-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Lunch at The Mountain View Hotel, Whitfield
Lunch stop at The Mountain View Hotel in Whitfield. Great food and service. Unexpectedly beautiful spot.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
We're going to Bonnie Doon
We finally dropped by Bonnie Doon, to see why the Kerrigan family in The Castle loved it so much. It has a caravan park, three old churches, a couple of eateries and absolute river frontage!
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Marmalades in Yea, plus a Tesla steam scare
Stopping at Marmalades in Yea for a cuppa and passionfruit sponge cake. When we pulled into the car park, it looked like one of the cars had an overheated radiator, with steam coming out from under the hood. But we soon realised it was a Tesla (no radiator), and the steam was from some noodles they were prepping from the frunk (front trunk).
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
A 9-minute coffee detour, after the airport
After an early start dropping off Erin at the airport, we started heading north. Francis had survived for over an hour without a coffee, so she asked her iPhone Maps for the closest good coffee place. Only 9 minutes away! Unfortunately, as we hurtled along the highway, by the time we processed all that, we must have passed the turnoff, so then maps was telling us to go back south along the highway for 15 minutes. We got there in the end, to That Coffee Shop, in Coburg North. Very entertaining coffee signs on the toilet wall. After coffee and breakfast, we headed north east, towards Yea, passing through some lush green countryside along Strath Creek.
-
HQ
HQ
West or east? Planning the next road trip
Time for another road trip! Should we head west (towards Broken Hill or maybe Adelaide) or east (through Bright and maybe Jindabyne)? We need to end up on the NSW Central Coast by Tuesday 18th July. Leaving Melbourne this Friday morning (probably). We also need to find accommodation in the Central Coast for a week or two from July 18th. So, if you know anyone who needs house sitting or similar, please let us know ☺️
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Transporting a bike, and an electric wheel
Random job to transport a bicycle, plus extra electric wheel, for a friend. It fit no problem, with the back seat down. We plan to one day buy a couple of e-bikes. I suspect we will investigate a rear rack for the car, rather than stuff them in the back. Our Model 3 is sleek and quick, but doesn’t have as much boot room as say the Tesla Model Y.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Indiana Jones at the Lunar Drive-In
Date night at the Lunar Drive-In in Dandenong, Melbourne, to see the new Indiana Jones movie 🎥 . Great fun! Bit of a queue to get food (it comes in all the yellows: burger 🍔, chips 🍟, jam filled donuts etc), but well managed by the friendly door staff. Quite a chilly night 🥶. Most people in puffer jackets or thick pyjamas and dressing gowns. Several brought their furry friends 🐶, and were happy to have a pat. This is reportedly the largest outdoor cinema in Australia. Sadly, it is closing in a week from now due to high land taxes 😢. We typed the FM radio frequency into the Tesla screen and enjoyed the movie playing through a great sound system. I added another profile to the Tesla for “Drive-in cinema”, with the seats in the reclining position, climate set to “camp mode”, the air con at a comfortable 21°C. Very thankful to have an EV, so we can keep the air con on, without having to run an engine. Everyone else, in appropriately named ICE cars, had their puffer jackets and beanies on,…
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Woodend and Kyneton house-hunting
Today we drove out through the towns of Woodend and Kyneton, Victoria. Beautiful towns, even on a cold windy day. We’re still looking for a possible new home. We looked at one house at Kyneton Bushland Resort. Another house had 14kW of solar panels, a Tesla Powerwall house battery and a Tesla EV charger. Lunch at Home Grown on Piper was delicious. We bumped into the owners of a blue Tesla Model Y with the licence plate BEM3UP (“beam me up”) at one of the houses and at the Kyneton charger. Of course we discussed Star Trek 🖖. Also had a brief chat with Tony, on a ride on his electric Harley Davison LiveWire, with his other biker mates.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
An Autopilot run to Mornington
Any excuse for a drive. We picked up some friends from Melbourne Airport and drove them down to Mornington. We did it mostly on Autopilot, so I can’t really claim that I drove. On the way back, we checked out the view, through the rain, at Olivers Hill Lookout, near Frankston.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
A walk and a house-look in Warburton
Today we journeyed out to Warburton Victoria, partly to look for a possible place to live, but also to check out the area. Lovely town, with a river and walking trails running in parallel with the main street. Beautiful walks, vegetation and bridges.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
When the iPhone says you need a walk
When your iPhone starts telling you that you’ve burnt less kilojoules than previous weeks, it’s time to get out for a walk. The iPhone is so judgy! We drove out to Lillydale Lake and walked the loop. Beautiful walk on a sunny day. Lunch at the Round Bird cafe. Delicious hearty veg soup and toasted sandwich.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Hands-off at Bayswater North Carwash
We haven’t cleaned the car since re-entering Victoria (again) many weeks ago. So, we used the drive-through Bayswater North Carwash, put the Tesla in “Car Wash Mode” and sat back while the robots did the work 🤖.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
A lyrebird mural coming to life in Ferntree Gully
I stumbled across this beautiful lyrebird mural in Ferntree Gully, Victoria. It started as a chalk outline (not pictured) which I guessed was an octopus, much to the dismay of the very talented artist Juzpop. I checked in each morning to marvel at the progress. Juz paints murals as a full time gig. I’ll be looking out for her other works. We’ve been trying out the local takeaway coffee shops. There are quite a few options, including Larder and Thyme and Station Street Coffee Co.
