Electrics at the Dragon - Day 6: Charleston to Marlinton WV

Day 6: Charleston to Marlinton WV

Stats and Map:

Intended mileage

158

Actual mileage

154

Cumulative mileage

943

Number of charge stops

3

Charging cost

$7.35

Charging energy (kWh)

20

Route

This route took me through the mountains of southern West Virginia from Charleston to Hawk's Nest State Park, New River Gorge, and ultimately through Monongahela Forest to Marlinton, WV.  I was unsure about charging because the PlugShare locations had few check-ins with limited information.  Also since the stations were not networked, I was unable to see status.  

Before heading out, my old boss and friend Vinay invited a few of the Bayer Institute, WV site retirees for a breakfast and it was heartwarming to see some of my colleagues after all these years.  

Hawks Nest

My first stop was at Hawks Nest State Park which was really just a pit stop, but there's a great view awaiting from the lodge as well.  They happened to have a free Level 2 charger so I got about 10 miles of additional range while I stopped. 

New River Gorge and Fayetteville

My family and I had visited this spot a number of times when we lived in West Virginia but now it's a full-fledged National Park.  So of course I had to collect my National Parks Pass stamp, pick up a few post cards and ride down the Fayette Station Road that takes you across the bridge that you used to have to cross for getting to the other side of the New River.  That makes for a spectacular curvy ride down and a neat view of the new bridge.    

After my ride down and back up the gorge (which is shown in the video), I stopped in Fayetteville for a coffee and a charge.  The Fayetteville chargers are just plug and charge, so no need for an app.  You do need to pay for parking with a QR code.  While a bit expensive at $5.00 for an hour, the charge stop provided peace of mind to make it all the way to my destination for the day.  The coffee was also astoundingly good and the caffeine hit the spot.  

Richwood

Since the Richwood EV charger (PlugShare link) was not well documented, I decided to stop in and check it out.  It turned out to be an honor system charger where you just plug in, charge, and then put $1 per hour into an envelope at the city hall.  I was there for under 1 hours, but decided to donate $2 just to support this system.  It's actually quite clever since network connectivity is one of the prime culprits in Level 2 charging failures.  

Monongahela Forest and Marlinton

With range issues vanquished, the remaining ride on a beautiful spring day with little traffic was just stunning.  My Marlinton AirBNB was a cute little room with bathroom and kitchenette in back of the local ice cream shop (closed for the season yet...rats!) that was perfect for my use case.  I even sat outside on a picnic table to download camera footage and start the video editing process, at least until the mosquitoes came out.  

Tomorrow the journey moves on into Virginia.  

Stop Soldier Suicide Fundraiser

As part of this ride, I'm participating in a Facebook Stop Soldier Suicide fundraiser.  If this issue is important to you, please chip in a few dollars to a worthy cause.  I will post my mileage updates on that page as well as this page.


See you on the road!

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