Traveling Oregon in a Tesla - Photo Journal (Part 1 - Painted Hills)

This is the first summer that I've owned a Tesla. Our Model X 90D arrived in October and we've put about 12,000 miles on it since then. To put this into perspective, most years I only drive about 8,000 miles. This vehicle is a lot of fun and we've been using it to explore our home state.

Our first family vacation trip was to eastern Oregon to see the Painted Hills. We found lodging in an old hotel in Prairie City that has Tesla destination charging (and charging for other EVs too). It was not too far from our first destination, the Painted Hills, and it had nearby bike paths and hiking.

From Beaverton to Prairie City 

The trip planner said that we could make it to Prairie City with just a single charging stop in The Dalles. I was less certain. We had our CHAdeMO adapter and connectors to plug into RV campgrounds if things didn't go as planned. I decided to play it safe and head to Pendleton instead. This allowed us to arrive with more charge remaining. If there were any issues with the destination charging, we'd still have enough charge for our next day's plans. It added some time to the drive, but better safe than sorry.

The trip was an easy drive. We stopped in The Dalles for a late lunch while we charged. We headed to Pendleton and had a bathroom break and a drink while we charged. That evening, two thousand dead bugs and 360 miles later, we arrived in Prairie City. We checked in, plugged into the destination charger, and made our way to our room.

The next day we were charged up and after breakfast, we headed to the Painted Hills.

Tesla Model X w/ Bike Rack at The Painted Hills in Oregon

The hills were great, a part of nature that's a rare sight. I'll spare you the description of the cause, if you're interested, feel free to google it.

From here we went to the Little Pine Cafe in the town of Mitch. As we parked and my daughter opened the falcon wing door to get out, one of the locals asked if our car was a Dodge. I told him it was a Tesla, to which he replied, "That's the future right there."

Cowboy Boots in Mitchell Oregon

We stopped at the nearby fossil museum and learned a few things about the massive weather pattern changes to the region over the eons. The next day we explored Prairie City and John Day on foot and bike. The visitors center in John Day has level 2 charging with places to explore and eat nearby.

On day 3 we drove into the Strawberry Mountain Wilderness area.

It was a dusty drive.

From the parking area, it's a hike to the lake.

The next day we packed up to head home, we were fully charged thanks to the destination charging at the hotel. This time, I was confident that the navigation system was correct and that we'd make it to The Dalles on a single charge. The bikes on the rack on the back mean that it is not accurate and I would just need to have a little buffer, but the nav system said that we'd have more than 30 miles left when we arrived. You can always stretch the range a little by slowing down a little if needed. So we headed north.

Going home we passed through the town of Fossil, Oregon. The town's name has nothing to do with fossil fuels, but I quipped that they'll need to change their name to Renewable, Oregon if they want to survive. Speaking of renewable energy, on the drive back we passed through the Biglow Canyon Wind Farm, as you can see below.

We made it to The Dalles with about 20 miles of range left. From there, after lunch and some charging, it was an easy drive home.

In part two, we'll head to Crater Lake.

Traveling Oregon in a Tesla - Photo Journal (Part 4 Wildlife Safari)

In part 3 of our Tesla Model X adventure, we visited the Oregon Caves. In this post, we'll travel from Cave Junction to Sutherlin with a stop at the Oregon Wildlife Safari. We left the Caves Chateau before breakfast and headed back to Grants Pass. The Black Bear Diner Supercharger was the hub for our south Oregon travels and this was our 3rd and final stop here. We'd enjoyed eating there on our previous visit a couple days before and were looking forward to eating there again.

After arriving, we plugged in and went into the diner. It was crowded. This was very different from our prior visit. It was Sunday morning and apparently, the entire town of Grants Pass goes out for breakfast on Sundays.

Traveling from Oregon Caves To Sutherlin
in a Tesla Model X

We could not wait since we had scheduled a cheetah encounter for that morning. Just as we were about to leave, our name was called and we were seated. Once we were seated, the service was fast and we were back on the road, on-time, with a full charge.

Tesla Model X at Oregon Wildlife Safari

We arrived at the Wildlife Safari park on-time. The park's in Winston, Oregon; it's over 600 acres that you drive through while the animals wander (mostly) freely.

After seeing the cheetahs, we drove through the park. The giant front window of the Tesla Model X makes it the perfect vehicle for this type of drive-through park.

The safari day was incredible. We fed a giraffe and an elephant, our daughter rode a camel, we drove through the park and walked through the village. It was an experience to be remembered and the enormous window of the Model X made it the perfect vehicle for this adventure.

From here, we went to Sutherlin and checked in. We plugged into the destination charging station, changed in our room, and headed to the pool. Soaking my feet in the hot tub was nice after walking around in the village for several hours.

Our next stop is Part5: Elkton Butterfly Pavilion.

Traveling Oregon in a Tesla - Photo Journal (Part 2 Crater Lake)

Previously, in part 1 of our summer family traveling adventure, we went to the Painted Hills in our Model X.

In part 2, we head to southern Oregon. In the morning, we were charged up and packed. We hit the road heading south. Our first charging stop was in Eugene. We stopped at the nearby Dutch Brothers and Subway before heading to the Supercharger. Our little family ate lunch and talked while we charged up. After lunch, we continued south.

Map of our Southern Oregon Trip

Our next stop was in Grants Pass. As we descended the Cascades and approached the city, the air began to thicken from the multiple forest fires burning in the region. We arrived in Grants Pass and plugged in.

