Vancouver to Alberta Trip Planning

[3s-a-charm]

To anyone on the forum coming in from BC to Calgary and wanting a quick charge, I'm just off Memorial Drive close to downtown and have a full 80A HPWC installed. I've added it to Plugshare or you can reach me at 403-991-9192 to arrange charging in my garage (please provide some notice so I can move my car out).

Is there a good public charger in Kelowna?

 

[Zapped]

......Is there a good public charger in Kelowna?

Best Western Plus has 3 Sun Country Chargers.
The CS-90 on plugshare was charging @ 62 km / hr

 

[Zapped]

Red Deer to Edmonton
Rated range used: 160km (a bit of an estimate as I took a detour to get the car washed before heading to the downtown area)

Charge Time/Rate: 6km/hr at sister's house, ouch!
.

If you'd like to get 10x the charge rate and enjoy a coffee/shopping at the Enjoy Center, just drop by the Alberco office building (10 minute walk). You can charge at 70 km/hr using solar
On Plugshare

 

[Nappe]

Stay & charge suggestions for Penticton or Summerland?

I'd like to stop over in Penticton on our way back to Calgary in July. In Plugshare I see a few charging options and Google Maps shows hotels, but I can't seem to correlate the two.

Anyone have suggestions for stay & charge options in that area?

 

[beeeerock]

I'd like to stop over in Penticton on our way back to Calgary in July. In Plugshare I see a few charging options and Google Maps shows hotels, but I can't seem to correlate the two.

Anyone have suggestions for stay & charge options in that area?

I'll be interested to see what suggestions you get, because I just went through this a couple of days ago. We'll be going to the Journey concert in Penticton next month and I did the basic research to see what I could get for charging in Penticton. Nothing that really floated my boat and worked with accommodation (everything is pretty booked up already). We ended up booking a room at the Best Western Plus in Kelowna instead, since they evidently have 3 Sun Country 90 amp charge stations. We'll drive back to Kelowna after the show and plug in for the night.

Next challenge will be ensuring there is a charge station un-ICEd when we get back!

 

[Zapped]

...... We'll drive back to Kelowna after the show and plug in for the night.
Next challenge will be ensuring there is a charge station un-ICEd when we get back!

I've phoned ahead to hotels in the past and they are usually very good about reserving the EV spot and making sure it's clear.
Could also try setting up your own orange traffic cones ??

 

[gpetti]

I'd like to stop over in Penticton on our way back to Calgary in July. In Plugshare I see a few charging options and Google Maps shows hotels, but I can't seem to correlate the two.

Anyone have suggestions for stay & charge options in that area?

I have an HPWC in Summerland that is easy to get to. I haven't got around to publishing it on plugshare yet as the breaker is off for it; however, I can provide easy directions to turn it on (or get my brother in law who lives out there to do it). The HPWC is in a box with a combo lock. You should be able to charge at 80 amps but I have had it ramp down the current on me so you may get less.

Just PM me if you're interested.

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I'll be interested to see what suggestions you get, because I just went through this a couple of days ago. We'll be going to the Journey concert in Penticton next month and I did the basic research to see what I could get for charging in Penticton. Nothing that really floated my boat and worked with accommodation (everything is pretty booked up already). We ended up booking a room at the Best Western Plus in Kelowna instead, since they evidently have 3 Sun Country 90 amp charge stations. We'll drive back to Kelowna after the show and plug in for the night.

Next challenge will be ensuring there is a charge station un-ICEd when we get back!

Likewise you can PM me if the HPWC is useful. Unfortunately, though the residence will probably be unoccupied in this time frame, I'm not really setup for accommodation at this point; however, if its vacant, it is a nice spot to stop and relax.

 

[DGates]

I've phoned ahead to hotels in the past and they are usually very good about reserving the EV spot and making sure it's clear.
Could also try setting up your own orange traffic cones ??

I stayed at the Best Western Plus Kelowna last year and they provided me a No Parking sign to place in one of the spots. Worked perfectly. Just phone ahead and let them know you're coming.

 

[beeeerock]

I've phoned ahead to hotels in the past and they are usually very good about reserving the EV spot and making sure it's clear.
Could also try setting up your own orange traffic cones ??

LOL, I actually found myself pondering whether a standard cone would fit in the recessed grocery compartment in the back... before your suggestion (I don't think it will, but the frunk might serve). Pretty sad if I have to start carrying my own traffic control equipment, but we do what we must do... ;-)

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I stayed at the Best Western Plus Kelowna last year and they provided me a No Parking sign to place in one of the spots. Worked perfectly. Just phone ahead and let them know you're coming.

Yes, I'll give them a call and make the arrangements. I'll be in town plenty early, so could stake my claim before the parking lot gets too full, but I want to be sure I get my spot again after the show. That will probably require their assistance.

