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Phoenix to Albuquerque

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Hi all!

Just seeking some advice... I am driving out to TMC Connect in a couple of weeks (from St. Louis), and on the way home will be visiting friends and family in various Southwest locales. I am pretty confident getting to Phoenix from Las Vegas, probably through the Grand Canyon/Flagstaff area. However, I am curious about my options getting to Albuquerque. I am staying with friends in Chandler and then will be off to Albuquerque. EVTripplanner.com suggests that I can go straight to Holbrook, AZ. I had figured that I would be going north on I-17 and then heading east on I-40. Anyway, the suggestion to cut straight through Tonto National Forest on 87 and 260 seems appealing. However, it's not interstate, and I have no idea what the drive is like. The distances are 180 miles (227 rated miles) direct to Holbrook vs 258 miles (353 rated miles plus an extra supercharger stop) going through Flagstaff.

Has anyone made this drive and would suggest doing so, or is it safer to stick to the interstate even if is it a longer route? Any suggestions for dead of summer driving?

Thank you!
Lydia
 
Couple comments:

Las Vegas to Phoenix: The most common route is through Kingman to Wickenburg and into Phoenix. The Wickenburg supercharger is nearing completion, but you wouldn't need it as it's net downhill from Kingman.

But it sounds like you are planning on visiting the Grand Canyon -- so that means Vegas-Kingman-Flagstaff-Grand Canyon-Flagstaff-Phoenix. See the Grand Canyon thread for my comments on charging at Trailer Village in the park. I'd also recommend the full drive along the south rim -- much better than just a quick stop at the main facilities (see that thread for more details on that drive).

I've driven to Santa Fe from Phoenix by going through Payson to Holbrook, but that was years ago in an ICE. The roads from Phoenix to Payson and then up to Heber-Overgaurd and heavily travelled, the last stretch up to Holbrook is a bit less travelled. Most of Phoenix to Payson is now multi-lane with divided sections. The rest is mostly 2 lane highway with 55 or 65 limits. You can save some time, but I would recommend driving the limit since it's all uphill to Holbrook and you will want to have some reserve. I'd also recommend looking for a couple trailer parks along the route for backup purposes...

but you might want to consider going Vegas-Phoenix-Grand Canyon-Albuquerque. Basically visit Phoenix first, the head up to Flag and the Grand Canyon, charge overnight at the canyon and head out to the East. You loop back towards Flagstaff, but can take I-40 to Holbrook and then on to ABQ...
 
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Agree with Matt (ZZB). I'd go through Payson to Holbrook, keep the speed down, and be aware that there are RV parks with 50amp hook-ups near Payson, on the Mogollon Rim, near Heber, and Overgaard. It's a very nice drive. If you don't already have the Allstays Camp and RV app, I'd get it for info on the facilities available at RV resorts.
 
Thanks ZBB and MarkR for the feedback! Unfortunately, I can not change the order of the cities that I will be visiting... it has to be LV -> Grand Canyon -> Phoenix -> ABQ. I am still undecided on my route to ABQ, but I have looked at the RV park options through Tonto. I guess knowing that I can just slow down and enjoy the scenery, I should be able to make it. EVtripplanner is supposed to take into account elevation rise in the RM needed, I believe. So I guess I just need to watch the wind speed and keep those RV park #'s in my back pocket should I choose that route. From the descriptions, it sounds like it is a nice drive.

Now to figure out my options between ABQ to Denver!
 
Thanks ZBB and MarkR for the feedback! Unfortunately, I can not change the order of the cities that I will be visiting... it has to be LV -> Grand Canyon -> Phoenix -> ABQ. I am still undecided on my route to ABQ, but I have looked at the RV park options through Tonto. I guess knowing that I can just slow down and enjoy the scenery, I should be able to make it. EVtripplanner is supposed to take into account elevation rise in the RM needed, I believe. So I guess I just need to watch the wind speed and keep those RV park #'s in my back pocket should I choose that route. From the descriptions, it sounds like it is a nice drive.

Now to figure out my options between ABQ to Denver!

Am I missing something? Why not just Supercharge in Gallup and then on to ABQ? From ABQ to Denver, you can go the back way along the Superchargers as long as you have a place to start the day with a full charge in ABQ. Hwy 550 to Farmington to Grand Junction over 70 into Denver. It's roundabout but certainly open and free. It's the route Tesla took to drive cross country. So it should work pretty easily. It should also have the advantage of being a very beautiful drive.