-
HQ
Off to Castlemaine, early
Up early this morning for a road trip to check out Castlemaine, Victoria.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Free EV charging during a HOYTS movie
We went to the movies tonight at HOYTS Australia in Forest Hill, Melbourne. There happened to be an EV charger in the car park, so, why not charge up, for free, while we watch the movie ☺️. The second allocated spot, where I parked, is oddly crammed in between a pillar and wall. It’s BYO cable, which I had. I just had to cross over the first car’s cable, plug in, press start, and walk away. Easy so far, right! When we returned after the movie, I forgot about the crossover, and spent two minutes trying to unplug the wrong cable. It wasn’t until I was on the Chargefox support phone line that Francis pointed out my mistake 🤦♂️. Then I thought I’d redeem my tech wizardry, by using Summon from the Tesla app to move the car forward, so I could open the doors for my passengers. But I stopped it when the driver’s door was right next to the pillar and then couldn’t get it moving again. I had to squeeze through the gap, and drive the car forward manually, like a Neanderthal. Now, my tech cred…
-
HQ
HQ
Two odd EV-charging spots in Knoxfield
Driving along a random suburban road near a park in Knoxfield, Melbourne, I saw charging spots in this car park. Two tesla chargers and a general EV charger, with clearly painted EV parking on the ground. However, upon closer inspection, the chargers are just cardboard facsimiles. What is going on? The sign is branded with “SJ Display Group. Innovative retail display solutions”. Weird.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
JOLT charging at Ferntree Gully Station
I charged up again using the JOLT Charge at Ferntree Gully Station, while doing some work on my laptop. While there, a Nissan Leaf pulled up next to me. The driver, Tony, told me that he wanted to try out the Jolt charging for the first time. He bought his Nissan Leaf two years ago as a “grey” import for $18,000. It’s a 2014 model. It has a 24kWh battery but now only gets about 100km on a full charge. He also said that it doesn’t have great thermal management of the battery, so regular fast charging can be problematic. For comparison, our bottom range Tesla Model 3 has a 60kWh battery and gets 360 to 440km on a full charge. The technology has certainly come a long way since the original Nissan Leaf cars, but they paved the way.
