Get your kicks on Route 66?

[rkarl89203]

That actually looks pretty cool..but we should be OK without it.
I agree with you about the wind. Recently during a windy day here it pretty
Much cut our range in half. Not a good thing crossing the Mojave,
lol. We should be crossing from Goffs through Amboy CA about
April 17. We will be hoping and praying for calm winds then.

 

[Don]

Your schedule sounds pretty optimistic to me - I hope you're not planning on making motel reservations too far in advance. Like Joe mentioned earlier, I would anticipate some rescheduling will be necessary as you run into obstacles or you get delayed staying longer when you're somewhere you really want to see things

I mentioned way back that we did an 800 mile trip from Cuba MO to Tucumcari NM several years ago. We stayed very flexible on our schedule and never knew for sure where we would be spending the next night - It took us two weeks to do the 800 miles and we still didn't get to see everything we wanted

If you're not pressed for time, I would 'build in' an extra day every 3 or 4 days and I'm sure you'd make good use of it even if you don't get delayed by something or other - We went through more museums in our 800 mile trip than you have planned for your entire journey. It would be a shame to go through some of these places on a rigid schedule which would prevent you from seeing things you may never pass by again

Don

 

[JoeS]

Having just completed our second long-distance Tesla trip, I can attest to NOT making an inflexible schedule, as there are so many unexpected and wonderful things to see in this country. Museums. especially, are all over the place and most of the time each one consumes far more time than originally expected.

rkarl89203, you'll have all winter to refine your plans and do your sightseeing homework. Since you'll be spending much of your time L2 charging, I would really try to focus on doing that within (folding bicycle?) reach of local attractions.

Plan on developing a really laid-back temperament with reading and Internet browsing supplementing all the exercise you'll get hiking/biking wherever you stop during this fun adventure.

 

[rkarl89203]

My wife and I will be on the actual Route 66 trip, from Chicago to Santa Monica. We are very flexible on plan,
And have only 2 must-stop days on the trip, the first at our overnight in North Chicago, which is reserved at a Navy Lodge. The only other Time constraint is that we must make it to Amboy/Chambless area before April 24,
For our reserved charging opportunity there. The rest of the trip is very fluid. Our general itinerary was posted a bit back in this thread. The route 66 portion will take 35 days, plus or minus 2 days. We are adding an entire day at Petrified Forest/ Painted Desert as they now have L2 chargers there. After we arrive in Santa Monica, we will relax for a couple of days and then she will fly back to Rockford from LAX. Then, I get to drive home alone. This is our retirement trip. We are both retiring in early March(me for the third time) and she for the first time. So, no real time constraints. We are very aware that weather may be a major factor, especially going west. If my research is correct, we will be the first i-Miev to drive the entire Route 66.
One more thing ...all of the suggested stops on our general itinerary are just that. Suggested.
We know flexibility. . For instance, we spent a whole day on the way down the route in a gas car in fall last year just between bloomington and Litchfield Illinois, there was so much to see!

 

[Don]

We'll see how it goes - 'Flexible' would mean you're buying her return plane ticket after you get there. If you've bought it for a date 2 days after your anticipated arrival before you leave Illinois, that's not very flexible . . . . you're pretty much committed to a very tight schedule, especially considering it's going to be a month long, never been done before adventure - Any sort of minor breakdown which requires a part to be ordered and you're sunk. It's a very long, very complicated journey to be done in only "35 days plus or minus two" and you're counting on about 100 different things to go just right - Very optimistic IMO. At the very least, I would allow an extra week on the plane ticket if you're buying it early to get a better price. I think the odds that you'll need those extra days are probably better than 50/50

Here's to wishing you all the best with zero hiccups and it all goes exactly as planned!
I know we'll all be enviously following along with you every mile! :mrgreen:

Don

 

[rkarl89203]

We plan on buying her ticket 5 days out from LA...the money is all ready in place for all this. We have been planning this trip for almost 2 years. And yes, this IS a once in a lifetime adventure...that's the point.
We hike remote Utah trails. I grew up in the mountains and deserts of interior California. I did the Coyote Buttes Wave last year. I Am used to challenges. People all my life have asked me why I do these things.
I am 65 years old. I will be 66, just like the Route when we go next year. Those that no longer have challenges in life get old. I have recently had friends younger than me die. This is possibly my last chance to undertake this challenge. My wife and I are good with this. I am going to live blog this, good or bad.
Hopefully this explains a bit what drives us to do this.

 

[kiev]

that's awesome planning karl, i love your spirit of adventure and encourage you to Press On Regardless, and Endeavor to Persevere.

i like the numerology of it also, i'm a sucker for it. i was married on the last perfect triplet of the last millenium, 9/9/99, but too bad it didn't take--only lasted 9 years...

 

[rkarl89203]

Thanks for the kind words, Kiev....say...isn't Endeavor to Persevere from the iconic movie, "The Outlaw
Josie Wales?"

