Nissan LEAF Travels to the Highest Point Accessible by Auto in Washington State

EV Road Trip: Not Lost...Yet

More than 100 years ago, Washingtonians, on both the west and east sides of the Cascade Range, yearned for a viable northern crossing of the majestic mountain range bisecting the state. There was great hope of increased trade when the Cascade Wagon Road was opened in the late 19th century in the Upper Skagit River region. But it wasn't until the early 1970s that a paved highway was completed to link the northern reaches of the Cascades. The North Cascades Highway was not only a critical connecting link for tourism in the North Central Washington region, but also became a destination all its own and is now commonly referred to as the most spectacular mountain pass crossing in the entire state.

I always considered it my own personal tragedy that I had never been across the North Cascades Highway. And after becoming an owner of a Nissan LEAF two years ago, I succumbed to the idea of traveling into the "North American Alps." Driving a sub-100 mile EV from sea-level to almost 5,500ft. seemed like a great recipe for being stranded. 

However, in just the past two years, electric vehicle infrastructure has improved immensely. The West Coast Green Highway established DC quick charging stations across another Cascade Range pass, Stevens Pass, allowing for Seattle-area EV travelers to head into Wenatchee, located on the east side of the state. And a grassroots effort by Plug-In North Central Washington to install high-amperage Level 2 charging stations north of Wenatchee made it possible for EV travelers to drive to the tourist playgrounds in Pateros, Winthrop, and Mazama along the eastern slopes of the Cascade Range.

The Stevens Pass route made EV travel to these wonderful locales possible. However, that direct-shot crossing of the North Cascades seemed like a pipe dream for Nissan LEAF drivers. Late last year, I actually wrote a blog entry about the possibility of driving a Nissan LEAF across the North Cascades Highway, traveling from west to east. In a nutshell, to successfully cross the North Cascades Highway in a Nissan LEAF, there would have to be a charging solution somewhere between Burlington (sea level) and Washington Pass (5,477ft). 

With Seattle City Light still working through the bureaucracy of installing a Level 2 charging station at its Newhalem site, I started looking at the possibility of crossing the North Cascades Highway in reverse direction, from east to west. Using the West Coast Green Highway and Plug-In North Central Washington's charging infrastructure, I could easily get all the way to Mazama, WA located less than 20-miles east of Washington Pass. The trade-off was that it would take a full day of driving just to get to Mazama.

The trip was set: I was going to be the first Nissan LEAF driver to cross the North Cascades Highway! In my usual fashion, I decided to add a bit extra to the trip to make it fun for my kids (convincing my wife that it was a great idea for me to take our two children, ages six and three, for 24 hours didn't take much persuasive power). Before crossing the North Cascades Highway from Mazama, I would drive our LEAF to, according to DangerousRoads.org, the highest point reachable by car in the state, Hart's Pass. Actually, we would continue past Hart's Pass and drive up to Slate Peak before descending a vertical mile back into the town of Mazama.

Oh. My. God. The drive to Hart's Pass.

We arrived at the Level 2 charging station in Mazama 11 hours after leaving home. It was about 97 degrees outside and mid-afternoon. We still had to go to the highest point in the state accessible by car, back down, charge, then make a first-ever drive across another mountain pass to get home. Not wanting to bake in the hot weather any longer, I did some quick calculations and decided that with the 71% charge our LEAF had, we could make it to Slate Peak and back without being stranded.

Let me be blunt: nobody should drive a Nissan LEAF up to Hart's Pass. If doing this trip in a car, the minimum capability vehicle would be a Subaru. We saw quite a few 4x4s. For reference, the only two other vehicles that made it all the way up to Slate Peak were two old, no-muffler, lifted Toyota trucks.