 

[Nappe]

Thanks, beeeerock, I'm going to follow your lead and I've booked two nights at the Best Western. We'll meander down during the day, touring a winery or two and hitting the beach before the concert. And we'll be that much closer to Calgary the next morning.

gpetti, if you ever set yourself up for vacation rentals, let us know. Okanagan house with charging station sounds quite attractive.

From my various web queries, it looks like an interesting area. Our daughter's enthusiasm for jazz will give us another interesting adventure. Cheers!

 

[Nappe]

Guest services lady at Best Western Kelowna said they expanded their EV charging spots to five, including a Tesla charger. (It makes sense to have a Tesla charger, if a hotel already has a few universal chargers, because Tesla chargers are cheaper and I suspect the majority of road-tripping EV drivers are in Teslas.)

Exciting news, really, since it indicates that a hotel has found their current EV charging infrastructure a good enough investment to justify further expansion.

Although I guess it could be a good news/bad news story, because an increased demand could mean that we will need to share access and trade off time on the charging spots. I bought the hanging tags for the charger plug where I will put my phone number for when someone needs a charge and I am plugged in but done charging. So if someone sends me a text, I can unlock the charge port from the app.

I think the ideal setup for hotel destination charging is to have two spots for each charger, to facilitate sharing, and to have the spots on the far end of a parking lot to reduce the temptation for ICE drivers to fill the spots. I look forward to seeing how Best Western Kelowna manages these five stations.

 

[pairtrader]

I'm planning to drive Vancouver to Edmonton again in a couple of weeks, but attempting a different route. I'll spend a few days covering the route and would like to take in some of the highlights along the way. No rush this time. I grew up in Alberta, but it's been a long time since I've spent much time in the Rockies, usually just passing through quickly. If anyone has some suggestions for places to visit, or to spend a night, I'd love to hear about it. I plan to sleep in my car (it will pay for itself eventually!), likely at camprounds/RV parks where I'll charge.

Route: Vancouver - Kelowna - Revelstoke (Supercharge) - Golden (Supercharge) - Jasper - Edmonton
Route Builder: custom route created on June 25, 2015

 

[Nappe]

I'm planning to drive Vancouver to Edmonton again in a couple of weeks, but attempting a different route. I'll spend a few days covering the route and would like to take in some of the highlights along the way. No rush this time. I grew up in Alberta, but it's been a long time since I've spent much time in the Rockies, usually just passing through quickly. If anyone has some suggestions for places to visit, or to spend a night, I'd love to hear about it. I plan to sleep in my car (it will pay for itself eventually!), likely at camprounds/RV parks where I'll charge.

Route: Vancouver - Kelowna - Revelstoke (Supercharge) - Golden (Supercharge) - Jasper - Edmonton
Route Builder: custom route created on June 25, 2015

Hi Pairtrader.

In the mountains on the way into Alberta. I recommend spending time in Yoho National Park and Lake Louise before heading north along the Icefields Parkway. Yoho has good camping options (http://www.field.ca/camping) and incredible scenery. The hike up to the Burgess Shale is absolutely stunning and the fossil beds are incredible. You need to go with a guide, for conservation reasons, but the guides are keen hikers and scientists Guided Hikes Summary | Burgess Shale Geoscience Foundation.

The Lake Louise area has Moraine Lake plus the iconic Lake Louise. You can charge at the Chateau Lake Louise while you hike up to the Lake Agnes Tea Hut Lake Agnes - Index.

Oh, and I have a logistical suggestion. If you haven't already tried it, I find MyMaps from Google (http://www.google.com/mymaps) a handy trip-planning utility, where I save routes and pinned points of interest. Here is a simple one that I made for when we picked up my car in Vancouver, that has the routes between charging stations and I have pinned coffee shops and restaurants for spending time while charging. https://goo.gl/cSOQZi

Suggestingly yours,

Nappe.

 

[beeeerock]

If anyone has some suggestions for places to visit, or to spend a night, I'd love to hear about it. I plan to sleep in my car (it will pay for itself eventually!), likely at camprounds/RV parks where I'll charge.

I haven't been to Miette Hot Springs (east of Jasper) in a couple of decades, but back then it was a bit of a hidden gem. There was camping at that time - not sure about now. Might be worth a quick bit of web research.

 

[pairtrader]

Thanks Nappe and beerock,

I took your advice just booked a serviced campsite in Lake Louise for two nights.
Day 1 - Vancouver to Lake Louise
Day 2 - Mount Stephen Fossil Beds hike (6hrs) or Burgess Shale Walcott Quarry hike (11hrs) - Calling tomorrow for advice and booking
Day 3 - Lake Agnes Tea House hike - then drive to Edmonton

Returning home
Day 1 - Edmonton - Whistler's Campground (Jasper) for one night, stop at Miette Hot Springs (I was there 15 years ago, nice place to spend an hour or two)
Day 2 - Scenic drive through Jasper/Banff w/ option of stopping - overnight in Revelstoke or Salmon Arm
Day 3 - Vancouver

I drive to Edmonton a couple times each year, usually at breakneck speed in one day, so this should be a nice change. Good luck with your summer road trips!