 

[kiev]

Yep, one of my all time favorites--gotta love sending those redlegs on a Missoura Boatride...

 

[rkarl89203]

Awesome scene...much of that movie was filmed in Paria Utah in the area now bordered by Capital Reef NP
And the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. I got seriously lost hiking near Paria and almost had an ultimately bad experience. How I survived is another story entirely.

 

[kiev]

Well you've let the cat out, so now we have to hear that story.

i spent a long weekend out in the Arizona desert dove hunting with friends as a lad, the temperature extremes in one day are unbelievable. We were going 'outback', eat what you catch and sleeping on the sand--nearly froze to death at night, baked to a crisp during the days, and starving hungry the whole time. That's the original hunger game...

 

[Phximiev]

Which is why I believe in camping at the Marriott!

 

[Don]

My parents lived in an RV park in Lancaster CA when Boeing sent my Dad there during the Shuttle Approach and Landing Testing program (SALT) at Edwards AFB. They ran the heater full blast all night, the air conditioning on max all day and had the windows open for 20 minutes or so in between. An experience they never forgot!

Don

 

[rkarl89203]

When I was a younger man I hiked solo a lot.
I decided to explore the badlands to the north of Paria.
I got seriously lost, only for the second time of my life. I was looking for an abandoned uranium mine since there were supposedly some really neat looking structures left, and I am a mining history nut.
Since I was young, single and invincible (and dumb), I did this while on leave from the Air Force, and told no one where I was going. This was before GPS, and I left my Jeep parked off the road (if one could call what I was driving on a road) and headed out. Fortunately I had my backpack and backpack tent with me. Five hours later, with darkness falling I realized that everything looked the same in the canyon I was hiking in. I decided to
Set up camp. Overnight I couldn't sleep, hearing every darn thing moving around in the darkness. Next morning, I still couldn't find my way back to the Jeep. Did I mention that it was mid summer and hot?
Fortunately I had brought a Lot of water I had bought at a store in Kanab. Unfortunately, except for one small bottle, the water was very safe, in my Jeep that I couldn't find my way back to. Just before dark the second day I decided to climb a nearby hill to see if I could see my Jeep. I climbed it and saw what looked like a vehicle miles away. After another sleep-deprived night, I set out, Very tired.i finally got to the vehicle. It was
A jeep. It just wasn't my Jeep. The two people had water, though. We found my Jeep TEN MIlLES from where I thought I was. Sheesh. Room temperature water never tasted so good!
Could have turned out a lot worse!

 

[kiev]

Thanks for sharing karl, i'm sure we've all had some close calls when younger and naive that in looking back make us feel lucky to be alive--i'm glad you made it, and want to say thank you for your service during the Viet Nam war.

 

[rkarl89203]

Thanks for the kind words Kiev. Some of the things we did were very dangerous indeed!

 

[rkarl89203]

Unexpected roadblock. Due to bridge replacement, the section of route 66 between Fenner California and Chambless, California will be closed from mid-January through early May. There are several workarounds, so planning continues. Not a good thing. Both involve freeways, one has chargers available, one does not.
This may include more RV park charging, and a longer Desert route.

 

[rkarl89203]

Got the work-arounds done. Planning complete. 119 days to go!

 

[JoeS]

Boy, in your shoes I'd really be looking to get a portable CHAdeMO unit that would run off NEMA 14-50, and an adapter to go from J1772 to NEMA 14-50R. For example, TucsonEV: http://www.tucsonev.com/index.html. Otherwise, meditation will also help. Be sure to bring plenty of reading material and some good walking shoes for exercise while the car is charging.

Have you started exploring http://www.gpsvisualizer.com/ ? I would make and save (either on a tablet or hard copy) an elevation map for every leg of your trip... maybe not hard copy as you want to save weight.

How big a collection of adapters do you have already? I still haven't tried them, but welding shops are just about anywhere and a couple of adapters to fit their outlets is yet another backup strategy.

 

[rkarl89203]

I have the EVSE upgrade ....charges Level 1 at 7 miles added per hour. I also have the NEMA 14-50 universal
Adapter for campground/RV park Level 2 charging(16 miles added per charging hour)with the EVSE upgrade.
Practiced using both at local campgrounds here...From empty to full L1 (assuming a 65 mile full charge) it takes
9 hours. With the L2 adapter it would take about 4 and a half hours.
Elsewhere on this thread we have our general itinerary. This trip is about relaxing. My wife and I are retiring on the same day from incredibly stressful jobs. We are looking forward to resting during charging.
We will drive for maximum regenerative where possible, We have discovered over the last couple of years that the key to continuing on is to be charging during any stops more than 1/2 hour in duration. Of course where there are Chademo quick chargers we will make full use of them.
It should take about 32-35 days from Chicago to Santa Monica. She will fly back home from LAX,
And then I get to drive back alone. Should take about 21-25 days.
A real challenge indeed. Research seems to indicate we would be the first i-Miev to drive the entire length
Of the route.