I'm getting a bit ahead of myself. Yes, we made it to Slate Peak! I recorded an ending elevation reached by our Nissan LEAF as 7,283ft. However, leaving Mazama with a 71% charge was nearly a fatal mistake. Just as soon as we arrived to Hart's Pass (6,197ft.) the Low Battery Warning chimed in the LEAF. From Hart's Pass, the fire lookout tower at Slate Peak can be easily seen. I couldn't resist my daughter asking to "Go up there!" to see the tower. There is more than a thousand feet of elevation gain driving the three miles from Hart's Pass to Slate Peak, though. Our Nissan LEAF quickly barked at us with a Very Low Battery Warning within the first couple of switchbacks. I was committed, though. Anything for the kids, right? 

Made it to Slate Peak at 7,283 feet with only 1,000 watt-hours of electricity to spare. That was close!

After parking, the kids and I hiked the remaining distance to the fire lookout tower at the top of Slate Peak. The views were INCREDIBLE!

Slate Peak Lookout

Views: Slate Peak Lookout: 7,488ft. by Steve Coram

On the way back down from Slate Peak, the car regenerated about 2,500 watt-hours. This is not as much as an EV driver may expect from a vertical mile descent. We were traveling too slow on the descent back into Mazama to transition much from the friction brakes and take advantage of brake regeneration.

Back in Mazama, at the Mazama Country Inn, we plugged into the Level 2 charging station. We were all exhausted and starving, so we went into the restaurant for some hamburgers and air-conditioned relaxation.

Eat first, then sleep. At least they have their priorities straight!

While the kids slept after dinner, I sat there for about 45 minutes trying to make a final decision on how to best approach the next part of the EVentrue: the North Cascades Highway. During the week prior to departure, I had spent considerable time reaching out to various RV Parks located on the west side of Washington Pass. However, not a single inquiry was welcomed. I figured that I had two choices. One, pull into one of the RV Parks and start charging without the blessing of the management. Even though I was unlikely to make EV-converts out of the RV Park folks, I didn't really want to succumb to guerrilla tactics for getting my car charged. My other option was to drive all the way to the next charging station, a CHAdeMO quick charger located in Burlington, WA. It was 121 miles away.

In my pre-trip planning, I never even considered this second option. All of the elevation profiles and mileage charts that I created and saved for reference along the trip had us leaving Mazama and stopping at one of the RV Parks along the way into Burlington. But as I started putting the elevation profiles together, I became more convinced that the long-shot attempt of driving 121 miles was possible. So, after three hours of charging in Mazama, we departed.

Washington Pass: Elevation 5,477ft.

Once at the summit of Washington Pass, I pulled over to take a quick picture of the accomplishment and to try and take in the grandeur of the North Cascades under the moon's light. Both kids were asleep in the back, so I figured that I should treat myself to some solitude while I had it. It was that isolation that ended up surprising me. While looking around at the summit, I realized that I had not seen another vehicle since leaving Mazama. Why weren't people driving on the North Cascades Highway?

Underway again, and now starting the long descent into Burlington, it dawned on me. People choose to not drive on the North Cascades Highway at night. Not at night because of all the deer! Up to that point, I had passed seven deer on the roadway. Each time, the deer behaved in a consistent manner when our car approached: Head raised; body moved in place--usually sticking their rump at me; then, as we passed, the deer would hop into the brush. When we approached the eighth deer, I didn't think twice. I shifted from neutral to B Mode (heavy regen) to slow down as we passed the deer until it hopped away. But this time, after the deer raised its head and turned its bum to us, it darted right at our car! It happened impossibly fast...the swerving, horn blaring, daddy cursing, brake pedal mashing...deer hitting. At 11pm, on a deserted mountain pass with no cell service, I hit a freakin' deer.

After coming to a complete stop, I hopped out of the car. The deer was gone; hopefully hopping through the trees. In trying to assess the situation and regain my composure, I started looking the car over. Right away, it was clear that a new hood, new bumper, new fender, and new headlight would be needed to fix my car. Thirteen days after delivery, I smashed my car. I didn't even have the license plate mounted yet!

Back in the car, and getting underway once more, it struck me at how lucky we were. If I had hit the deer straight on, instead of at the corner of the front end, we would've been in a completely different scenario. It was a chilling thought to say the least.