-
FB
FB
FB
The Hatter and the Hare, in Bayswater
Beautiful food. Amazing cakes. Terrible parking. I asked if they had any black forest cake. They said they’re planning on adding it to the next three month cycle, which starts in a month. The chef is still perfecting it. I offered to beta test, but they didn’t ask for my details. Looking forward to it. The parking there is terrible. Small shared car park with other businesses. One of the “cafe” marked spots was blocked with a bollard and crate by another business.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
A long line at Proserpina Bakehouse
Popped in to Proserpina Bakehouse in the Dandenong Ranges to grab some lunch. Beautiful place and food. Long line because it’s so popular.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Helping Tim and Krissy move into storage
We helped our friends (and generous hosts) Tim and Krissy, move some of their belongings into storage. Our Tesla Model 3 is a sleek sedan. It doesn’t have as much storage space as say the larger Model Y or X. But it still fits a fair amount of stuff, in the boot/trunk, sub-trunk, frunk (front trunk, since there’s no engine) and the back seat.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Spotting an 'OIL 404' Tesla at Eastland
We did some shopping and grabbed some lunch at Eastland Shopping Centre, east of Melbourne. In the car park, we noticed one of the other Teslas, in the valet parking area, with the license plate “OIL 404” (which means: oil not found)😆. You might be able to see it in the photo.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Jolt charging — improved app at Ferntree Gully
Charging using JOLT Charge at Ferntree Gully Station. JOLT Charge has updated their app! I noticed some big improvements, including: 1. Seems to be a proper native iOS app. Previously seemed to be some hybrid white labeled thing with odd UI. 2. I can choose a charging cable at my location. No need to scan a QR code any more (which failed for me previously). 3. Clearer UI showing progression of dollars and energy.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
A late lunch in Euroa
We stopped at Euroa for a late lunch, on our way to Melbourne. Beautiful park across the road from the Tesla superchargers, and some food outlets up the road.
-
HQ
HQ
Breakfast at The Coffee Pedaler, Gundagai
Breakfast this morning at The Coffee Pedaler in Gundagai, before the final leg of our drive to Melbourne.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Flash Jacks Boutique Hotel, Gundagai
On our way from the NSW Central Coast to Melbourne. Thanks for the recommendation Hugh Sykes and Margaret McDonald. I think it’s a converted convent.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
First time at the Campbelltown Superchargers
We left the Central Coast this morning, dropped off one of our kids at Sydney airport, and kept driving south towards Melbourne. We stopped for our first time at the Tesla superchargers in Campbelltown (next to Campbeltown Catholic Club). There are several fast food outlets across the road, but we opted for the nearby Arts Center Cafe.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Favourite Terrigal Beach moments
May 2, 5, 9: While on the Central Coast, we visited Terrigal Beach a few times, for a walk along the beach, the lagoon, the esplanade and boardwalk. Indian from Grand Pavillion Terrigal and dumplings from SeaBay Restaurant are our favourites.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Peaceful, with lots of birds, at The Palms Avoca
Peaceful. Lots of bird life. Friendly staff. Short drive to beaches, walls, shops, cafes.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Great food, near the Superchargers
Great food and service. Close to the Tesla Superchargers.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
How we charged at The Palms Avoca
A charging story, for those who might be interested. It took a while to find a way to charge at The Palms at Avoca Beach. We had asked about charging when booking, and the friendly staff said that we could just plug the EV into the cabin. Attempt 1: Too cold When we arrived, since we were staying a couple of weeks, they had generously upgraded our cabin. But this one (number 20) is down a path from the parking. We managed to make our extension cord just reach along the path through the door to a power point. However, when switched it on, the Tesla UMC (universal mobile charger) showed a red light flashing twice. I checked on the screen in the Tesla and tapped on the warning. The table showed that this problem is due to insufficient grounding of the power point. Attempt 2: Too hot I asked the staff about other options. They were very helpful, suggesting one of the two larger cabins that have a power point on their balcony. Since they had no booking there, they said we could park there…
-
HQ
FB
FB
Two weeks at The Palms Avoca
We’re staying a couple of weeks at The Palms at Avoca. In all the time that we lived in the Central Coast, we never knew this place existed. It’s kind of a cabin park, with pool, games room and so on. Very peaceful, with lots of birds. Short drive to beaches and shops. A couple of our kids visited to try out the games room.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Lunch at Cafe5911, Goulburn
