Charging in Mammoth Lakes, CA

[tmm0f5]

As a local resident, I all but guarantee you that lack of permits is not a major factor here. The town is actually fairly builder-friendly. On the other hand, finding adequate land, (maybe possibly utility) interconnection, labor are all significant concerns. Tesla has two super charger stations open in town. I've speculated before that I think that is likely because Tesla has a decent government relations department and was able to successfully negotiate use of the town's park and ride (and now ice rink) at a time when Tesla and EV were more or less synonymous. Contrast that with a company that literally exists as a court-ordered punishment. Building permits are very straightforward here especially compared to coastal densely populated areas in California.

The other reason is likely to do with that Mammoth enjoys a captive tourist audience. Visitors from socal are unlikely to take their business elsewhere as there isn't a direct competitor with decent enough EV charging to draw tourists away.... I agree with your assessment that Alterra and to some degree local businesses seem somewhere between uninterested and vaguely hostile to EVs (and I would count among those the many HOA boards that control use of much of the residential parking infrastructure). I don't see this as significantly different from any other ski town, FWIW.

Lastly you mention a local newspaper. There are two, but that's another issue. This is (probably frankly) largely a tourist issue. I only know of 2 other locals in town with EVs (and I know a lot of people here) so EV charging is unfortunately not a big priority for the voting base. Two two people I know (as well as myself) just charge at home so a fast charger is not useful. A good portion of the town residents are working class, or transient (eg here for seasonal work), housing is extremely expensive and so I don't see much interest in EVs among locals. (This is sad/unfortunate, but just trying to paint a picture of why it's probably not a high priority for townspeople)

I appreciate this perspective and unfortunately agree with you. I live in SD and there really isn't a drivable alternative. Big Bear has some charging options, so I'm holding out hope that Mammoth will too someday. Big Bear just doesn't compare snowboarding-wise to Mammoth.

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[Rgrin]

NorCal perspective: Last April I charged my R1S up to about 90% at the EA in Bridgeport on the way to Mammoth from SF. Then 4 days in Mammoth, just back and forth between Mountain Inn and town center. Quick charge at Bridgeport on way back, and all worked out well.

In a few months (maybe before ski season ends, which can be July in Mammoth) we should all have our NACS adapters and can use the SC V3, then there should be no issue at all.

 

[nvelazquez88]

Did you try the Tesla charger by the ice rink?

Didn't have to. I had checked PlugShare and one other source and it seemed like the chargers still weren't servicing non-Teslas so I just didn't bother.

I charged to about 200 mi in Bishop and that was more than enough to get my around town for 2 days and back down the mountain to charge on the way home. I even parked outside 100% of the time, lost about 2-4 miles of range every 8 hours or so, nowhere near what others have reported losing. FWIW, I had just installed 2023.50.01 the night before the trip. Speaking to others at RAN sites on the way home, some reported losing close to 40 miles of range overnight. Could be software? They hadn't installed he update. Could also be where on the mountain you stayed. I stayed in the Old Mammoth Road part of town, generally lower in elevation than somewhere like Canyon Lodge -- enough that there is a temperature difference when its that cold.

 

[jjswan33]

NorCal perspective: Last April I charged my R1S up to about 90% at the EA in Bridgeport on the way to Mammoth from SF. Then 4 days in Mammoth, just back and forth between Mountain Inn and town center. Quick charge at Bridgeport on way back, and all worked out well.

In a few months (maybe before ski season ends, which can be July in Mammoth) we should all have our NACS adapters and can use the SC V3, then there should be no issue at all.

From that prospective the RAN in Lee Vining should be online soon too.

 

[HaveBlue]

Could also be a signal issue where the car constantly wants to upload its gigs of stupid data but the cell signal is poor and the car never sleeps. Wouldn't surprise me if people opt in to send mapping location and camera data for those services.

