Although jetting off to far-flung parts of the globe is normally my chosen way to travel we recently went on a long (4800 km/3000 miles) road trip. 

We were originally planning to go in my car, but with the crazy price of gas at the moment we decided to go in lovely husband’s new electric car. During the pandemic he got rid of his electric vehicle as it was just sitting in the driveway — and he only needed to go into the office once every couple of weeks so he just went in my car. With his return to the office a couple of days a week earlier this year he decided a new car was necessary. 

He got a Hyundai Ioniq 5 to make the long commute into the office (where charging is free). It’s much bigger than I was expecting so it seemed like it would hold all the crap we inevitably need to take the pugs on a road trip. I can manage 10 days in Europe with one small carry on — but somehow we need a whole trunk full of stuff to keep the puppies fed and amused while en route.  

We started our trip by spending a few days in Carmel to celebrate my birthday. Carmel-by-the-Sea is delightful at any time of year. It’s about a 2.5 hour drive from here — so very easy to get to — and on every visit have found it to be quite magical. No matter the weather I always find the air is wonderful and it feels nice on my face.

I love just wandering through residential neighbourhoods in Carmel. All the houses are so charming. There are little (but oh-so-pricey) stone cottages, sea side bungalows, and enormous modern edifices — all of which have character — and in spite of, or perhaps because of all being so different from each other, they all look pleasing side by side.

We stayed at the Lincoln Green Inn. It’s a small collection of cottages straight out of a fairytale set in beautiful grounds very near the heart of Carmel. They each have their own little fenced in yard, so it’s a perfect locale to go with your furry companions. They offer a delightful breakfast which comes to your door on a tray in the morning which you can enjoy accompanied by tea or coffee prepared in the fully equipped kitchen. The Inn is just a few blocks from Carmel River State Beach and there’s a fantastic trail.

After a few relaxing days we headed north to start the long haul to Calgary. Of course all of Oregon and Washington seemed to be having a heatwave the entire time we were driving. It was about 38C/101F the whole time. It was so hot that in many places when we’d stop to charge the car we’d have to carry the pugs the nearest grassy patch or bit of shade as the parking lot was scorching. This also meant more frequent charging was necessary as lots of AC was required to keep us all from melting. 

It was quite remarkable how little money we spent on charging to go such a long way. It felt very satisfying at a time when gas was at its peak pricing to only spend a few dollars here and there to juice up the Ioniq 5. There aren’t many thrills in a long day of driving so I chose to be entertained by how much money we were saving!

We spent the first night in Bend, Oregon. When you have two puppies in tow it’s fairly impossible to just wing it and stay wherever — so regardless of the crazy heat and the dwindling energy reserves we had to make it to Bend. We stayed at the Wall Street Suites. Very comfortable, well appointed, and super dog friendly. Also, as it turns out, just a few blocks from the Deschutes River Trail which was a delightful place for our morning walk before getting back into the car for another long day on the road.

Next stop was Spokane, Washington. I booked a teeny, tiny Airbnb which was indeed teeny, tiny. But it did have a few convenient patches of grass, as well as a (sloooow) charger for the car at the back so we could charge up over night which was very convenient. 

Then we had the final leg to Calgary. We were slightly nervous about crossing the border. Although I had checked about 20 times what paperwork we’d need for the pugs it was the first time crossing the land border with them. I had downloaded the app to put in all our information and Covid vaccinations, etc., but when we got there the border agent didn’t want to see anything. Asked us a few questions and sent us on our way. Easy peasy. We needed a fairly lengthy charging session in Cranbrook, BC so we went on a long walk. It was a bit cooler and there was a decent amount of grass to avail ourselves of. Time for a quick bite of lunch, meander back to the car, and head off to our final destination. It felt quite nostalgic to see all the very Canadian businesses as we left town: Husky! Canadian Tire! Tim Horton’s! PetroCan! Real Canadian Superstore! CIBC! Etc., etc. After almost six years of not being in Canada it was kind of fun — and of course I felt the need to point and say all the names as we passed.

Isn’t it nice when something is as good as you remember it?

While we were in Calgary we ate in the two restaurants I had been pining for over the last few years. We enjoyed a delightful anniversary dinner at River Cafe. There was quite a bit of construction so the walk from the closest parking to the restaurant on Prince’s Island was not quite as idyllic as I had remembered but once there River Cafe was just as wonderful. I had been hoping to sit outside but we got doused with rain on the walk from the car — so inside it was! I had the Haida Gwaii Halibut and lovely husband had the Hog Wild Boar Belly — both delicious — paired with a yummy Canadian Syrah. The other place I had been missing was Boogie’s Burgers. It’s a little hole in the wall place that’s been there since 1969 — with very little decor changes over the years — but honestly the best burgers I’ve ever had. We had a fun lunch and then drove around our old neighbourhood a bit. Isn’t it nice when something is as good as you remember it? I had been craving a burger from Boogie’s for 6 years so I was almost certain it wouldn’t live up to my expectations…but it sure did.

After about 8 days in Calgary it was time to load up the car and the puppies and do the whole journey in reverse. Thankfully it was about 10 degrees cooler (28C/83F) on the drive home so we needed a bit less charging and a lot less need to carry the pugs so they wouldn’t touch the scorching hot pavement. 

We were holding our breath and nervous until we crossed the US border. Since living in the US we’ve typically had very traumatic experiences with border crossings so I had to keep reminding us both to breathe (the puppies didn’t care — they know they’re cute and they also intended to bark at the border guy incessantly — which I thought would either make matters worse or expedite things just so we would get out of earshot). But, it was very smooth this time. I think the exuberant pug barking definitely helped us out (way to go girls!).

On the return leg we stayed at a different Airbnb in Spokane. This one was very near the most amazing park. Duncan Gardens were such a surprise and a delightful respite in the middle of a long car trip.

A few times on the journey we had to take a detour for charging purposes — but it never added more than an hour onto the day. I was a bit worried about taking such a long journey in an electric car but if you can manage to snag the high speed charger along the way it’s really quite excellent. I kind of felt exhausted for over a week after we got back. I need a vacation from the vacation. But, it was great to have such a long road trip that was without any major incident (such a ringing endorsement….Ha!).