Trip to Alaska

[Larry]

What would be the best way to get our S to Anchorage? Ferry or truck? I'm assuming it would be impossible to drive it. My wife and I would like to plan a trip up there in a couple of summers for a month and I would love to have my S. Possible? Idiotic? Are there enough places to charge Anchorage to Denali? Probably lots of RV parks I would guess.
Thanks

Thanks for the edit

 

[dsm363]

mod note: fixed typo in title

 

[AudubonB]

The problem with ferry - the Alaska Marine Highway System, that is - is that with A SMALL EXCEPTION, the northern terminus is Haines/Skagway, which still leaves you far too many miles of charge-less Yukon Territory and eastern Alaska to traverse. There ARE times the ferry continues to Whittier (aka "Cross Gulf")...highly, rare, highly reserved in advance and hyper-expensive.
The problem with trucking it is that that's also expensive, but certainly can be done.
Or you can trailer it yourself...that's what I almost did when I determined we weren't able to snag enough charges on the route through northern BC and Yukon.
Or you can go to Port of Seattle and get Samson or Tote or AKMarine to barge it up. This latter is, in my opinion, probably the most practical way to go. And MAYBE you can get it on to a barge closer to your home of San Francisco, which obviously would be less of an inconvenience.

Feel free to PM me for more vague answers...."in a couple of summers", as you write, there may well be other options.

 

[Cottonwood]

The problem with ferry - the Alaska Marine Highway System, that is - is that with A SMALL EXCEPTION, the northern terminus is Haines/Skagway, which still leaves you far too many miles of charge-less Yukon Territory and eastern Alaska to traverse. There ARE times the ferry continues to Whittier (aka "Cross Gulf")...highly, rare, highly reserved in advance and hyper-expensive.
The problem with trucking it is that that's also expensive, but certainly can be done.
Or you can trailer it yourself...that's what I almost did when I determined we weren't able to snag enough charges on the route through northern BC and Yukon.
Or you can go to Port of Seattle and get Samson or Tote or AKMarine to barge it up. This latter is, in my opinion, probably the most practical way to go. And MAYBE you can get it on to a barge closer to your home of San Francisco, which obviously would be less of an inconvenience.

Feel free to PM me for more vague answers...."in a couple of summers", as you write, there may well be other options.

This brings up the interesting question, "How does Tesla transport its cars to Alaska for Alaska delivery?"

 

[Larry]

Thanks Audubon. I'll look into the shipping companies for pricing. No ferries from Haines to Anchorage is disappointing but maybe that will change in the near future.

 

[jweinstein]

This brings up the interesting question, "How does Tesla transport its cars to Alaska for Alaska delivery?"

This is the company Tesla used to ship my S:

Alaska Shipping Home Page

 

[Larry]

Is there a service center in Anchorage? When on the road where do you usually charge?

 

[PV-EV]

We took the ferry from Whittier to Bellingham last year, no problems. We could even plug in for free between Whittier and Juneau at 120V, 15A. The Alaska Marine Highway has an OK website and yes, the auto reservations fill up fast and are only in the summer to Whittier but hey-plan ahead!

As regards our trip last year with our Roadster I'd have to say my wife and I both really enjoyed it. The scenery is terrific, the staterooms OK and the food not bad. It was a four day trip if I remember, with a full day in Juneau where we had to get off the ship with the car and re-board 16 hours later on a different ferry. That left the whole day to check out Juneau AND have a car to do it in! The kind folks at the electric utility company let us charge our car for free while we went and got a tour of the brewery. We also drove out to Mendenhal glacier which was pretty cool (pun intended). Not to mention we had stops in Yakatat and Sitka. How often do you get to those places? Price for car and driver was something like $1500. Accommodations extra, but you can camp on the deck if you like :biggrin:

Once in Bellingham we charged (for free) while we had lunch before heading to Seattle for our annual service. While in Seattle we met up with some other Tesla owners for dinner and a photo shoot! What a trip!! Tesla service arranged to have our car shipped back to Anchorage the following week where we picked it up on the dock. Painless! Needless to say, we caught a flight home. With a little planning you could do the same thing in reverse.

Tesla plans to open a service center in Anchorage but the current rumor is not til the end of 2014.

 

[Larry]

Thanks PV. That just sounds like something we have to do.

 

[GuyHall]

It does appear to be possible to drive through Canada to get to Alaska. There are many RV parks and auto service stations along the way. Takes some patience and a willingness to engage strangers about buying electrons. You might add the cost of motels along the way (or pitch a tent) and the miles put on your new Tesla and compare to shipping. Then consider your own time - about 10 to 14 days which could be a burden or an exploration.

Guy