Anyone do the Metro Detroit to U.P. Run?

[DarkStang]

I have a SR RWD on order and have been obsessively been playing with different ABRP scenarios One of my most common summer trips is from Metro Detroit to our cabin in the U.P. Usually the car is quite loaded up with 4 people and cargo, so I put 650 lbs in ABRP and using 70 degrees and the standard 3.13 baseline reference consumption.

Looks like I should be able to hit the Bay City EA for a quick charge, then stop for a longer charge at Gaylord EA and have a leisurely dinner. Although I could technically get to my cabin about 60 mi north of the bridge from there, I’d probably add some charge in mackinaw city so I arrive with more charge since I only have 120v up there to recharge.

Has anyone with the standard battery made the trip to at least the bridge using those stops? Seems like it should be no issue, but you never know with wind, or if that ABRP reference is too optimistic. Adding in the ER battery doesn’t seem to be too much of a difference, requiring those same 2 stops but shorter.

Sponsored

 

[P. T. Magoo]

Seems reasonable and I could picture myself doing something like this (I'm somewhat south-southwest of southeast ME, or a few miles north of Toledo if you prefer). Much further into the UP though and you might want to bring some bed sheets along to convert the thing into a sail car.

 

[sainttail]

I have used both the Bay City and Gaylord EA changers a few times but that the farthest north I been with my Mach E. I see they now have chargers in Grayling and Waters but look like they are the slower ones, but if you are looking for a good place to grab something I can recommend Grayling has a new coffee and soup place just off the railroad track next to the EV charges.
Home | Michigan Brew (mibrewgrayling.com)

 

[JPMACH]

I have used both the Bay City and Gaylord EA changers a few times but that the farthest north I been with my Mach E. I see they now have chargers in Grayling and Waters but look like they are the slower ones, but if you are looking for a good place to grab something I can recommend Grayling has a new coffee and soup place just off the railroad track next to the EV charges.
Home | Michigan Brew (mibrewgrayling.com)

there is a hampton inn located in sault ste marine that has a charger

 

[DarkStang]

I have used both the Bay City and Gaylord EA changers a few times but that the farthest north I been with my Mach E. I see they now have chargers in Grayling and Waters but look like they are the slower ones, but if you are looking for a good place to grab something I can recommend Grayling has a new coffee and soup place just off the railroad track next to the EV charges.
Home | Michigan Brew (mibrewgrayling.com)

Thanks. Yeah, I saw those slower ones, so I guess if it looks like I’m cutting it close to making Gaylord, there’s a few emergency options on the way. I’m hoping the EA stations are fairly reliable.

 

[DarkStang]

there is a hampton inn located in sault ste marine that has a charger

Thanks, I saw they also have a 125 kw at a Meijer in the Soo, but just one outlet. The Soo is the opposite way for me, so probably will just have to slow charge at the cabin, which shouldn't be too bad since I’m usually up there for several days and don’t go many places so it can sit and charge most of the time.

It really sucks how few chargers there are in the UP. It makes a trip to Marquette to see family pretty much impossible unless I built up a 100% charge. But then there’s no way to get back! Unbelievable that one of the biggest cities in the UP only has one DC charger and it’s a Tesla Supercharger. Hope they’re working on some soon. All they have is a few L2 chargers in downtown lots.

 

[dano]

There are a handful of additional (non-EA) DCFC chargers north of Gaylord, including Mackinaw City (Chargepoint) and Sault Ste. Marie (Greenlots). If you have to go much west of I-75, it looks pretty sparse. I don't see anything in the middle and only Escanaba and Iron Mountain in the western UP.

As a note, all of this is according to the PlugShare app. I've not used any DCFC north of the Gaylord EA location (which I've used several times), so I can't comment on whether the Mackinaw City and Sault Ste. Marie sites with personal knowledge. While I prefer EA, they're not as universally available in northern Michigan and I've often found myself using some of the other DCFC chargers.

Have fun with your trip!

 

[DarkStang]

There are a handful of additional (non-EA) DCFC chargers north of Gaylord, including Mackinaw City (Chargepoint) and Sault Ste. Marie (Greenlots). If you have to go much west of I-75, it looks pretty sparse. I don't see anything in the middle and only Escanaba and Iron Mountain in the western UP.

As a note, all of this is according to the PlugShare app. I've not used any DCFC north of the Gaylord EA location (which I've used several times), so I can't comment on whether the Mackinaw City and Sault Ste. Marie sites with personal knowledge. While I prefer EA, they're not as universally available in northern Michigan and I've often found myself using some of the other DCFC chargers.

Have fun with your trip!

Yeah the Mackinaw one is probably where I’ll do one final jolt before heading into the wilderness. Just wish it was closer to downtown instead of at the casino because there’s nothing good walkable around there for food.

I did see there are a few “coming soon” sites on PlugShare along the Seney Stretch (m-28) and Munising on the way to Marquette. It says permits were pulled and aiming Spring ‘22 but apparently nothing has moved on them yet. That would definitely help, although they are going to be slow 30 kw stations.

 

[JamieGeek]

We've taken our CA Rt1 all the way up to Oscoda without having to stop at a charger (was about 200 miles from our house and still had a good 40% battery left). Of course our CA Rt1 is RWD ER so 300+ miles when full.

I was very surprised as I was expecting less than 33% left.

 

[DarkStang]

We've taken our CA Rt1 all the way up to Oscoda without having to stop at a charger (was about 200 miles from our house and still had a good 40% battery left). Of course our CA Rt1 is RWD ER so 300+ miles when full.

I was very surprised as I was expecting less than 33% left.

Wow, that's really good! Especially since the speed limit raises to 75mph and there's a decent elevation change going north.

 

[TheVirtualTim]

Whenever you road-trip ... SPEED IS EVERYTHING. If you drive 70 ... you'll do MUCH better than if you drive 80. If you have a headwind, you can reduce the impact of that by finding a semi-truck to follow.

I'd be very surprised if you couldn't make it from Bay City to Gaylord ... but there are two other CCS stations (West Branch and Grayling). The charger in West Branch is a 160kW station.

There is a casino in Mackinac City that has 4x 120kW CCS stations ... you can top-off there.

BEFORE you rely on anything ... check PlugShare comment on these stations to make sure there are recent visits to these chargers that have been successful. Occasionally stations are down (and you'll typically find comments posted if they are down) and you don't want to be counting on something only to discover it's down.

 

[P. T. Magoo]

If you're visiting family and they have an electric range or electric dryer, you might be able to snatch some KW from their stove connector or dyier connector if you're creative with a high amperage 240 volt extension cord and perhaps a configurable dumb-charger such as the Grizzle-E with DIP switches set such that you don't overtax the range or dryer circuit, or the extension cord.

That said, if my wife and I venture into the UP we'll probably take her Volt (gas stations are easy to find) until the infrastructure catches up to the concept of all electric vehicles. 120 years or so ago I suppose our ancestors had to plan around existing gas stations when they planned a long motor trip. The infrastructure eventually caught up, and I've no doubt it will for our EVs.

Sponsored