The remaining drive into Burlington was actually quite pleasurable. My children were zonked out in the back seat and I was the only car on the road. And I only encountered one more deer, this time without incident.

Pulling into the Burlington CHAdeMO quick charging station, my LEAF was at the very moment of going into "Turtle Mode," as one battery cell was down to 3.050 volts (hat tip to Tyrel Haveman for the data analysis). We had driven 121 miles on the single charge. A new record for me!

The world is getting smaller to us EV drivers. It won't be much longer when we look back on these EVentures with amusement and nostalgia. The transportation world is changing quickly, and the future stories of EV travel will likely be more about the destination, rather than the journey. But for now, it is all about the journey. The EV pioneering travels!

***

Here is what the trip looked like (minus the gap of data from Pateros to Winthrop, WA):

SOC Map: Green=Full Charge, Red=Empty
(Courtesy Tyrel Haveman)

Speed Map: Green=Highest Speeds, Red= (Almost) Stopped
(Courtesy Tyrel Haveman)

(EV) Tour a National Park for Veterans Day!

For Veterans Day last year, I took Charlie and Sabrina to Anacortes, WA to honor our service members.  It was a wonderful experience for the kids.  The only rough part of the day was having to park our EV for charging at a Walgreens and then walk a mile each way to the events...in the cold...crying toddler...yada yada.

When Tanya told me that she had to make, something like, 25 Tutu Totes this weekend, I read between the lines and offered to take our kids on a full-day adventure.  With National Parks having fee free days over the Veterans Day weekend, I thought it would be fun to check out Mt. Rainer.  After all, I had recently watched Ken Burns' The National Parks: America's Best Idea, making me feel that it was a civic duty to take our children to the Parks. It didn't take long to determine, though, that getting our LEAF up to either Sunrise or Paradise was completely out.  I've already detailed why the North Cascades National Park was out, so I had to figure out how to get us to the majestic Olympic National Park!

Looking at the park map and at the EV charging infrastructure on the Olympic Peninsula, Hurricane Ridge was the most accessible kid-fun place to get to.  I got the all-clear from Tanya as she left the house heading for the fabric store.  The kids and I finished getting ready, and as we were heading out, I realized that I forgot to grab the bluetooth diagnostic tool from my car.  This particular device, paired with a powerful app called LEAF Spy, is absolutely critical when pushing the range limits of the EV.  However, I was more concerned about bringing the iPad.  So, with Sabrina and Charlie loaded up in the car, I ran back inside and grabbed the babysitter.

Shortly after leaving the house, I called Tanya to figure out where she was.  My worries got the best of me...I did want that bluetooth tool!  I swung by The Burlington Coat Factory (fabric store?), and pulled the device from my 2012 LEAF.  It was about 11:00am, and we were on our way!

We did a 20 minute charge to 90% at the Level 3 CHAdeMO quick charger at Campbell Nelson Nissan in Edmonds, then we headed to catch the ferry.

Just missed the ferry!

Waiting for the next ferry.  Is that the Sprinkler Dance???

Charlie signing "more". With a look like that, what does he see?

We zipped along the Penninsula and pulled into Wilder Nissan in Port Angeles at 2:15 with a Very Low Battery charge.  I was already getting worried, because we effectively had only about two-and-a-half hours of daylight left.  After plugging into the Level 2 electric vehicle supply equipment, we tried finding some food.  Besides a movie theater next door, there was nothing!  When I called Westside Pizza for a delivery, the employee on the phone appeared a bit amused with my plea for a delivery at the Nissan dealership.

Happy Kids=Happy Dad

We pulled out of the Nissan Dealership exactly two hours later at 4:15pm with a 63% charge.  The drive up to Hurricane Ridge (5200') from Port Angeles (sea level) was going to be cutting it close with only a 63% charge, however the math showed that it was possible.  So, when we got about halfway to Hurricane Ridge and saw that the park was closed with a locked gate and declaring sign, I started having fantasies of punching Smokey the Bear much like Chevy Chase gave Marty Moose a blow to the nose in National Lampoon's Vacation.