Stopped for lunch in Goulburn at Cafe5911. Great food and service. Only a 200m walk from the Tesla Superchargers, through Belmore Park. This is the first time we have taken our EV through Goulburn.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Coffee Pedaler, then Dog on the Tuckerbox
Morning caffeination at The Coffee Pedaler in Gundagai. Then stopped down the road at Dog On The Tuckerbox. Years ago, we stopped here at Oliver's Real Food and for the first time saw the Tesla Superchargers at the back. That’s probably what started us mulling over the idea of buying an electric vehicle some day. Now we’ve come full circle.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Goats and alpacas at Hillview Farmstay
We stayed overnight at Hillview Farmstay in Mount Adrah, just south of Gundagai. Great place to stop halfway between Melbourne and Sydney. Lots of goats, sheep and an alpaca to pat or join for their daily feeding.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Holbrook submarine, with EV chats
We stopped in Holbrook to have the obligatory photo with the submarine and a couple of pies. We chatted with one guy who was driving his Tesla and daughters from Adelaide to Sydney. Also chatted with Kate and Karen in their Kona 😊 (pictured). They’ve only had it a few weeks and this was their first big trip. Lovely to chat with them. We talked about the Kona. I mentioned that we had chatted with Margaret McDonald about her pioneering trip in the Kona a few years back. Karen said she knew Margaret and Hugh Sykes through her work at the Central Coast ABC (if I recall correctly). Margaret and Hugh are EV celebrities that inspire many 🤩. Charging story: When entering the trip into the navigation in Melbourne, I had only set our destination as our first stop, in Thurgoona (to visit some old friends), so the Tesla didn’t have the chance to tell me I needed another charge after Yea to get to our next stop at Gundagai. As you can see from the screen, it starts to freak out if there are no…
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Why Tesla Superchargers are so easy
We are constantly impressed by how easy the Tesla Superchargers are to use. We enter our destination into the car’s navigation. The car adds the needed supercharger stops. We arrive, plug it in, walk away to the toilet or cafe. The app tells us that it’s nearly finished charging and we should get back to move the car. So easy, right? Well, except, as you might have noticed in these photos, it seems that I can’t manage to actually park on the correct side of the chargers 🤦. Where possible, we have aimed to instead use other types of chargers, just to familiarise ourselves with them (and to make some content for these posts). But, if you have a Tesla, the superchargers are the simplest and quickest way to go.
-
HQ
HQ
FB
Hot-air balloons over Yarra Glen
Headed off once again from Melbourne towards the NSW Central Coast. We left early enough to spot some hot air balloons over Yarra Glen. This will be the first time that we’ve done this trip fairly directly, mostly along the Hume Freeway, unlike our previous long routes along the coast or further inland.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Mobile office at Jells Park, in a loaner
#digitalnomad The observant among you will notice that the car seats are black. This is actually a loan car from Tesla while they fired our car with a PWS (pedestrian warning system) aka “boom box”, and fixed a mysterious rattling noise.
-
HQ
HQ
Mobile office at Tim Neville Arboretum
Mobile office this afternoon at the Tim Neville Arboretum. #digitalnomad
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Jolt second attempt — Ferntree Gully Station
My second attempt at using a JOLT Charge station was at Ferntree Gully Station. This location was much better (than Bayswater station, mentioned in my earlier post). It’s in a carpark, where you can come and go easily. Still no “EV charging only” sign, which is needed. When I used this charger a week later, there was a ute (of course) parked in the spot. I waved politely to the driver who obligingly moved to another car spot so I could use the charger. I already had the JOLT Charge app installed, with my credit card details entered. I tried using the app’s QR code scanner, but it repeatedly failed. So, I entered the charging station’s ID number and, after a few seconds wait, it started charging. It is a DC charger (with a built in cable). It charges at 22kW, which is slower than the typical 50 to 350kW DC charger, but still faster than the 7 to 11kW max we can get out of an AC charger. I expect that a typical top up of half a battery would take about 90 minutes, which is probably a…
-
HQ
HQ
FB
Jolt first attempt — ICEd at Bayswater Station
This was my first chance to try out a JOLT Charge charger, next to Bayswater Station. Unfortunately, this one was “ICEd” by a van. Not their fault, though, because there is no “EV charging only“ sign here. I expect that makes it really difficult to use. In addition, there’s no way to come back to park here, except by going around a very large block. So, if you park further down to wait, then see a car leave, you’re unlikely to be able to move your car to the charger before another car parks there after turning off the main road. So, this time, I gave up and moved on to another charger. See my next post about Jolt charging at Ferntree Gully Station.
