Peace Outfitters — Local services in Flagstaff

I came to Flagstaff on MDW for one reason, and one reason only - to hike to the top of Humphreys Peak. I'd been keeping an eye on the reviews on All Trails (one of the very few features I actually like on that app, but that's a story for another day) and knew several weeks in advance that snow on the mountain was a distinct possibility. When I made eye contact with Humphreys two days before summiting and literally saw tons of snow from about 60 miles away - along with very recent reviews warning about it - I knew I had to make a pit stop beforehand.

It would PROBABLY be an exaggeration to say Peace Surplus saved my life, but without it (and its supplies), I don't think I get to the top of Humphreys Peak, or even close. I stopped by last Sunday, the day before my hike, knowing that I needed to get some type of traction on my hindpaws. I considered getting poles (which I've been mulling for years - we're getting close there), but the spikes for the hiking sneakers seemed paramount. I located them very easily right off to the side of the shoe section. I honestly don't know if $62 for these is insane or not, but they made the difference the following day so I can't sit here and say they aren't worth it. An absolute gamechanger, and something I can use going forward in less dramatic adventures if there's icy/snowy conditions afoot.

Beyond my primary purchase, I was very intrigued by the little food/grocery store section off to the side by the entrance. It has a lot of hiking snacks that can usually be procured easily at a gas station (cough cough Clif Bar cough cough), but also the ones that are a bit harder to find without Amazon's help, like the Honey Stinger waffle, which for sure came in handy the following morning. There's a definite emphasis on overnight camping/thru-hiking, so there were quite a few freeze-dried dinners, etc. as well. It was an impressive selection.

Everyone here was super friendly and nice. The people at the register immediately looked around for another potential customer to ring up the minute they were done with their prior patron, and several times I could overhear presumably managers spitballing how to allocate their staff based on where the immediate needs were. While I was in there, a few employees were outside handling a holiday sale, I believe, so I imagine it gets a little tougher to gameplan when literally some of your people aren't even in the store. No wasted energy at this place.

I don't feel like I did more than skim the surface of what this store offered, but they had what I wanted and needed in the moment, and for sure they get some credit for my successful Humphreys ascent. Give...

Beyond dissatisfied- zero stars

My friends and I were all meeting in the Grand Canyon for a reunion so flagstaff is the hour and a half away point. Renting gear from peace surplus was a huge mistake, very immoral on their part. For starters and mostly we specifically needed bags that can keep a person warm at zero degrees temperatures. Getting any cheap polyester bag will not do the trick and in the twenty degree bag they gave us I can imagine it was way worse then me waking up so many times cold that I went to rest in the bathroom for half the night (so yes the tents were really thin and bad to) the only way I survived the second night was because I squeezed inside my friends bag with another bag over us. The third night most people slept in the van because the mats were also super thin and I drove back home to catch my thanksgiving flight but shouldn’t have because the first night had made me more tired than usual at five and six. Let’s go back to when we picked up gear; peace surplus told us that we had to pay for extra camp supplies that we did not need just because we had reserved for a couple that missed a flight. To top it off upon returning from the Grand Canyon they added a charge for damages meaning a tent tear which we didn’t make and I had commented on prior. Do not degrade yourself by going near this place, you’re better off sleeping in a hammock (we know because...

Great people and very helpful! When I eventually got out of Snowbowl thanks to bad traffic and came down to the store, it was actually closed(6pm is store closing hour on Sunday and we were not aware of this.). So my wife gave a call to the store, it was lucky that some people were still working inside and they were kind enough to let me in, helped me to carry some rentals of my family and closed the rental contract. I am not suggesting anyone to call them after their normal hour, but just tell how kind and helpful the people working in the store. The other thing is that I lose my ski rental on the Snowbowl when leaving them on the outdoor rack. I contacted the store to check whether someone took mine as mistake. The lady answering the call was very helpful and found the lost ski was returned. So I did not need to pay for the lost. The third thing was what I saw when I was renting ski. Someone returning the rental grabbed the poles owned by Snowbowl. The people in the store did not charge them for the loss of their own poles. They would take those poles back to Snowbowl and see whether they can trade their own poles back. I really appreciate those nice people working there and their services made a very experience...