The straight up Hwy 25 route won't happen until 2015, I think.
 
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We are planning a Vegas to St Louis trip in October, so I am interested in the route you will use after you leave Albuquerque. Sorry I can't offer any suggestions for you for the PHX to ABQ segment.

It looks like they are expanding the Supercharger network to St Louis right now along Hwy 70. They've already opened 2 in Kansas and seem to be heading east. That route looks like it will be complete by October.
 
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Am I missing something? Why not just Supercharge in Gallup and then on to ABQ?

His question is how to get to I-40 from Phoenix. There are 2 options -- I-17 north to Flagstaff, then east on I-40. Or head NE out of Phoenix through Payson and up to Holbrook on I-40... "Tonto" refers to Tonto National Forrest, which is NE of Phoenix, and south of I-40... Once on I-40, he's re-connected to the Supercharger network. But getting up north from Phoenix involves a lot of elevation gain -- 5000+ feet net...

As for ABQ-Denver -- circling back to Farmington adds a ton of miles. Would an RV park stay in southern CO make more sense?
 
Am I missing something? Why not just Supercharge in Gallup and then on to ABQ? From ABQ to Denver, you can go the back way along the Superchargers as long as you have a place to start the day with a full charge in ABQ. Hwy 550 to Farmington to Grand Junction over 70 into Denver. It's roundabout but certainly open and free. It's the route Tesla took to drive cross country. So it should work pretty easily. It should also have the advantage of being a very beautiful drive.

If you want to do a scenic drive from ABQ to DEN before the plain, great plains along I-70 to STL, consider going Farmington to Pagosa Springs. There is a 70 Amp J1772 there at Incredible Pagosa Vacation Rentals then a 70 Amp J1772 at Wood's High Mountain Distillery in Salida, then on to Denver.
 
If you want to do a scenic drive from ABQ to DEN before the plain, great plains along I-70 to STL, consider going Farmington to Pagosa Springs. There is a 70 Amp J1772 there at Incredible Pagosa Vacation Rentals then a 70 Amp J1772 at Wood's High Mountain Distillery in Salida, then on to Denver.

Cottonwood.. I am so glad that you chimed in. I examined the thread that covered Four Corners charging. It looks like a fantastic way through CO, but I don't have twin chargers (this is the 1% case that it would have made it worth it), so it would take quite awhile for me to recoup enough miles and I would need to commit extra time which I can't spare on this trip since work will have been piling up.

As for ABQ to DEN, I was going to go ABQ -> Farmington (skipping Gallup). I was looking at EVtripplanner.com for the route between Farmington, NM and Grand Junction, CO. It looks like it is 220 miles (226 Rated Miles) with a net elevation drop of 679 feet. Would you think that is doable or would it be better to take the dog leg back through Utah (I am dying to visit many of the places in Utah, but may have to save them for a future trip). Or perhaps I could stop in Durango for an hour or two for some L2 charging to top up before tackling the final 170 miles to Durango. Any opinions on driving highway 550/50 through Colorado?

Zroiron: If you are coming from Vegas, you are pretty much good to go now! You will just take 15 up to 70 and then straight east to St. Louis. The only holes are St. George, UT (which has been permitted) and then between KC and STL (though if you overnight in KC, as I am planning on, you can top off and then make the final leg of your trek in a single shot (though hopefully a KC area supercharger as well as Columbia, MO will be online by the fall *fingers crossed*). If you are planning on detouring a bit through ABQ and you don't want to backtrack and you have twin chargers, I would second Cottonwood's suggestion above to get up to Denver. I think it will be awhile before superchargers along I40 east out of ABQ and then I44 up from OKC will be ready (unless you want to try go the RV park route).

Thanks again everyone for the input!
 
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Cottonwood.. I am so glad that you chimed in. I examined the thread that covered Four Corners charging. It looks like a fantastic way through CO, but I don't have twin chargers (this is the 1% case that it would have made it worth it), so it would take quite awhile for me to recoup enough miles and I would need to commit extra time which I can't spare on this trip since work will have been piling up.

