The Blue Ridge Parkway - It's possible.

[gtm]

I've wanted to drive the Blue Ridge Parkway for for a long time. I finally convinced my copilot it would be worth the extra time on our trip from NJ to FL. The Parkway isn't exactly a national park but it's close. Limited access points and almost no infrastructure on the Parkway itself. Oh, and throw in very spotty cell reception. It is not a drive where you can make time, and that's the point. It's the road and the views. So plan some overnight level 2 charging and take your time.

TLDR: It is possible in your Taycan and it was so worth the couple of hiccups we encountered.

Left NJ at 6,415 miles. SoH 92.96%. 266 mile range @ 100%.

9/16/23 - Nothing of note. We drove to my daughter's in Lancaster, PA to say goodbye to the family before heading South for a couple of months. Stayed overnight at the Wilbur Lititz. New (in an old factory building), nice, right in the center of Lititz (and the town is a nice destination all by itself) and they have one level 2 charger.

139 miles @ 31.1 KWh/100 miles (3.22 miles/kWh) and 52 mph avg speed. Very typical for a drive I've done multiple times.

9/17/23 - Lititz, Pa to Peaks of Otter Lodge, Bedford, VA (at mile marker 86 of the BRP).

Managed to snag the single charger the night before so the car was at 95% in the morning. The first hiccup. The charge cable would not come out of the car. The car thinks it's released. The emergency pull cord doesn't release the cable. Tried all the usual things but it does not seem to be the car. I call Porsche roadside assistance on a Sunday morning expecting nothing. Actually the process worked and I was put in touch with a local service. Not Porsche, but at least someone. Expectations that they could deal with a stuck charging cable in a parking lot? Low. I should have more faith. The problem was pretty clearly in the handle and with a little gentle prying the cable came out. Two sections had pulled apart and were keeping the handle's lever from lifting to release. OK, not bad. The whole thing only set up back a little over an hour during which time we had breakfast. Off to Route 81 for the drive to Rockfish Gap where the BRP starts.

Roughly 260 miles of highway where the weather got progressively wetter. And wetter. No traffic problems and only a single charging stop. Stevens City, VA where we got 250 kW speed, and this has been a 100% reliable EA stop on multiple visits.

Turned onto the BRP to this:

Fog doesn't describe it.

You are in the clouds as much as fog. A great drive, in a masochistic way. Very slow going but we would round a corner or go over a hill and it would suddenly be clear. Look in the rear view mirror and it was like a curtain had been dropped over the road. Next corner back into the fog. Almost no traffic, we were in no hurry and it was almost otherwordly. 90 miles later we arrived at the Peaks of Otter Lodge. It's right on the BRP and the only place actually on the Parkway where you can charge. An older place that leans toward rustic, but nice clean rooms and an excellent bar and restaurant on site. Enjoyed the bar for a while (just finding the turn for the Lodge warranted a celebratory drink) and had a nice dinner. Walked back to our room in this:

That's about 150 feet away. Truly awsome fog in the VA mountains.

346 miles @ 35.6 kWh/100. 2.81 miles/kWh. 48 mph. Calculated range is down to 241 miles. Frankly I'm surprised the GOM didn't calculate lower and I'm equally surprised that I averaged 48 mph considering that the last 90 miles couldn't have been above 20 mph on average. Plugged in and should be ready to go in the morning for the one leg that is causing range anxiety.

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[gtm]

9/18/23 - Peaks of Otter Lodge to Blowing Ridge, NC (MM 86 to MM 292). 206 miles of mountains and curves. Might be borderline on the range.

Woke up to this outside the back deck. Not a clue it was even there the night before due to the fog.

