Road Trip Hacks?

[TractorJackie]

My dog and I are about to head out on a 2-week road trip from Portland, OR to SoCal for Thanksgiving in our new R1S. Would love to hear your stories, see your pics, of little (or big) hacks you recommend for the trip. We'll be staying at hotels, but napping along the way, too. Bring it!

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[CharonPDX]

Portland to SoCal when not towing is so easy, no hacks are needed.

If you don't want the boring I-5 drive, either go down the coast or via Central Oregon/Eastern California. Both 101 and 20/97 are great drives, with plenty of charging. (Did both on one trip a few years ago, Eastern down, Coastal up. https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/...and-to-tucson-and-back-with-side-trips.21187/ )

 

[VC_Rivian]

RAN Chargers at the Ventura Mall, go walk a block and go to McConnel's Ice Cream while your R1 chargers.

 

[VandalSibs]

I highly recommend taking 101 while still in Oregon (if you have never been on it). There are some amazing views of the ocean along it, and some fun driving too! The stuff from Cannon Beach to Tillamook has some really great beaches and rock formations visible when driving that make the technically longer & slower route totally worth it.

 

[TractorJackie]

Portland to SoCal when not towing is so easy, no hacks are needed.

If you don't want the boring I-5 drive, either go down the coast or via Central Oregon/Eastern California. Both 101 and 20/97 are great drives, with plenty of charging. (Did both on one trip a few years ago, Eastern down, Coastal up. https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/...and-to-tucson-and-back-with-side-trips.21187/ )

Yes! That's exactly the plan. I'll check out your link now. Thank you!

 

[SteveInBend]

If you're heading down to SoCal east of the Cascades and Sierras (and have the time), I would recommend taking State Hwy 31 just south of La Pine to US 395 and stop over in Alturas, CA at Hotel Niles. There're two Tesla Destination chargers located at the rear of the hotel as well as Tesla SC in town. From Alturas there are charging stations all along 395 on the eastern slope of the Sierras.

This route lets you avoid I-5 and the boring section of 97 between La Pine and the grade down to Chiloquin.

Note: The Rivian trip planner doesn't let you map out the route from La Pine to Alturas. Depending on your range, you might want use the RAN in Crescent, OR, 15 miles past the OR31 turn-off.

 

[Captain JB]

Highway 97 is very scenic but watch out for deer in the mountains. There are plenty of chargers and even RAN chargers along Central Oregon and Northern CA

 

[BigSkies]

If this is your first EV roadtrip, a few pieces of advice.

1. Test out as many of the charger networks near home as possible. There's minor differences between them (do you plug in before or after initiating the charge, etc). This isn't usually a huge deal, but it's easier to figure it out when you don't have the stress of being in the middle of a road trip and really having to pee.

2. Set up accounts for any charging network you might be using, even if you plan to just use a card. The point-of-failure on any broken charger is commonly one of the payment devices. Sometimes a card reader is broken and RFID works. Sometimes it's the reverse. Also figure out if it makes sense to pay for an EA or Tesla membership. Those pencil out pretty quickly.

3. Err towards overplanning your charging stops for your first time out. This isn't as necessary as it was a few years ago. It's good to know roughly where you'll stop, and if there's any legs of your trips with limited backup charging options.

4. Opportunistically use any L2 chargers you can when in SoCal. They are WAY cheaper than DCFC. Find the L2 chargers when you're at the mall, going to the zoo, or whatever. SoCal also tends to have lines at DCFC the way other cities don't. At least when I visited ~1.5 years ago.

 

[Fraslin]

Take a little bit of the long way and go see the Lost Coast just South of Eureka: https://www.wellplannedjourney.com/california-lost-coast/

 

[Bippie]

Try booking hotels that offer free charging. Nice to wake up to a fully charged vehicle. Be aware - most hotel chargers are first come/first served do have a backup plan. Bonus advice - large chains allow search filtering by EV charging. I often stay at Home2 Suites by Hilton since they typically have chargers.

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