Finally, the day has come for TDST2020! My wife and I will be traveling to Southern Styria together by TWIKE. We will be taking our time, whilst our children will follow a week later by car and meet up with us at one of our favourite Buschenschanks close to where we stay every year.

Packing our stuff is done in just a minute and we’re ready to leave. Since it’s still Friday, my wife will be driving whilst I work – I just love how this is possible nowadays.

Ready for our adventure - TDST2020
Ready for our adventure – TDST2020

Since it’s raining, there isn’t too much to see – our goal for today is to reach South Tyrol. We haven’t reserved any hotel yet – we’ll do that later this afternoon when we see how far we’re going to be able to get today.

Working en-route
Working en-route

Our route takes us towards the Canton of Graubünden. Close to Landquart, we take the road that leads up to Klosters and Davos and take the Vereina car train as the rain will surely be snow higher up and we don’t want to drive through snow and low hanging clouds. TW560 has been on this train a few times.

After taking the train and on the other side of the mountains, we typically would be expecting different weather and some sun. Not this time. If anything, it’s raining more here.

We then take the road up the Fuorn Pass to 2149m and arrive in the Mustair valley. With all the rain and additional weight, we’re not sure to be able to drive as far as we would have liked and decided to stop for a quick recharge at the Schweizerhof Hotel in Santa Maria, where Jean-Claude and I had already stayed during TDM2014.

One thing surely has changed since 2014: there are now 3 Tesla Destination Chargers prominently dotted around the parking spaces. Since TW560 still does not have a Type2 female plug, we have to enter the Hotel and ask for ‘normal’ plugs. The owner comes out with us and recognizes the TWIKE immediately and asks us if it was us that stayed with them 2014!

Long story short – they didn’t have any three phase plugs I could use so I had to do something only a TWIKE can: use multiple single plugs to get the energy required for a quick charge!

Multi-single-phase charging
Multi-single-phase charging

This is especially practical in countries that heat and cook with natural gas and thus only have a 3.7kW single-phase connection to the grid – we just connect to multiple apartments at the same time to go to 11 kW charge throughput.

Finally, charging at full rate
Finally, charging at full rate

After just 30 mins, some beers and a Bündner Nusstorte and a booked hotel, we’re back on the road.

We climb another pass – our last one for today. The weather stays awful and we are treated to wind, rain and driving through a landscape of 200 shades of grey.

Nothing to see but this sign
Nothing to see but this sign

Today wasn’t very nice – not a problem though: we both know the route we took very well and know how breathtaking it can be.

Not too much to see
Not too much to see

We arrive in South Tyrol and check into our hotel after a full day’s work for me and a full day’s drive for my wife – we both enjoy Italian wine and food that evening and are looking forward to the next day…which the people at the hotel promise us will be much better than today. Let’s see!

Day 1 - TDST2020
Day 1 – TDST2020

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