It looks like we are waiting on the utility transformer from PG&E, a big green box which I didn't see in the pictures above. In the PG&E service area the wait is weeks or even months for that to be installed. Once that is in the station usually comes online soon thereafter.
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Supercharger - Big Sur, CA - Ventana (LIVE 24 May 2019, 8 Urban stalls)
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It looks like we are waiting on the utility transformer from PG&E, a big green box which I didn't see in the pictures above. In the PG&E service area the wait is weeks or even months for that to be installed. Once that is in the station usually comes online soon thereafter.
Ulmo
Active Member
Yesterday somebody scheduled a final inspection for Thursday. I guess that means they think it's going to be ready, which I think means by now there must be an installed and working transformer, or PG&E just let them know when they're going to install and test their transformer (likely soon from yesterday and before the Thursday inspection). I bet Tesla will come finish their settings after that (could be a few weeks).
Note that in this stage, there's still often delays, such as failed inspection that requires rework (sometimes minor and sometimes major, and sometimes delays caused by part backorder and sometimes by unavailability of signed responsible contractors), that we've seen at other SC's under construction, but I have a guess anybody driving this far to such a far away rural location far from urban areas deep in the middle of high priced urban areas to do a job tries to show up prepared and able to handle their stuff, because the costs of not being prepared and ready would be far higher than a little crappy corner lot in a flat land urban setting where Motel 6 and the local hardware store are situated very nearby, or even in rural areas which are deep in low cost regions (where at least they could camp out at a local Motel cheap, and often line up a bunch of SC projects nearby so they can hop between them in a sort of time division multiplexed virtual-parallel method at fairly low cost to save money).
Note that in this stage, there's still often delays, such as failed inspection that requires rework (sometimes minor and sometimes major, and sometimes delays caused by part backorder and sometimes by unavailability of signed responsible contractors), that we've seen at other SC's under construction, but I have a guess anybody driving this far to such a far away rural location far from urban areas deep in the middle of high priced urban areas to do a job tries to show up prepared and able to handle their stuff, because the costs of not being prepared and ready would be far higher than a little crappy corner lot in a flat land urban setting where Motel 6 and the local hardware store are situated very nearby, or even in rural areas which are deep in low cost regions (where at least they could camp out at a local Motel cheap, and often line up a bunch of SC projects nearby so they can hop between them in a sort of time division multiplexed virtual-parallel method at fairly low cost to save money).
Bighorn
Top Supercharger
Bighorn
Top Supercharger
It's a good thing they paved that one area in order to support a disabled access charging stall. It leads right to that excellent staircase. /s
Lol. That's a great example of how sometimes rules get enforced in somewhat nonsensical ways. Anyone who has the agility to make it up the stairs, doesn't really need the paved area. Anyone who needs the paved area, almost certainly can't make it up the stairs.
Lol. That's a great example of how sometimes rules get enforced in somewhat nonsensical ways. Anyone who has the agility to make it up the stairs, doesn't really need the paved area. Anyone who needs the paved area, almost certainly can't make it up the stairs.
franklandfield
Member
Bighorn
Top Supercharger
I didn’t see the sign because it was too tall to read when backing up, but it’s also a 90 minute general spot and “EV Charging only”
There was a Model S there, but it was plugged into a destination HPWC, perhaps unaware that the SC switch had been flipped. NB I wasn’t going anywhere during my brief plug-in, so no preaching about the sanctity of handicapped spots is necessary.
Or, didn't want to pay and was staying awhile so slow charging makes no difference. (Plus leaves a faster charging spot available.)
The supercharger gap between SLO and Monterey was about 150mi. This helps for road tripping across the coast and worrying less about supercharger availability or gaps, especially if you're staying at Big Sur.
Bighorn
Top Supercharger
True—one forgets these things with free supercharging.
No preaching but it might be time for an eye exam.I didn’t see the sign because it was too tall to read when backing up, but it’s also a 90 minute general spot and “EV Charging only”
NB I wasn’t going anywhere during my brief plug-in, so no preaching about the sanctity of handicapped spots is necessary.
Getting busy here! Oh and it’s in the Nav now. It’s a little challenging to get in and out when people start parking opposite the chargers.
Bruce.
Bruce.
Getting in and out of a car can be important, even if a disabled person isn't going up the stairs. And I think the intent is that when/if the stairs are replaced eventually, and there may be a disabled entrance available, the space will be prepared. But I agree, it's got a bit of dissonance the way it is.
I saw a movie once, "If you build it, they will come."
Doug Martoccia
Member
It would be nice if the next Autopilot feature that Tesla rolls out with would be "Parking on Autopilot" - the added convenience of having my Tesla park itself perfectly would be extremely appreciated!
EVie'sDad
Member
Quite a long trek from the bay area, when you avoid most of that weekend traffic, which we did. But worth it.