 

[Rgrin]

Just realized the Tesla chargers near the ice rink are not SC, just Destination chargers. So NACS adapter not applicable. But looks like the chargers still require authentication, which currently only works with the Magic Dock-enabled Superchargers. Once we get the NACS adapters, we should also be allowed to authenticate to all Tesla chargers (well, SC v3 and above, but also all L2). So at that point hopefully these will work.

 

[superfly_snook]

Does charging up in Bishop give you enough range to get to Mammoth but also allow you to explore the area AND also come back?

yes, if you charge to about 85% in Bishop you will still have 60% charge (my experience so far) in Mammoth and you will have plenty of safety buffer if you leave Mammoth with 25% headed back to Bishop. So you have about 35% minus the 1-2% overnight drain. Given most trips around the area are fairly close you should be fine unless you plan some longer trips out of the area.

it is frustrating that there are no real options in Mammoth to charge up. The end result is folks are charging to 100% in Bishop which on busy weekends creates longer than necessary wait times. I have visited Bishop RAN twice to find all spots occupied with multiple R1s plugged in at or near 100% with the owners nowhere to be found. The longest I had to wait was 15 minutes for a present owner to head out and free up a spot so not the end of the world or anything, but it seems Rivian owners aren’t immune to lack of charging etiquette which maybe shouldn’t be a surprise.

 

[HaveBlue]

I'm not sure the rivian app notifies when the car is finished charging. My Maxicharger at home does.

 

[DynamoLA]

Does charging up in Bishop give you enough range to get to Mammoth but also allow you to explore the area AND also come back?

It did for us! Charged to 100% in Bishop and drove up to Mammoth for four nights. We drove around town, over to Main Lodge a couple of times and went to a few sledding hills in the area. Lost a few % of charge at night due to the cold, but we still had the juice to get us back to Bishop 4 days later. It helps the return drive is all down hill, so you may start out with 40 or 50 miles of range, and it will still be at that level when you get into Bishop.

 

[Jblaze121]

I've done multiple Mammoth trips with multiple softwares between last year and this year.
My experience has led me to the following conclusions:
30% to get up the hill from Bishop. 10% to get down the hill from bishop. Give yourself 10% per day for driving to and from Main Lodge and then another jaunt to somewhere in town for dinner. Parked outside every time, sometimes in single digits and covered in snow. Most times with the family and a ski rack on top.

If I was going for 3 nights, ( 30% up + 30% for 3 days + 10% down +20% arrival in bishop) means charge to 90%. If it's not going to be that cold or snow, I'd probably stop at 80% and if I get back to bishop with 10% so be it. If you are shuttling to the mountain or parking in a garage you can do less as well.

The ice skating rink was still no payment in November, so getting that extra 10% for an hour-ish while having dinner is kind of nice. Rumor is you just scan the QR code now on the side of the charger and should be able to pay that way. It was dark out, and the kids were hungry so I didn't bother trying last trip.

Definitely looking forward to the SC adapter and being able to save time on the way up and back.

If lee vining opens up soon, would love to check it out after a day at June if it ever gets enough snow.

 

[Captain JB]

We are 2 month newbies with an R1S doing our very first road trip which happened to be Hermosa Beach, Ca to Mammoth Lakes. With potential traffic and colder temps (for CA)) we did a 100% Max charge at home since the Olancha RANs were 197 miles away and we wanted to keep the trip to two stops. The Adventure Quad, large pack with 20 in ATs has 275 miles with a max charge. We arrived at Olancha which is rapidly becoming a ghost town with both cafes closed with 76 miles so it worked well. The 3 RANs are behind a gas station that has a large store with clean restrooms and a nice deli. A 20 minute charge gave us enough to get to Bishop only 1:15 away. At Bishops 6 RANs we charged to 80% to have enough power (223 miles)for 3 days in Mammoth in the cold weather. It is only 45 miles to Mammoth from Bishop but the elevation goes from just over 4K to 8600 feet. We arrived in Mammoth with 160 miles. Joe Google shows 29 EV chargers in the Mammoth area. A few are at high end hotels like the Westin but most are Tesla chargers in 2 different locations in town. The RV park in town has a few chargers that were covered in snow but will be available in the summer. I went by for a visit nd they actually had a fee schedule of $10 for one hour and $20 for two hours…I am guessing it is a level 2 charger. Mammoth Lakes is a DESTINATION and really needs some RANs there and probably 6 will do. I want to off road there as I am sure many others want to this summer for a week and wont be able to unless Rivian installs some or the Tesla ability occurs. Mojave, Ca also had many Tesla chargers that will help also especially returning from Mammoth with stops in Bishop and Mojave on the way back to LA. Also, just fyi……we never went over 65 mph as we felt the range would suffer and make the trip from Hermosa to Olancha a bit stressful. We are currently in Mammoth and we guess that we will have to charge to 100% in Olancha to make it comfortably back home to Hermosa Beach 197 miles. A few years from now, all should be good but for now, it is a precarious and limiting situation not having chargers in a beautiful adventure destination like Mammoth Lakes, Ca. Any feedback is welcome. JB