As for ABQ to DEN, I was going to go ABQ -> Farmington (skipping Gallup). I was looking at EVtripplanner.com for the route between Farmington, NM and Grand Junction, CO. It looks like it is 220 miles (226 Rated Miles) with a net elevation drop of 679 feet. Would you think that is doable or would it be better to take the dog leg back through Utah (I am dying to visit many of the places in Utah, but may have to save them for a future trip). Or perhaps I could stop in Durango for an hour or two for some L2 charging to top up before tackling the final 170 miles to Durango. Any opinions on driving highway 550/50 through Colorado?

Use EVtripplanner.com to make a go/no-go decision in Durango. I would leave there with at least 20% more rated miles than the estimated need; you are going over some high mountain passes that way. There are free 30 Amp, 208 Volt J Plugs in a good spot in Durango that are very close to your route; check PlugShare for the exact location. These will give you a 20 mph top up if you need it, and there is plenty to do on the main street of Durango. I think that this charger is ChargePoint, but they are helpful on the 800 number on the unit. This route will require a close to 100% charge in Farmington. It's a little hike, but there is a New Mexico wine tasting room/bistro about 1/4 mile away. The mountain route from Durango north on 550 is very pretty and called the "Million Dollar Highway."

If you plan an overnight in Pagosa to take in the Hot Springs and relax, then a single charger takes no extra time in Pagosa. Driving carefully direct to Lone Tree, you probably only need a top up in Salida and a single charger would not be too painful.

The Supercharger loop around through Moab is beautiful red rock country.

You have three good choices. Have fun deciding.
 
Agree with Matt (ZZB). I'd go through Payson to Holbrook, keep the speed down, and be aware that there are RV parks with 50amp hook-ups near Payson, on the Mogollon Rim, near Heber, and Overgaard. It's a very nice drive. If you don't already have the Allstays Camp and RV app, I'd get it for info on the facilities available at RV resorts.
Depending upon what part of PHX, going to Holbrook through Payson is no sweat in a 85. I can make it either way to the 101 and Shea with at least 40 miles of range, carrying a bunch of weight and a roof rack with snowboards. Be careful though, the tesla nav tries to send you south of Heber instead of going north on 377.
 
Depending upon what part of PHX, going to Holbrook through Payson is no sweat in a 85. I can make it either way to the 101 and Shea with at least 40 miles of range, carrying a bunch of weight and a roof rack with snowboards. Be careful though, the tesla nav tries to send you south of Heber instead of going north on 377.

Thanks for the input - I will be leaving from Chandler - so add 20-25 miles.. sounds like I will make it! :) Also, thanks for the warning about the nav potentially sending me the wrong way. That would have sucked.
 
When I returned from Denver to Central California, I decided to test my planning skills and used the Salida and Pagosa Sprgs. 70-amp chargers that Cottonwood had suggested in another thread. While my route was east-to-west so, the west-to-east amounts could vary, but here are my actual results. Alas I do have the dual chargers, so my charging was faster than those who have but the single charger. I should stress that I drove about 2MPH beneath the speed limit most of the way, and took it super easy up the steeper grades.

Lone Tree --> Salida: I left Lone Tree with 257 rated miles and arrived in Salida with 112. I used 40.4kWh. Charged for about 1:45 to reach 191 rated miles.

Salida --> Incredible Pagosa. Left Salida with 191 rated miles and arrived at Incredible Pagosa with 54. I used 38.3kWh. Charged for about 45 minutes to reach 90 rated miles.

Pagosa Springs --> Durango. Left Pagosa Springs with 90 rated miles and arrived at Durango with 37. I used 14.7kWh.

I charged a total of about 6 1/2 hours at the public chargers (yes, Cottonwood, they are ChargePoint, but free!) over two sessions--Saturday night and again Sunday morning. I left Durango with 168 rated miles, so these are slow!

You might consider looking at alternate routes, like driving north from Salida to Silverthorne rather than to Denver and Lone Tree. It might be shorter or use fewer kWh. You can always plan your journey to spend the night in Durango or at Incredible Pagosa and leave in the morning with a range charge. That would easily enable you to reach Salida for a 90-minute top-off while eating lunch.

Lastly, conserve juice the first one third to one half of your leg. You can always make up the time when you are confident in the remaining range in your battery. And, I also downloaded an altimeter for my smartphone to determine my current elevation and how fast I am gaining (or losing) altitude as an extra measure of comfort.

Have a safe and fun trip!