A Maritimes AdvEVenture Part 3

When planning the Cape Breton section of our Maritimes trip, MacGyver confessed he was a little anxious about the charging infrastructure as it's pretty remote. Never did we think we'd be more concerned with the charging of the human body infrastructure!

Now if a human could live on the non-stop feast that was before our eyes over the past two and a half days, then we'd each have been stuffed to the gills. My heart was aching almost 24/7 with the utter splendour.

Ocean view at the top of the 23-storey high Freshwater Lake Look-off Hike

Along the Cabot Trail, there are no fast chargers, but there were actually more opportunities for charging than for fuel, at least at this time of year.

This is where we turned off the Trans-Canada Highway, traveling in a counter-clockwise direction, onto the eastern leg of the 298 km loop known as…

World famous indeed, and I can sure see why. A road trip of a lifetime. But I am a bit ahead of myself. Prior to this, after crossing the causeway onto the island, we headed north to Baddeck for our first charging stop of the day. This was a 50 kW flo charger off to the side of the parking lot for an inn and restaurant. From there we walked up (oof! it was 1 km up some fairly steep inclines) to the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site.

The museum is on the grounds of Beinn Bhreagh, the Bell estate

Be sure to bring your Discovery pass for Parks Canada; like the Anne of Green Gables Historic Site, your pass gets you in for free.Well, we'd barely got there after paying a visit to a 'Comfort Station' (love that - public bathrooms right across the street from where we were charging), got our entry receipt and did the first timeline section, when MacGyver checked his phone Hyundai app, and said we should walk back to pick up the car as it was only another 12 minutes to 100%. He is paranoid about leaving it sit at a charging station if it's finished in case someone else is waiting. Back down we went, and then drove it back up to the parking lot at the AGB site! What an educational, humbling and informational hour we spent at that site. Well worth the stop, and again, we multi-tasked to perfection: 100% charged and ready to head up the Cabot Trail.

Eight slow chargers, 9 kW, are available for free at the historic site

Fast chargers, 50 kW and up are the best time-wise, but if you have a stop like this or for a sit-down meal, then plugging in for free for an hour will generally get you another 10-12% depending on your battery size. These, surprisingly, are economically the best chargers if you are going to be parked for an extended period of time, such as overnight or perhaps a 4-hour or more activity. The charge is minimal, usually around $1/hour if not free. 

The drive up to Ingonish is spectacular. Be sure to stop at some of the many look-offs for those astounding, heartbreakingly gorgeous views.

I am obsessed with the pink cliffs

Looking southeast (spot the hood of our Ioniq 5!

With an EV, when you brake (which is rare; remember the sewing machine pedal analogy) or coast, you actually regenerate power that goes back into the battery. It blows your mind at first to see that you have, say, 354 km range, then you go down a long hill, and your range goes up to 355 or 356! Because MacGyver had found the 'Auto' regeneration mode in the Econo mode in which we were driving, it maxed out the regen capability, so we didn't go through as much battery power (think gas) as we'd anticipated because of this.

Looking south (note the incline!)

We parked at the Visitor Centre for the Cape Breton Highlands National Park where, you got it, we plugged in to 9 kW chargers, yep, for free, while we did a couple of hikes. We were at 78%, but while we did the following hikes, we charged, for free, up to 90%. MacGyver was pleased!

One of the park workers said, “Yes that’s the start, right across the road. It’s an easy 200 steps.”

I took that to mean steps as in how many I walked in a day. Nope. Stairs and inclines over rocks and tree roots the equivalent of 23 storeys! At the top is the view you see in the second photo. Or watch this 12-second video. 

I also recommend the Middlehead Hike. 

One of the never-ending stunning vistas. We walked part way out on the point but turned back and finished off the shorter loop. 

Keep going straight out, kissing the edge of Newfoundland, and the next stop is? France. 🤯

Another new obsession: polka dot boulders 

We did 14 011 steps that day, and 37 storeys! Off we went to Ingonish. This is where we ran into difficulties refuelling our own selves: Coastal Restaurant was closed to the public due to having catered to a busload (literally). The Sea Gull was closed for the season as were several others we drove by. The local little grocery store was closed, (this was 6 pm) as was the gas station. For those who might do this trip with an ICE car, be sure to have a full tank of gas before heading up the trail, especially at this time of year. We ended up at Main Restaurant, where the servers were wearing these:

A million percent agreed🇨🇦 

With 90% charge in our battery, MacGyver heaved a huge sigh of relief (remember he'd been rather anxious) and we had a terrific sleep listening, even with the windows closed—it went down to 8C) to the rollers of the ocean, feeling the vibrating through our pillows. Amazing… and soothing. 

The next day we drove all the way to our next stop, Chéticamp, stopping along the way at several places to gaze, and/or hike. I'll end this third instalment for now and be back with Part 4 soon.