-
HQ
HQ
FB
Our four photos for Tesla's Earth Day comp
Tesla is running an #EarthDay competition for customers to submit photos of Tesla products. The limit is four photos. We picked these ones from our Tesla Tripping adventures.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
A walk around Jells Park
Walk around Jell’s Park, east of Melbourne.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Songbird Cafe, plus a free EV Up charge
Lunch at Songbird Cafe & Larder in King Lake, followed by a bit of a walk through the autumn leaves, and view of Melbourne city from Frank Thompson Reserve - Lookout. Topped up the battery, while we ate lunch, at the free EV Up charger behind the King Lake police station, but it took a bit of time to find the right app to make it start charging.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Brunch at Somers General, beside old bowsers
Brunch at The Somers General cafe, overlooking old petrol bowsers that now only serve as decorative relics from a hopefully fading era. It would be great to see EV chargers replace them here.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Kebab and laptop at Rye Front Beach
Stopped at Rye Front Beach for a veggie paneer tikka kebab from DD,S KEbab & Burgers, and to do some work on my laptop.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Car camping at Point Leo Reserve, on the south coast of Victoria
I checked with the ranger/reception about plugging in an EV at the powered site, and mentioned that I was car camping. I chose a powered site ($10 extra), which is only slightly more than it would have cost me to top up the charge at home. I set the Tesla to “camp mode” which keeps the accessories on. Air con (with no engine running) kept me comfy all night. I used a folded over yoga mat for a bit of extra padding under the hips under the Tessories Australia foam mattress. But I should have levelled out the car a bit more to alleviate the gradual sliding down into the boot during the night. Thermos of tea, fireplace on the Tesla screen, glass roof to watch the sunrise in the morning, and a USB powered mozzie zapper from KILOS GEAR, just in case.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Setting up camp at Point Leo Foreshore
Set up camp at Point Leo Foreshore Reserve. So many rabbits! KILOS GEAR chairs and foot rest. Suction cup and line from Bunnings.
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
A few nights at Mural House Olinda
We stayed a few nights in the Dandenong Ranges, at Mural House Olinda. It’s a B&B run by our friends Suzanne and Ron. Beautiful place, with birds visiting at the large lounge room window while I worked on my laptop. When I looked on PlugShare, there aren’t any EV chargers listed in Mount Dandenong area, other than at Proserpina Bakehouse, and King Henry Cafe, only for customers. I asked our hosts (MHO) about providing EV charging for guests. TT: Is it okay for guests to plug in our EV while we’re here? MHO: Yes. There’s a power point near the car port. TT: Thanks. It was an about 2m too far for our mobile charging cable, so we added our extension cord. MHO: We will make an extension cord available for others who might need one. TT: What do you pay for electricity? MHO: 20c/kWh of peak and 40c/kWh peak. We also have a 5kW solar system, for which we get 10c/kWh for any exported. TT: So, if someone charges their EV here at 2kW for 10 hours overnight, that would cost you about 2 x 10 x…
-
HQ
HQ
HQ
Locust-splattered, on to Daylesford
Arrived in Daylesford. We skipped Ballarat, mainly because I messed up on a roundabout at the exit ramp. The Tesla has many km of bug carnage, mainly from millions of locusts and other bugs on the road through the farmlands to the east of Ararat (see previous posts). The wasps descended on the car as soon as we stopped in Daylesford, for a free meal of bug guts. Charging story: We plugged into the 22kW Chargefox driven DC charger in town while we had a pub dinner at The Royal Daylesford. Before we got out of the car, a couple started asking us “how long does it take to charge”, which is the common first question. “As long as it takes to eat dinner” for this charger, would have been the most accurate response. But I said I prefer to just plug it in each night where I’m staying, so I don’t even have to think about it.
Formerly: Tesla Tripping
Come along on our EV road trips around Australia and Europe, and follow as we progressively electrify our home in Emerald, Victoria.
Join us on the road. We set off in late 2022 and drove eastern Australia in our Tesla Model 3 — Sydney, Dubbo, Armidale, Brisbane, Cape Tribulation, then down through Queensland and back. We've since upgraded to a Model Y.
We've kept exploring — Uluru, the Snowy Mountains and Gippsland, and a longer run through Europe in 2024. There's plenty more on the map, so come along for the next leg.
At home in Emerald, in Victoria's Dandenong Ranges, we're progressively electrifying everything: rooftop solar, a home battery, a hot water heat pump, air conditioned heating and cooling, and EV charging straight from the sun. We're going fully electric, off the gas.
Got questions, or insights of your own? We'd love to hear them — please drop a comment on any post.