March 4, 2022 1:06am
So I’m not sure whether or not here is where the story ends or begins!!! Blessed to have completed this journey and a special massive thank you to Jef Fisher who had to put up with me. Thank you all out there for being so kind and helpful along our journey.
March 4, 2022 12:09am
Mile 0, Victoria
March 3, 2022 7:30pm
We made it to the ferry. Victoria here we come.
March 3, 2022 4:43pm
Nature throwing a little hail on us, just for fun that’s her. Cryil called it Mother nature’s confetti for the finish.
March 3, 2022 2:01pm
Cutting it very close. We are now charging in Salmon Arm BC and hope to make the 8:00 Horseshoe Bay to Nanaimo ferry. If anyone with connections can delay rush hour in Vancouver for about an hour or so, it will be much appreciated!
March 3, 2022 10:13am
So much for no snow. We’re back in it.
March 3, 2022 9:32am
Beautiful fogged in Canmore. There’s more snow on the back of the car than on the ground here. If anyone knows anybody in the weather department, please tell them we don’t need any more snow.
March 3, 2022 5:29am
More snow. Next trip will be crossing Mexico in winter. Next stop will be Canmore and hopefully some daylight.
March 3, 2022 3:46am
The good news is we are in Medicine Hat. It’s 3:30am and we almost have completed a (much more expensive) charge that will get us to Strathmore, just before Calgary.
Snow has started accumulating quickly and driving conditions are poor. Need to make some decisions soon.
March 3, 2022 12:55am
Midnight in Moose Jaw…
March 2, 2022 3:43pm
Sometimes compromises are necessary. We borrowed a Petro Canada charger, grabbed a quick hot shower, and bypassed the charger in Winnipeg and hit the road again. Wicked head wind on the Prairies so need to keep a higher buffer at -15 as it will get colder.
March 2, 2022 10:36am
Finally some sun in Dryden Ontario. We will soon be passing through Kenora and then on to the prairies. The sun has brought the temperature up to a balmy -12.
March 2, 2022 12:38am
White River -22C.
March 2, 2022 12:34am
Sault Ste Marie to Wawa at -20. Roads clear but big snow banks along the road.
March 1, 2022 4:48pm
Cyril “Squeegee” Wheeler working his magic! Food, driver switch and on to the Soo…
March 1, 2022 2:28pm
North Bay Ontario. The sun actually made an appearance!
March 1, 2022 11:55am
If we take the snow/ice out from around the wheel wells, it comes right back. We will be in North Bay soon then through Sudbury on our way to Sault Ste. Marie before the long trek north around Superior.
March 1, 2022 9:21am
Wherever we go, snow.
March 1, 2022 6:15am
Good morning Montreal rush hour traffic…
March 1, 2022 2:07am
Night shift. Sleep while charging. Switch drivers. Go. In Levi’s, Quebec.
February 28, 2022 3:36pm
Back to the Tesla supercharger network! We even drew a crowd!
February 28, 2022 12:06pm
Roads are getting better now. We can actually see cars ahead of us.
February 28, 2022 11:55am
The next stop is a game changer. We will be back on the Tesla supercharging network as soon as we get to Aulac, NB
February 28, 2022 11:40am
Some ppl say hey “ safety first “ I say hell no “ advertising first “ safety second, don’t tell Jef Fisher I think he thinks I went to clean the taillamps off, hahhaha, oh wait I’m gonna drive now, I will be back after I clean the back off !
February 28, 2022 11:38am
Driving through the second day of blizzards snow squalls and snow drifts. Always remember to clean your tail lights when the going gets white.
February 28, 2022 8:57am
Next stop Monastery NS. Last night’s snowstorm has caught up with us so we have to try and outrun it again!
February 27, 2022 11:56pm
February 27, 2022 11:25pm
The worst storm drive ever from Deer Lake to the ferry. All Jef Fisher skills where put to the test sleeping while I drove through it . On the ferry now, goodbye Newfoundland and your horrible charging infrastructure. Get with the program, unless you like your gas prices …. 1.78 and up, cha ching.