 

[beeeerock]

I drive to Edmonton a couple times each year, usually at breakneck speed in one day, so this should be a nice change. Good luck with your summer road trips!

One of my passions is photography. Like you, I'm generally on a schedule and aim to get from Point A to Point B as quickly as is reasonable (I'll let you define 'reasonable'...). I often drive by scenes that I see from a photographic perspective and think "there's a great image possible here". But no camera and no time.

A while back, I woke up earlier than I needed, packed up my camera bag and hit the road in early morning light for a work trip. Because I was leaving early, I decided that if I saw one of those scenes, I *would* stop and explore it properly. The first few times resulted in U-turns, because it took me a few moments to decide if this 'was one of those spots' or not. The pavement continued to roll under my wheels until the back and forth discussion in my head elected to just stop as I had originally decided. It turned out that there was always something worth shooting at each stop and as the morning progressed, I didn't have to make U-turns because I got into the idea more and hit the brakes without the delay of second-guessing myself.

I got more great images that morning than I had in quite some time. The personal challenge to 'just stop' was worthwhile.

Learning to stop and forcing yourself to not simply blow on through as you typically would will be your biggest challenge! ;-)

 

[Nappe]

Thanks Nappe and beerock,

I took your advice just booked a serviced campsite in Lake Louise for two nights.
Day 1 - Vancouver to Lake Louise
Day 2 - Mount Stephen Fossil Beds hike (6hrs) or Burgess Shale Walcott Quarry hike (11hrs) - Calling tomorrow for advice and booking
Day 3 - Lake Agnes Tea House hike - then drive to Edmonton

Returning home
Day 1 - Edmonton - Whistler's Campground (Jasper) for one night, stop at Miette Hot Springs (I was there 15 years ago, nice place to spend an hour or two)
Day 2 - Scenic drive through Jasper/Banff w/ option of stopping - overnight in Revelstoke or Salmon Arm
Day 3 - Vancouver

I drive to Edmonton a couple times each year, usually at breakneck speed in one day, so this should be a nice change. Good luck with your summer road trips!

That's awesome. Please keep us posted on how the camping works out. We will do a little camping ourselves on this trip. The Remote S app has a "camp mode", that will keep the HVAC on all night while plugged in, so we shall see how that works out.

I've only done the Walcott Quarry hike, which has some amazing views of Emerald Lake from along the final ridge. The other hike is shorter, but I hear it is rather steep.

Cheers!

 

[pairtrader]

Learning to stop and forcing yourself to not simply blow on through as you typically would will be your biggest challenge! ;-)

I agree completely, so I booked two nights at the campground and also booked the Walcott Quarry Hike ($126), so that driving straight through is not an option. My frugal side would never allow me to abandon those payments!

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That's awesome. Please keep us posted on how the camping works out. We will do a little camping ourselves on this trip. The Remote S app has a "camp mode", that will keep the HVAC on all night while plugged in, so we shall see how that works out.
Cheers!

I'll post some photos and info about how charging worked out. I really enjoyed camping at RV parks down the US West Coast last summer, so I'm sure this will work out just fine. One issue you may have with camping in Lake Louise is that the tent sites don't have electricity and the RV sites only allow "hard sided" sleeping quarters because of bears. I sleep in the car so it is not an issue, but that won't work for more than two people. I did call Chateau Lake Louise and they confirmed that charging there is fine if the charger is available.

 

[beeeerock]

One issue you may have with camping in Lake Louise is that the tent sites don't have electricity and the RV sites only allow "hard sided" sleeping quarters because of bears.

Separating the tents from the RV's was done to ensure that the bears don't waste any time attempting to rip into an RV when they could instead get into a tent much more easily. Keep all the 'snack packs' in one area for the bear's convenience....

 

[pairtrader]

Oh, and I have a logistical suggestion. If you haven't already tried it, I find MyMaps from Google (http://www.google.com/mymaps) a handy trip-planning utility, where I save routes and pinned points of interest. Here is a simple one that I made for when we picked up my car in Vancouver, that has the routes between charging stations and I have pinned coffee shops and restaurants for spending time while charging. https://goo.gl/cSOQZi

Suggestingly yours,

Nappe.

I quickly started playing around with MyMaps. I'll try to hone my skills later, but this map is my planned route. Thanks for the tip. I should be able to charge for a couple of hours at the Jasper/Hinton KOA for a small fee. They're getting back to me, but they have outlets always accessible (not only in reserved RV sites). If it works out, I'll ask them if I can add them to Plugshare. I think it would be helpful since that stretch is a Plugshare desert. I leave Vancouver July 11th.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=zl-CiQE0osTU.kz4M9n3QoFys&usp=sharing