Now this is a promising start. Went to get the car and found the charge had stopped at 38%. I'm wondering what I had changed without meaning to. Nothing as it turns out. Timer still set to be at 95% by 7AM. Tesla destination charger I was plugged into was working. It seems like the range manager calculated enough charge to get me to the closest EA station with my 25% minimum on arrival. But my destination was the Lodge, I was there and had no other destinations set. Hiccup #2. I had planned an alternate in case the Lodge's chargers were down or occupied so off we went to Brugh's Mill. Not where I wanted to go but a very reliable charging station with a great convenience store. Still getting 117kW at 78%. The 21 miles from the Lodge to Brugh's Mill was a serious downhill and brake regen was pretty constant. Consumption was 37.6 kWh/100, way high considering I could have coasted almost the whole way. Preheating a 50 degree battery uses some serious electrons.

Got our charge and skirted Roanoke to get back on the BRP. A little time lost but another hiccup that turned out to be minor. The Route Planner kept trying to have us leave the BRP so I kind of ignored it until there were no options. Now the IRM showed us arriving with 10 miles remaining. Way too close. I don't know for certain that a charge will be possible at tonight's inn, and I do know for certain that there would be a divorce in my future if we get stranded. But this was planned for. Off the BRP at Fancy Gap (MM 200) to a Circle K 20 miles down Route 77. Nice empty chargers where we got 152 KW. Maybe 15 minutes later we had enough of a cushion and headed back to the BRP to get on at MM 228. The detour followed the BRP enough that it really didn't cost us many miles.

A little haze but the views made the charging detour well worth it. And views like these were around every corner. Cruised into Blowing Rock and the Hemlock Inn mid afternoon so had plenty of time to decompress by walking around Blowing Rock. It lived up to the tag line "the prettiest town in North Carolina". Really nicely done downtown. Kind of spaced out on getting any pictures.

The Inn was just off Main Street so very convenient and very quiet. Exceedingly accommodating owner who was happy to provide a complementary charge. One Tesla, one ChargePoint and both working. Plugged in (double checked the timer) and went off to find dinner. Today wasn't quite as smooth as hoped, and even with a full charge at the start of the day I do not think the Taycan would have had the range to cover the 206 miles of the BRP and still have had a sufficient cushion on arrival. The hills, curves and increasing elevation took a toll. The next leg will have no range anxiety since it would only be 107 miles to Asheville.

241 miles @33.5 kWh/100. 2.99 miles/kWh. 45 mph. GOM still at 241 miles the next morning.

 

[gtm]

9/19/23 - Blowing Rock to Asheville, NC (The Biltmore Estate). A short drive with a fair number of things worth spending a little time at particularly if you are a hiker.

I missed the turnoff for the view of the Linn Cove Viaduct but this was around the corner.

And then there was this a couple of turns later.

Took a short detour to Grandfather Mountain. One mile elevation so you are up there a ways and have views in every direction. $20 per person to get in and a bargain. It's a park with multiple hiking trails, visitors' center, good amenities.

Lunch at the Switzerland Inn in Little Switzerland. A town/tourist stop barely off the BRP. Not a whole lot going on but we enjoyed the view while waiting to get at table for lunch.

Every overlook/pull off had views like this.

Range anxiety in a Taycan? How about doing this in a Conestoga Wagon?

Arrived to very nice accommodations at the Biltmore Estate Hotel.

107 miles. 26.6 kWh/100. 3.76 miles/kWh. 30 mph (there was a lot of stopping to gaze). GOM range only up to 255 miles despite today heading downhill and getting pretty decent efficiency.

 

[neo402]

Very nice. I live in NC so found this especially interesting. You inspire me to try!

 

[gtm]

Very nice. I live in NC so found this especially interesting. You inspire me to try!

Thanks, and do try. Even doing a smaller section is worth it. Lots to see between Blowing Rock and Asheville and quite a few places to spend some time. Supposedly the section Below Asheville is spectacular. The BRP is not a road to attack, as there are too many blind corners and too much to see, but a great road to feel just what a good job Porsche did with the chassis. It was a blast.

 

[TaycanCook]

Thanks! I would love to get onto skyline and the brp at some point. This is a great inspiration.