The trip was fine, having topped off in San jose before departing. The locals in Big sur were friendly but we arrived around 4pm to find one model S occupying one of the 8 supercharger stalls that was not plugged in, taking away a valuable charging spot to use as their personal parking space, a real dick move imho. A classic model s owner who should have been more thoughtful of their fellow travelers, never came to retrieve his unplugged vehicle the entire hour we were there.
The charger is in a lodge parking lot with a nice looking restaurant at the top of the hill but sadly was fully booked by the time we arrived. It is on a steep hillside so be prepared to hoof it a distance even just to use the restrooms. No trash recepticals were anywhere in the parking lot either. But enough of that unpleasantness.
Once on our way we had a very pleasant dinner just down the highway at Nepenthe which we highly recommend. They're quite popular and the staff is very friendly and courteous. They had plenty of parking and trash cans in the lot. You do have to hike up the stairs but they are easier to navigate than the ones at the supercharger.
I recommend getting a drink from the bar and admiring the views of the coast or sitting in front of the fire pit while you wait to be seated . The meal was awesome and service impeccable. It accentuated the effort we put into visiting this charger.
The trip was fine, having topped off in San jose before departing. The locals in Big sur were friendly but we arrived around 4pm to find one model S occupying one of the 8 supercharger stalls that was not plugged in, taking away a valuable charging spot to use as their personal parking space, a real dick move imho. A classic model s owner who should have been more thoughtful of their fellow travelers, never came to retrieve his unplugged vehicle the entire hour we were there.
The charger is in a lodge parking lot with a nice looking restaurant at the top of the hill but sadly was fully booked by the time we arrived. It is on a steep hillside so be prepared to hoof it a distance even just to use the restrooms. No trash recepticals were anywhere in the parking lot either. But enough of that unpleasantness.
Once on our way we had a very pleasant dinner just down the highway at Nepenthe which we highly recommend. They're quite popular and the staff is very friendly and courteous. They had plenty of parking and trash cans in the lot. You do have to hike up the stairs but they are easier to navigate than the ones at the supercharger.
I recommend getting a drink from the bar and admiring the views of the coast or sitting in front of the fire pit while you wait to be seated . The meal was awesome and service impeccable. It accentuated the effort we put into visiting this charger.
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JG T3SLA
Member
I was very pleasantly surprised to find that there was this new supercharger in Big Sur. We were driving down from SF yesterday and stopped by Nepenthe along the route. Afterwards we topped off a bit before continuing our drive to Paso Robles to see the Field of Lights at Sensorio art installation. This is a beautiful spot to stop to charge and take a moment to walk around.
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I am looking forward to using this Supercharger to make it easier to get to camping areas in Big Sur while towing my trailer. Though based on Bruce’s very helpful photos, I’m not sure where I will find space to unhitch and park the trailer before plugging in.
I note that on the Tesla website Find Us page the pin has not been updated yet.
I note that on the Tesla website Find Us page the pin has not been updated yet.
EVie'sDad
Member
It's in a hilly area and with very narrow road and parking is tight. My advice is drop the trailer off at the campgrounds and charge independently. It's not very far from many of the camping areas.
Ulmo
Active Member
If you look at BigHorn's photo (attached below), it shows the incoming road and bump that is at the parking lot entrance near the first SC stall as you enter the parking lot; I wonder if you could fit your trailer behind your car if you were to sort of block the first 3 SC stalls on the left by driving in sideways alongside them, since the trailer could be riding up that bump or even scraping it, and maybe partially poking out into the roadway, depending how large your trailer is and how long that space is, but if you took up 4 charging stalls, you could probably fit. Backing out would require good driving, plenty of extra space (not too many cars in the way), and a good spotter; there is no way to turn around in that parking lot with a trailer. If you were to do all of this, those SuperCharger stalls and that non-charging spot would all have to be empty, and you'd have to wait with your spotter ready to move at a moment's notice in case anybody needed the space. It sounds very awkward as well as not possible much of the time.
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There are three larger parking lots on the way up the hill that you could pull into and unhook your trailer. (I posted a satellite map (attached below) with a green line for the main access road to the SC in a post on page 2 of this thread.) (Skipping the little parking lot for that utility building): While the first (larger) parking lot on the right probably has more turnaround room, its access is two narrow roads that require coming down the hill to get in with a long vehicle, so you'd have to continue past and turn around in one of the turnaround spots (such as the very top of the hill); the second dirt lot abutting the roadway (which is adjacent that first large parking lot) looks like it could have ample room to unhook directly into a parking spot while partially blocking the roadway; further up the road, the third parking lot is narrower, but has a lot of room and easy access either way you approach it. I recommend you study a satellite image and make some backup plans if you are interested in coming with a trailer for the first time. I think other trailer pullers might like information from someone who has scoped that out.
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