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Glacier National Park, Tesla, and My Dog

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We would like some help of how to spend a nice vacation this summer at Glacier National Park taking our Model S (85D) and our dog, Harper. The four of us (me, my wife, Harper, and the 85D) have made three major trips originating in Omaha: Santa Fe, Yellowstone and down through Colorado, and Madison, WI. We know how to travel, have on all those trips had to go out of the way to use superchargers as well as go some long distances and use level 2 charging, so we are experienced EV travelers. We are aware of the facilities at Whitefish and when we called we found out that they don't allow pets. We also want to make the trek up to the supercharger in Canada (Fort MacLeod) to see some friend nearby. Can anyone help with our trip planning, places to get power (overnight as well as daytime) in that area?
 
Charge at campgrounds and "uber" or taxi to your hotel? Drop off wife and dog first at the hotel. Only time I did something like this was at Cluster, SD Tesla meetup.
This. There are a number of RV campsites in the vicinity that have 50A charging. I am hauling our Airstream with the Model X to Yellowstone and have also been considering a trip to Glacier afterwards. We have the "luxury" of being able to sleep where we charge, if there's an RV plug. For OP, wasting a few hours or using a tent might be necessary.

@MSEV, when are you planning on being there? Maybe we can work it out where I will be there at the same time and can give you an electrically-fueled lift to your hotel. :)
 
MSEV-
We are planning a similar trip to Glacier National Park in late May. We have a reservation at the Red Lion in Kalispell. The Red Lion is pet friendly and offers a Tesla destination charger. Look forward to following this thread to learn of any available back up options
 
I apologize in advance for the slightly off topic soapboxing, but I'd like to mention something that crossed my mind when looking to make this visit. Taking our Tesla to see Glacier National Park provides an opportunity to really reflect on sustainable transport and sustainable energy, as you see the recent (6000+ years) glaciers retreating. I'm in my 40s, and it's quite possible they'll be fully receded in my lifetime. Aside from the difficult attribution of severe climate events, it's rare to get directly in touch with the effects of climate change. I hope to make the most of the opportunity to educate my children with the tangibles there.

I'm not suggesting that we congratulate ourselves on driving the Tesla there, just that we can look at how we got there, and all feel hopeful that the momentum is moving us away from naturally sequestered hydrocarbons and toward the plentiful energy at the surface.

/end soapbox
 
As a slightly off-topic comment, I would read all you can about Glacier as winter morphs into spring. The "Going to the Sun" highway that crosses the Continental Divide closes for the winter. It is reopened when it is ready, sometimes as late as mid-June. If that road is closed during your visit, you will have to drive out of the western portion of the park and around the park to access the eastern portion. It is also unclear just which trails will be open for hiking so early in the season.

The Park Service is responsible for plowing and opening the road. I seem to recall that the Service posts an estimated date of reopening on its website.

Here in California in those rare years when we receive a lot of snow, Tioga Road does not open until around the Fourth of July. In "normal" winters, the Park Service and CalTrans strive to have the road open in time for Memorial Day. During the drought, it opened in mid April a time or two.

I visited the park about 8 years ago in early August. There was a lot of road construction being done then. I was lucky to see a large herd of Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep crossing the highway as well as a handful of mountain goats, including a nanny goat with her kid.
 
As a slightly off-topic comment, I would read all you can about Glacier as winter morphs into spring. The "Going to the Sun" highway that crosses the Continental Divide closes for the winter. It is reopened when it is ready, sometimes as late as mid-June. If that road is closed during your visit, you will have to drive out of the western portion of the park and around the park to access the eastern portion. It is also unclear just which trails will be open for hiking so early in the season.

The Park Service is responsible for plowing and opening the road. I seem to recall that the Service posts an estimated date of reopening on its website.

Here in California in those rare years when we receive a lot of snow, Tioga Road does not open until around the Fourth of July. In "normal" winters, the Park Service and CalTrans strive to have the road open in time for Memorial Day. During the drought, it opened in mid April a time or two.

I visited the park about 8 years ago in early August. There was a lot of road construction being done then. I was lucky to see a large herd of Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep crossing the highway as well as a handful of mountain goats, including a nanny goat with her kid.

They won't be doing much hiking. Dogs are not allowed on trails. (I should know :rolleyes:)
 
No, not much hiking in national parks when you have a dog.
Going to GNP this year because of climate change and it probably will lose more and more ice in the next years.
I had found that the Red Lion is pet friendly and has an HPWC since I posted the original post, but thanks for sharing that here.
And it would be nice to have more posts in this thread about this trip. We will probably go July or August. We are just putting things together to figure out when and will then make reservations.
 
interesting comment because don't they have a huge snowpack from this years heavy snowfall?
You are confusing "weather" (local short term phenomena) with "climate" (long term global phenomena).

The data -- measurable facts -- shows the park is losing its glaciers. See https://www.usgs.gov/centers/norock...ce_center_objects=0#qt-science_center_objects

Global climate change is effecting the parks glaciers. They are shrinking over the long term. Fact.

Human activity, burning fossil fuels, is increasing the average global temperature over the long term. Fact.

CO2 added to the atmosphere stays there for thousands of years and increases the average global temperature. Fact.
 
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the massive snowpack isn't going away soon
It will be gone in a few months. In terms of global "climate" that is "soon" and of no consequence. In terms of "weather" it is "a few months".

I repeat: you are confusing "weather" with "climate". Fundamentally different. Ignoring that difference leads to fundamental errors in reasoning. Just like ignoring science leads to fundamental misunderstandings of how the universe actually works.
 
My wife and I took a trip in our Model S from Portland to Glacier Nat Park last summer. Supercharged whole way, including a stop at the Superior supercharger. Just go about 20 min past turnoff on I 90 and backtrack to the turn north to Glacier. Stayed at the Lodge at Whitefish Lake which has a dest charger. There's also a couple dest charger at McDonald Lake post office. Went from Lodge at Whitefish Lake to St Mary and back on on a single charge. Great trip.
 
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