Grants Pass SuperCharger at Sunset with Smoke in the Sky from Nearby Forest Fires

This Supercharger in the parking lot of the Black Bear Resturant would turn out to be our hub for our southern Oregon adventures. We charged up and headed to our motel for the evening. At the motel, we parked in front of our room and we plugged into a 120V outlet (with permission) overnight. This overnight charging only added ~20 miles, but it was all that was available and plugging in lets the owners of the motel know that EV charging is an amenity that we EV drivers are looking for. Perhaps they'll install a NEMA 14-50 which EVs and RVs could utilize.

The next morning we had a nice breakfast at a 1950's themed restaurant overlooking the Rouge River. Then we set off for Crater Lake.

Trees through the forest fire smoke on the drive to Crater Lake

Heading up the mountain the smoke began to thicken the air. We wondered if we'd be turned back or if it would be smart to turn back. We had checked the night before so we knew Crater Lake National Park was still open, so we pressed on. Biohazard mode comes in handy in times like this.

Vidae Falls Near Crater Lake

Surprisingly, there were pockets where the air was clear. We saw a beautiful waterfall and stopped to enjoy the view. After snapping a few photos at the falls, we continued to the rim.

We arrived at Crater Lake.

Wizard Island through forest fire smoke

We scheduled a boat ride on the lake for later in the day and enjoyed the view from the visitors' area. As we walked around, butterflies filled the air. I'm not sure if the fires drove them to this area, or if this is an annual occurrence. But it was magical as they flew up the caldera and surrounded us as we looked at Wizard Island and the beauty of the lake.

Now it was time to head over for the boat ride. The boat dock was on the other side of the lake. Because of the fires, the shorter route was closed. The drive up the mountain had used more than half the charge we had and I wanted to make sure we could get back to the motel. I had not planned on taking the long way around the crater when I mapped this out. At least the drive back was mostly down hill, we should have plenty of range. So we took the long way around and pulled into the parking area.

The parking lot was under construction, which of course made me wonder if EV charging is part of the plan for this new parking area. With the hike down, the boat tour, and the hike back we'd be parked here for about 5 hours. A Level 2 charging session could add over 100 miles of range during this time.

We parked and hiked down to the boat dock.

An outbuilding on Crater Lake

After a short wait, we were on the water for a ranger guided tour around the lake.

On Crater Lake, smoke to the left, clear skies to the right

Phantom Ship Island on Crater Lake

We finished our boat ride and headed to a Mazama Village.

Our Tesla Model X on the drive back from Crater Lake

 Driving down the mountain, we saw one of the sources of the smoke.

Spruce Lake fire, seen from Crater Lake, ~4700 acres burning

On the way down the mountain, we stopped for dinner in Mazama Village. They had a Tesla destination charger housed in a tiny A-frame house at the restaurant.

Charging at the Mazama Village destination charging station at Sunset

After dinner, we had a few extra Watt-hours and we headed down the mountain on our way back to our motel next to the Rogue.

On the drive down the mountain, we had more regen than I've ever seen. We were averaging negative 116 Watt-hours per mile. The batteries were getting charged up as we drove at ~50 MPH. EV ownership would be super easy if you could always drive downhill :)

Energy display showing 15 minutes of downhill driving

We made it back to the motel with plenty of remaining capacity.

The next day we were setting off for the Oregon Caves. I'll save that for part 3.

Traveling Oregon in a Tesla - Photo Journal (Part 6 Oregon Coast)

In part 5, we'd left the butterfly pavilion and headed to the Driftwood Shores Resort on the coast. It's a beautiful drive.

Bridge as seen from the beach

After checking in, we headed to Cape Perpetua and hiked along the beach to see the rugged spouting horn Cook's Chasm, Devil's Churn, and Thor's Well.

Tesla Model X Parked at the Obeach

Hiking down to the Pacific Ocean

Walking Along The Shore

Thor's Well

After our beach trip, we drove into town for dinner and found an old fashion drive-in restaurant. We thought it would be funny to park one of the newest high-tech cars on the road in this relic from another era. The 1950s car parked next to us completed the juxtaposition.

Tesla Model X in an Old Time A&W Drive-In Diner

Our next stop was the Heceta Head Lighthouse.

Heceta Head Lighthouse in the fog seen through the falcon wing door of a Tesla Model X

Heceta Head Lighthouse

Heceta Head Lighthouse

The next day, after all the miles of driving the Tesla for the last week, we decided to try a couple different forms of transportation: one that eats sand and another that eats hay.

Riding quads on the beach and the dunes of Florence, Oregon

Riding Horses on the Pacific Beach

The next morning we hit the road to head home. The final day of our big summer adventure was here. Before we left Florence, we stopped at a local donut shop, Big Dog Donuts.

An old gas station converted into a donut shop

This donut shop was in an old gas station. The non-functioning pumps were still there. It's nice to see that when everyone starts driving electric cars, there will still be a use for these locations 😋

After grabbing a few donuts for the road, we started up the coast. We were taking the scenic route home. We passed through Newport and made a quick bathroom stop at the Superchargers in Lincoln City.

Driving Home on the Scenic Highway 101 up the Oregon Coast

Later that day we arrived at home. We'd added about 900 miles to the odometer during our week-long adventure. The Superchargers and destination charging spots made getting around in the state easy. I had packed my bag of RV adapters but never needed them. We made some great family memories this summer.

To see where this adventure began, you can start here; or for our latest post, click here. 
http://ts.la/patrick7819