Sorry, folks!  We're closed...uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh!

Charlie was clueless to the disappointment, but Sabrina was clearly bummed that we would not make it to "Hurricane Bridge", as she put it.  To make amends, I decided to stop off at the McDonald's in Port Angeles for the kids to get a treat and me some coffee.  However, I did not heed my own mantra learned from driving in the BC2BC this past summer:  "If the car is parked, it better be plugged in."

Forty-Five Minute Layover at Mickey D's

From McDonald's, we headed back to the Nissan dealership in Port Angeles to Level 2 charge.  I needed some time to crunch numbers, looking at elevation profiles, and checking the ferry schedule.  The mountain was a bust, but we had to figure out how to get home!  Enter...the iPad!

Screen time for the kids-->giving me some screen time with my phone to figure out the drive home.

After about an hour of charging at the Nissan dealership, I was really starting to get nervous about making it to the ferry.  There was a 9:40pm sailing, then another, final, departure at 11:05pm.  Sabrina and Charlie were troopers, but they were starting to wear on each other.  And me.  Making it to the 9:40 ferry had to happen!  Charging at the dealership would've worked just fine, but poor cell service was making the ferry departure planning, mapping, and range calculations nearly impossible with the slow connection.  Adding to my problems was that the lack of cell coverage was just destroying my cell phone battery, even with the phone plugged into the auxiliary outlet in the car.  A LEAF driver without cell service and ample cell phone battery charge is as good as dead when pushing the limits of the car.  We pulled out from the Nissan dealership just before 6:00pm, heading for a high-power Level 2 in Sequim.

No charging in Sequim tonight; Model S beat me to it.

With charging in Sequim out, I had one last available charging location in the town of Gardiner before all was lost and I surrendered to finding an exterior 120v outlet on the side of somebody's house to trickle charge all night long.  Wild Birds Unlimited in Gardiner, WA is pretty much an EV oasis.  Once there, I knew that there were very few contingency plans as the LEAF would not have more than about 10 miles of range left.  

After arriving, it took 10 minutes to find the EVSE in the dark.

Clipper Creek portable unit.

Once I saw that the electric vehicle supply equipment was a 25amp portable Clipper Creek unit, I knew that I was in a real bind.  I expected to be able to pull 30amps while charging; the difference was statistically minimal, but I had to catch that 9:40 ferry!  I plugged in the LEAF at 7:25pm at Wild Birds Unlimited, and watched in pain how the car was charging slow enough that making the ferry would be impossible.  

Over the past year, I have become quite skilled at eking the most miles out of a given charge in our Nissan LEAFs.  Typically, the trick is to drive as slow as possible.  Actually, to drive slower than what one thinks is possible is pretty much the trick.  The dilimea I was looking at was a new sitiuation, though.  There needed to be a Range Hero drive from Gardiner to the Kingston ferry terminial, and had to be done while making some "speed limit" driving time.  The stress while trying to figure out of whether or not to try for the 9:40pm ferry was crushing.  

At 8:45pm, I got out of the LEAF, stood in front of our car with my hand on the plug handle.  For the next minute, I just stared at the EV plug and said to myself that we would not make it.  At 8:46, I quickly unplugged and dashed into the car.  We had to travel 33.5 miles to the ferry, and the navigation in the car provided a speed limit driving E.T.A. at the ferry as 9:30pm.  

There is not much that can be said for the driving between Wild Birds Unlimited and the Kingston ferry, other than I utilized every "hyper-miling" technique that I could think of:  slow, very slow on the uphill grades; driving on the shoulder when possible with hazards flashing; gliding...rather, bombing down the downhill grades in neutral; and driving off-center in the lane to avoid the pooling water in the lane ruts.  

We pulled up to the ferry kiosk at 9:36pm, and ended up with a 2.8% charge remaining when the car came to a stop on the ferry deck.  Departure followed literally just moments later.  