 

[mkg3]

We are 2 month newbies with an R1S doing our very first road trip which happened to be Hermosa Beach, Ca to Mammoth Lakes. With potential traffic and colder temps (for CA)) we did a 100% Max charge at home since the Olancha RANs were 197 miles away and we wanted to keep the trip to two stops. The Adventure Quad, large pack with 20 in ATs has 275 miles with a max charge. We arrived at Olancha which is rapidly becoming a ghost town with both cafes closed with 76 miles so it worked well. The 3 RANs are behind a gas station that has a large store with clean restrooms and a nice deli. A 20 minute charge gave us enough to get to Bishop only 1:15 away. At Bishops 6 RANs we charged to 80% to have enough power (223 miles)for 3 days in Mammoth in the cold weather. It is only 45 miles to Mammoth from Bishop but the elevation goes from just over 4K to 8600 feet. We arrived in Mammoth with 160 miles. Joe Google shows 29 EV chargers in the Mammoth area. A few are at high end hotels like the Westin but most are Tesla chargers in 2 different locations in town. The RV park in town has a few chargers that were covered in snow but will be available in the summer. I went by for a visit nd they actually had a fee schedule of $10 for one hour and $20 for two hours…I am guessing it is a level 2 charger. Mammoth Lakes is a DESTINATION and really needs some RANs there and probably 6 will do. I want to off road there as I am sure many others want to this summer for a week and wont be able to unless Rivian installs some or the Tesla ability occurs. Mojave, Ca also had many Tesla chargers that will help also especially returning from Mammoth with stops in Bishop and Mojave on the way back to LA. Also, just fyi……we never went over 65 mph as we felt the range would suffer and make the trip from Hermosa to Olancha a bit stressful. We are currently in Mammoth and we guess that we will have to charge to 100% in Olancha to make it comfortably back home to Hermosa Beach 197 miles. A few years from now, all should be good but for now, it is a precarious and limiting situation not having chargers in a beautiful adventure destination like Mammoth Lakes, Ca. Any feedback is welcome. JB

Have you considered stops at Bishop (and check out Schat's bakery) and Inyokern RAN stops? You can easily make it back to the LA basin without any concerns.

 

[Captain JB]

Making it back to LA is not the big concern....it is being in Mammoth Lakes and wanting to stay for a week and enjoy off road adventures without having any chargers there. Mammoth is much more of a destination than Bishop is. Not sure why Rivian installed the RANS there. Maybe they knew the Tesla chargers would some day be available??

 

[agame32]

Have you considered stops at Bishop (and check out Schat's bakery) and Inyokern RAN stops? You can easily make it back to the LA basin without any concerns.

+1 to using the Inyokern RAN as another option. It’s only maybe 5 minutes “out of the way” deviating from Hwy 14, but it’s closer to LA and the Classic Burger there has been a hit with the family.

Glad to also see LA-area to Olancha directly may also work in some cases.

 

[nvelazquez88]

Hi everyone,

Happened across this while browsing the Rivian site today. Exciting stuff!

RAN station coming soon to Mammoth Lakes!

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