 

[e92er]

Nice!
I was up in Asheville last month for a conference and took a few hours to drive up the BRP and back. Would love to one day drive it as part of a road trip like you!!

 

[IrwinJ]

9/19/23 - Blowing Rock to Asheville, NC (The Biltmore Estate). A short drive with a fair number of things worth spending a little time at particularly if you are a hiker.

I missed the turnoff for the view of the Linn Cove Viaduct but this was around the corner.

And then there was this a couple of turns later.

Took a short detour to Grandfather Mountain. One mile elevation so you are up there a ways and have views in every direction. $20 per person to get in and a bargain. It's a park with multiple hiking trails, visitors' center, good amenities.

Lunch at the Switzerland Inn in Little Switzerland. A town/tourist stop barely off the BRP. Not a whole lot going on but we enjoyed the view while waiting to get at table for lunch.

Every overlook/pull off had views like this.

Range anxiety in a Taycan? How about doing this in a Conestoga Wagon?

Arrived to very nice accommodations at the Biltmore Estate Hotel.

107 miles. 26.6 kWh/100. 3.76 miles/kWh. 30 mph (there was a lot of stopping to gaze). GOM range only up to 255 miles despite today heading downhill and getting pretty decent efficiency.

Very nice! I live in Asheville 6 months a year and love driving my Taycan on the parkway!!!

 

[gtm]

9/19/23 to 9/21/23 - Got to the Biltmore Estate mid afternoon. It's worth a couple of day visit. Did the usual tourist stuff - walked, ate, drank, enjoyed some very nice Fall weather. It's a beautiful, large, very well maintained property. Took a tour of the Biltmore Mansion. Think you are fairly far up the pyramid? A visit to the mansion will fix your perspective. The pyramid goes a whole lot higher.

The solarium (not sure what else you would call it). Amazing detail work.

There are better pictures available from the pros that show just how over the top the house was. All the more impressive considering it was finished in 1895. The man embraced excess and ran with it.

Two Bosch 6kW chargers at the Hotel, which is a wholly inadequate number during the day given the large number of day-trippers. At night it seemed one of the two was always available so I was able to charge up for our departure on the 21st.

Charged at EA in Columbia, SC. Huge improvement over the past year. All 4 units were working when it had been only 2. Only 150 kW on a 350 but last time it was 47 kW.

Charged at EA in Pooler, GA. 6 towers and all looked to be working. 257 kW.

Is EA actually making improvements? Because of the "destination" charging on this trip there wasn't a whole lot of EA use but every one was working and at reasonable to great charging levels.

469 miles to home. 31.2 kWh/100. 3.21 miles/kWh. 60 mph.

Overall: 1302 miles. 32.4 kWh/100. 3.09 miles/kWh.

SoH down slightly to 92.33%. Range calculated to 259 miles @ 100%. The GOM has decided to adjust that to 265 miles after doing nothing more than being recharged to 75% and then sitting in the garage for 10 days. Odd bit of calculating going on but was probably pretty accurate on the trip, adjusting for the previous day(s) driving.

Lets see. Really stupid in hindsight to do this without a spare tire. Access points are few and fairly far apart. Cell reception is hit or miss. Finding a suitable tire reasonably close to the Parkway is probably not happening. A flat you can't fix with a plug would seriously disrupt a day or two.

The car was nearly perfect. Quiet, comfortable and able to easily handle any kind of oddball curve the road threw at us. The PCM had a few minor quirks but seems to be better at fixing itself quickly. Do smaller sections or do as we did and find overnight accommodations and take your time. The scenery doesn't change all that much from one end to the other so if you can work any 100 mile segment into a trip it will be well worth a little detour.

 

[gtm]

Very nice! I live in Asheville 6 months a year and love driving my Taycan on the parkway!!!

A beautiful part of this country. I'm not sure I would like those roads in the winter but just spectacular with everything green.

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