X and Airstream Bambi - the new adventures 2017

[ohmman]

Lost amidst the bigger rigs.View attachment 236506

The situation with bigger rigs is not news to us, as you can imagine. I was repeatedly astonished at the double-decker sized motor coaches that would arrive. Then they'd open up their slide outs. If only they were all electric. We were usually one of the smallest rigs in the park.

 

[JimVandegriff]

The situation with bigger rigs is not news to us, as you can imagine. I was repeatedly astonished at the double-decker sized motor coaches that would arrive. Then they'd open up their slide outs. If only they were all electric. We were usually one of the smallest rigs in the park.

I'm hoping to see those Tesla produced semi's or motor homes powered by Tesla.

 

[JimVandegriff]

Amazon will deliver that Camco extension cord to a campground. It was extremely valuable during our trip, even when we stayed hitched. The UMC only reaches so far.

Just received the extension cord today. It works great in the 14-50 plug at our campsite.

 

[JimVandegriff]

"On the road again"... an easy travel day today up the Oregon Coast from Netarts Bay to Willapa Bay in Washington. We went up US 101, stopped at Seaside to charge (and discuss Tesla with folks in the parking lot), ate lunch at the Terijaki restaurant, then travelled to Warrenton near Astoria to shop at Costco. We went over the Astoria bridge into Washington and up the bay to our KOA campsite. Ohmman and his family stayed here a couple of weeks ago on their homeward trek, and the hosts remembered him and his "weird doors". Stats - 108.9 miles travelled, 64.5 Kwh of energy used, at about 595 wh/m.
Here is a pic of our "deluxe" campsite with full hookups, a patio, and its own gas grill. Note our fancy pink cutouts for the awning. My daughter would tell me "You're living the life." The KOA has an ice cream shop on the premises, as well as home made pizza, so we are in heaven.
We will be here for a week, visiting the nearby wildlife refuge for bird and other nature photo opportunities, and checking out the small nearby towns. We are open to suggestions for day trips if anyone knows the area.

 

[qadaemon]

"On the road again"... an easy travel day today up the Oregon Coast from Netarts Bay to Willapa Bay in Washington. We went up US 101, stopped at Seaside to charge (and discuss Tesla with folks in the parking lot), ate lunch at the Terijaki restaurant, then travelled to Warrenton near Astoria to shop at Costco. We went over the Astoria bridge into Washington and up the bay to our KOA campsite. Ohmman and his family stayed here a couple of weeks ago on their homeward trek, and the hosts remembered him and his "weird doors". Stats - 108.9 miles travelled, 64.5 Kwh of energy used, at about 595 wh/m.
Here is a pic of our "deluxe" campsite with full hookups, a patio, and its own gas grill. Note our fancy pink cutouts for the awning. My daughter would tell me "You're living the life." The KOA has an ice cream shop on the premises, as well as home made pizza, so we are in heaven.
We will be here for a week, visiting the nearby wildlife refuge for bird and other nature photo opportunities, and checking out the small nearby towns. We are open to suggestions for day trips if anyone knows the area.
View attachment 237609

Are the pink funnoodles to avoid cranial damage or for the trailer protection while it's folded? We're contemplating the box trailer->airstream upgrade so I'm curious about the tips and tricks

 

[JimVandegriff]

Are the pink funnoodles to avoid cranial damage or for the trailer protection while it's folded? We're contemplating the box trailer->airstream upgrade so I'm curious about the tips and tricks

You got it exactly right! - cranial protection. We store them in the cabin while traveling in the cubby hole near the door.

 

[ecarfan]

Hi Jim, after reading @ohmman's posts about play developing in his factory hitch, I'm interested in knowing how your Bosal hitch is holding up. Can you report?

 

[JimVandegriff]

Hi Jim, after reading @ohmman's posts about play developing in his factory hitch, I'm interested in knowing how your Bosal hitch is holding up. Can you report?

I'm not sure why, but our new hitch receiver which was replaced by Tesla rangers two or three days before we left home is doing great - rock solid, and no wiggles. We are using the same equalizer bars we used last year because we like their anti-sway properties. So far, so good!

 

[JimVandegriff]

We made a tough decision today. We are cutting short our trip and heading back down the coast toward home. Both Illijana and I have been being affected by the smoky air caused by the BC fires, and our itinerary was bringing us closer to the smoke. We are going to head home over the next two weeks.
We have been enjoying our staying in campgrounds for a week at a place, and taking side trips in the X to various sites. We investigated some of the Olympic peninsula rain forest while at our current locale (pictured) in Copalis Beach. I'm also posting a pic of our charging in Aberdeen. Ohmann did the proper thing when he was here by pulling in, but we pulled across. It will be much easier to do the whole Olympic peninsula when the Forks supercharger goes in. More stats as we head home will follow.

 

[ohmman]

While I'm sorry you had to abruptly change your plans, I totally understand. Wildfire smoke can really ruin a vacation, even if it's not choking you. It's a permeating smell and has a tendency to stick in my nostrils. I think turning around is a good idea, and surely you've learned and experienced plenty on this trip anyway!

We are out on Sunday for our quick trip to Lassen. I'm waiting on a hitch bracket that was supposed to be delivered today, so we'll see. As you are proving, plans are always in flux.

Safe travels back home.