February 27, 2022 4:18pm
Dinner break and last charge on the Rock before we hit the ferry.
February 27, 2022 3:10pm
Another quick stop to pick up about 25% and then Deer Lake for dinner and a long charge before the last leg to the ferry.
February 27, 2022 1:57pm
This is Cyril’s idea of washing the car. We have decided to make this a shorter charge and head to Deer Lake where we will have a very late lunch while we charge up for a run to the ferry. These slow chargers do make it harder to travel if you’re in a hurry but we’re getting there. It’s starting to snow and Cyril Wheeler started crying so I’m going to drive.
February 27, 2022 1:00pm
We grabbed just enough at the crippled charger to get Grand Falls – Windsor. Came in with a carefully calculated 5% of battery and temp of minus 5.
February 27, 2022 11:13am
Arrived in Gander Newfoundland to a crippled charger. It’s only providing about half its normal speed. So we will just grab what we need to get to the next charger which we used yesterday.
Charging off the Tesla network is always more complicated and less reliable. It will be nice when we get back to Nova Scotia to the Tesla charging network!
February 27, 2022 9:30am
Charge at Goobies up to 50%. Charge Point level 3. 25 minute charge.
Next stop Gander. As the battery warms, we are making shorter trips to make sure that we get to the chargers that have either restaurants or facilities that we need.
We also have to time the charging stops so that we have a long charge in Deer Lake. That way we can make the ferry efficiently in the final leg today.
February 27, 2022 8:35am – We’re off!
February 26, 2022 – Pre-trip update
I left Burlington Ontario at 6am on Wednesday February 23. It was straight through and uneventful until just past Montreal. Snow and wind started to get heavy around Quebec City so I found a small hotel near the New Brunswick border.
The next day I arrived in Halifax – all smooth driving and no problem letting the car’s navigation find Superchargers along the route. Once the battery warmed up after a couple of hundred kilometres, I made good time using the low end of the battery and charging enough to get to the next charger. The margin I felt comfortable with decreased as the drive progressed. The car was beating the estimated amount of charge needed between stations so I learned from the car and started arriving comfortably at superchargers with 5% to 15%.
I picked Cyril up at the Halifax airport at about 11am on Friday. We drove to North Sydney NS – the first leg of the trip that was off the Tesla charging network. The Chademo adapter worked well at both Flo stations before the ferry – but the rate of charge was much slower. Because of the cold, we saw the initial charge start at about 30kW and slowly ramp up to about 45kW. 50kW charging took me back to my old LEAF days and reminded me why I bought a Tesla!
We managed to get a cabin on the ferry and slept for a few hours. Getting through the Covid procedures at Port Aux Basques resulted in a bit of a delay but we were soon on the road. We check the ferry dock area so we would be familiar with the return trip and started to drive to Corner Brook 226kms away with -12 temps, snow covered roads and strong winds.
The car estimated that we would make the first Charge Point charger with about 12% left in the battery. When we arrived in Corner Brook, we actually had 22% – but the Charge Point charger screen was damaged and black. After several minutes on the phone, we got their service department and they were able to remotely initiate the charge. It wasn’t the greatest feeling knowing that all of our charging on the island would be on non-tesla chargers.
During the trip we watched the battery estimate go up on each drive between chargers – by about 10% or more. I think the car’s estimate was bettered by the EVinsulate products we installed in the roof and under the battery of the car. We also had Fast Wheels EV-01 rims installed before we left for better efficiency. We watched the battery perform better than the estimate at every leg of the trip – neither Cyril or I had seen this before. When travelling off the Tesla network, it made a huge difference.
The weather cleared and we had a long, beautiful run into St John’s arriving about 9pm – where we are now.
We have decided to take advantage of the break in the weather and start the main trip tomorrow morning….stay tuned!
