle, we left our CVT behind and changed our living quarters to our ground tent. Boy do we miss our CVT! We had to take up space in the cab of the Tiguan for bedding and tent, whereas when we have the CVT all that stuff is on the roof.

We stayed south of Flagstaff on Lake Mary Road for two nights before the Expo. It was the best and most peaceful nights of camping we’ve experienced yet.

We hope you enjoy this episode as we recorded it right at our campsite outside of Flagstaff in the Coconino National Forest. We share some details of our journey toward our weekend at Overland Expo West 2018.