 

[TechVP]

Hi Jim, thank you again for the many photos and trip updates. Sad to hear about the return trip being so soon. Somewhat fortunately the mid Willamette Valley air is clearing out; where our worst air day was yesterday.
If you know you return window through the HW 34 KOA, let me know & it would be fun to hear about your trip in person. -TechVP

 

[JimVandegriff]

Well here we are back at the Bay Center/ Willapa Bay KOA after traveling 94.7 miles, using 53.4 kWh of energy, at 563 wh/m, and charging at the Aberdeen supercharger. We took the longer, scenic route around Gray's Harbor on hwy 105 than on our trip up. I met an Aberdeen city council member while charging and discussed the economic impact of having a supercharger in the town. I'll post our revised itinerary after dinner.

 

[TechVP]

When inquiring EV folks ask about the charging aspect, not being the same as 5 min pulling into/out of a gas station, I akin the SC to what I read about Route 66. You pull in and stay, and see what the location has to offer.
And that's exactly how we travel now.
A+ from me, to spreading the word to the council member.

 

[JimVandegriff]

Our revised itinerary:
Aug 7-8. Bay Center/ Willapa Bay KOA WA
Aug 8-9. Ft. Stevens state park, Warrenton, OR
Aug 9-10 Netarts Garden RV park, Netarts Bay, OR
Aug 10-12 Waldport/Newport KOA, Waldport, OR
Aug 12-13 Oregon Dunes KOA, North Bend, OR
Aug 13-15. Humbug Mtn state park, Port Orford, OR
Aug 15 Home to Trinidad, CA

We are happy to meet and demo our rig with anyone who would like to visit. Now out to the campfire!

 

[ohmman]

Well here we are back at the Bay Center/ Willapa Bay KOA after traveling 94.7 miles, using 53.4 kWh of energy, at 563 wh/m, and charging at the Aberdeen supercharger. We took the longer, scenic route around Gray's Harbor on hwy 105 than on our trip up. I met an Aberdeen city council member while charging and discussed the economic impact of having a supercharger in the town. I'll post our revised itinerary after dinner.

Aberdeen can certainly use some economic help. It is quite obviously economically depressed but seemed to have a lot to offer otherwise. And no, I don't mean the Kurt Cobain memorabilia stores. Geographically it's in really interesting spot. I was sad to see the number of people clearly struggling in town.

The Tesla Supercharger site is in a brand new gorgeous parking lot. It appears they've put some hope into that installation. Let's all make sure to spend some time and a few bucks there while charging.

I hope your conversation went well with the city councilperson.

 

[JimVandegriff]

I hope your conversation went well with the city councilperson.

He has a doctor friend who is on his second S and he has ridden in the car and loved it. He did get the benefits of having the sc there but there are many in the town who don't and have complained about government spending on the project. He told me Tesla paid for the whole project and the city just has to supply the electricity. We also discussed the release of the model 3, and the implications of Tesla selling 500,000 cars a year for the city. He mentioned that Ocean Shores, the tourist town a bit north was thinking about a Tesla charger.
I noticed that Illijana and I dropped some money into the local stores both times we were there. PS. The Aberdeen Les Schwab dealership pumped up our Airstream tires including spare for no charge. Good service there if you ever need it.

 

[JimVandegriff]

We had a slightly hair raising adventure today, but pulled through just fine (pulled through being a misnomer in the trailer parking world in this case.) We drove from Ft. Stevens state park outside Astoria to Netarts Bay Garden RV park today. (71 miles, 560 wh/m). We wanted one of their Bay view campsites and the only one available was the end site in their bay view row. We got out at the beginning of the row, walked to the end to survey the spot, and made a bad decision - to try to pull forward, drive to the edge of the drop off at the front of the spot, and back in. Wrong move. We got ourselves (our trailer and the X) caught in a bind - too close to the hitch of the adjacent trailer, and with little room to maneuver out. Many times when Illijana is driving well meaning men will approach and ask if they can help get us parked. We usually politely decline (neither of us likes the sexism), but this time we realized we needed help. A neighboring couple approached and asked if we needed help. We said yes, and they then proceeded to get us out of the tight spot with some excellent driving skills. It was the gentleman's first experience with an electric car. They even offered us crab for dinner (Illijana is allergic to it unfortunately).
Here are a few pictures of the space, and the final pic is of the view (why we wanted to be here). We are getting pretty good at backing, but this one just got away from us! Ah, embarrassment and learning.

 

[JimVandegriff]

We had a far more relaxing day yesterday as well as a really fun campsite visit with board member TechVP. We travelled 91 miles, used 51.3 kWh, at 566 wh/m in dry conditions mostly on hwy 101 from Netarts Bay near Tillamook to Waldport on the central Oregon coast.
When we arrived at the campground where we had camped about a month ago, we were told that our last visit had engendered a lot of discussion about electric vehicles and the future. After we parked the familiar ritual of people in neighboring spaces coming over to talk to us about the X and towing happened, highlighted by the fact that our neighbors had an older Avion trailer, an aluminum beauty quite similar to an Airstream.
Then TechVP (Karl) came for a visit in his P100D. He parked next to us and did the Christmas Easter egg musical display for our neighbors which they filmed and loved. That was fun.
We are staying here for a day to relax.

 

[Rossy]

Supercharging can be tough I would imagine. Is it easy to disconnect the trailer to pull into a charging spot?

Keep me posted. An Airstream Bambi would be my wife's ideal trailer. We are towing a 15.5' Retro travel trailer with our Volvo XC60. Waiting for X build. Hoping it works for towing.

 

[Rossy]

What are the weight specs on your Airstream? (Tongue weight/gross weight).