Luckily, there are a handful of EV charging stations just off of the ferry in Edmonds.  While still on the ferry ride, though, Tanya and I exchanged text messages and decided that she would come rescue our kids in Edmonds while I charged.  

Pulled in with a 2.5% charge.  Phew!

Rescue arrives at 10:35pm.

I'm not sure if it is a good thing, or bad, but I tend to arrive at destinations with an absolutely minimal battery charge remaining.  After Tanya left, I stayed charging in Edmonds for another hour.  When arriving home at 12:22am, there was the exact same 2.5% charge remaining that I had when pulling into Edmonds.  Tanya almost had to perform her second rescue of the night!

The EV Mile-High Club

Up until now, I've had a 50/50 record for EV trips venturing into the North Cascades.  The first, was a trip to Mt. Baker that didn't fair too well.  The second was a success, but actually was scarier for non-driving reasons.

Plug-In North Central Washington has for some time worked to electrify the north-central part of Washington State, thus making the region's tourist destinations accessible for those driving EVs...even the range-limited Nissan LEAF.

This winter, there are two projects that will be pivotal in making the west-east trek on Highway 20 possible for those LEAF drivers.  There will be a commissioning of three EVSE (Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment) at the Mazama County Inn (two NEMA 14-50 outlets and one 240V 70amp J1772 EV Plug).  The NEMA outlets will be usable for LEAF drivers who have the EVSE Upgrade to take advantage of the RV type outlets; recreational vehicles widely use NEMA 14-50 outlets when at campgrounds. While the 70amp EV Plug is better suited to charging a Tesla Model S, a LEAF could still charge off of the unit, albeit just at a maximum of 30amps for a 2013+ LEAF.

The second Highway 20 charging opportunity that is to be installed over the winter months is a public EVSE at the Seattle City Light Newhalem site (west of Diablo Lake).  While the specifics are yet to be released, it is expected that this unit will be a J1772 EV Plug and thus usable by a wide-range of plug-in vehicles.

Diablo Lake

Over on the Seattle Nissan LEAF Owners Group site, there is a question of whether the trip from the Puget Sound region to the Mazama County Inn will be possible in a Nissan LEAF come spring of 2014 when the soon-to-be-installed EVSE is up and running.

I believe that this trip is possible.  It would not be an easy trip, though!

A more detailed look:

Burlington Outlet Shoppes to the Newhalem Site

To start the trip, all but the Burlington-local LEAF drivers would need to do a combination of Level 3 (quick charging up to 80% battery) and Level 2 (80-100%) at the Burlington Outlet Shoppes.  To reach 100% in this manner, it would take a 2013+ LEAF about an hour.  From Burlington, it is just over 61 miles to reach the Seattle City Light EVSE up near Diablo Lake.  If leaving Burlington with a full charge (and healthy battery pack), one wouldn't need to worry about traveling less than the speed limit. This would be a pretty easy leg.

Newhalem Site to Mazama County Inn

The second leg of the North Cascades traverse is going to be much more of a challenge in a LEAF.  No question, there would need to be another full charge at the Seattle City Light site near Diablo Lake.  This would be 3-4 hours of charging for a 2013+ LEAF, as the whole session would be at the Level 2 EV Plug.  Thank goodness there is plenty to do and see at that location, making an extended charging session rather painless!

From Newhalem, the LEAF driver will need to be very cautious to control speed and throttle.  That full charge is going to have to take the LEAF from and elevation of 531 feet up to more than a mile above sea level!  After peaking at 5458 feet 40 miles into leg #2, there will still be about 20 miles of driving before safely arriving at the lovely high-powered Level 2 EVSE units at the Mazama County Inn.  Yes, there will be plenty of brake regeneration on that trip down into Mazama, however, the downhill grade will not guarantee a LEAF can make it that far if the battery is very low.

Even with the potential of complete disaster, I am ready for the trip!  Come spring, when the weather is warming and the snow melting, I look forward in joining the north-central EVers at their little get-together.  In all prudence, I'd better not bring my kids on this one:)