Visiting Yosemite park in your EV? Read below for charging tips.
TLDR;
- There are no fast chargers (L3) inside the park. So don’t count on quick charging
- Fast chargers are available outside the park – charge up before entering park – see below for details and map
- There are few L2 chargers in the Yosemite Valley near the hotels. You can plug in overnight or plugin and go for a hike for a few hours.
- The demand for these chargers can be very high. So arrive early, avoid busy weekends and holidays
- Consider parking your car and taking the shuttle around the park. This is a stress-free way to get around. You are not adding to the traffic and not stressing about finding parking
- There are few AirBnB stays in Yosemite West Village that offer L2 chargers. This can be great option if you are staying here. You can charge overnight – stress free. See below on how to find thee stays with EV chargers
- If visiting Yosemite in winter, beware Yosemite can get quite cold – as in below freezing, snow on the ground – cold. Be mindful that cold temperatures can zap the range by as much as 30-40%. So if advertised range is 200 miles under optimal temperatures, the actual range in the cold can be 150-160 miles.
- And enjoy the park! 🙂
Yosemite – Popularity can be a Curse
Yosemite National Park is a very popular park – 4 million visitors per year. Unfortunately its popularity also means lots of traffic (and crowds) during the peak season (usually Apr – Oct).
The Yosemite Park tries to balance the vehicle traffic and pollution – it is an unenviable task ; they don’t want to discourage people from visiting, but at the same time, they like to minimize the pollution.
One possible solution to help with the pollution is Electric Vehicles – and increasingly more and more people are using EVs to visit Yosemite.
Status of EV Charging inside Yosemite Park
Here is map of chargers in and around Yosemite (Image credit from Plugshare)
As you can see:
- There are NO fast chargers (L3) inside the park (yet). All fast chargers are located outside the park
- Park has a few L2 chargers (see below for details)
Improvements are underway
In 2022, Rivian, Adopt a Charger and Yosemite Conservancy are teaming up to install free charger around Yosemite. This is great news and I am hoping for more chargers to come online.
I am also hoping for more fast chargers within the park. There is a great renewable energy source right near Yosemite – Hetch Hetchy Hydroelectric power plant. It generates 385 MW clean energy from the Hetch Hetchy dam. This can be a wonderful combination – EV chargers using renewable energy!
Can you do without charging within the park?
Short answer: YES
If you are staying around for 1-2 days, and mostly driving around the Yosemite Valley you will be fine.
If you are venturing outside the valley, be mindful of elevation changes.
Yosemite valley is at 4000 ft
If you drive to Sentinel Dome on Glacier Point Road that is 7200 ft – a 3000 ft elevation gain.
Climbing will zap the battery. But you will gain a lot of spent power on the way down using regenerative braking. But you never get back 100% 🙂
Also you can be mindful of your climate controls and save some battery.
Beware, Summer in Yosemite will get pretty hot, so you may want to run AC.
Also Winter in Yosemite is pretty cold, so you may be running the heater.
Both of these will use energy.
Remember, cold temperatures will zap the battery range
Winter in Yosemite gets pretty cold (below freezing!). And cold will adversely affect the battery range. For example it is not uncommon to hear range is reduced by 30-40%.
Tips for Visiting Yosemite National Park in EV
Top-up outside the park
Since charging infrastructure is not all that great INSIDE the Yosemite valley, you want to enter the park at near full charge.
Luckily there are lots of charging options available outside the park. See below for options.
There are NO fast chargers (L3) inside the park
So do not plan on quick charging.
Charging inside the park
(see section below)
Use Shuttle busses if possible to get around the valley
This is true whether you are visiting in an EV or a regular car. Leave your car in the parking lot. The shuttle system covers the valley pretty well. And it is a stress free way to see the valley. Remember you don’t have to worry about finding parking ..etc. It is hop-on and hop-off.
Use AirBnb Stays with EV Charging
If you are staying for a few days, one of the best options is to stay at a place with an EV charger and charge overnight.
There are some vacation rental communities inside the park that offer EV charging. For example Yosemite West.
How do you find these? Best bet is AIRBNB or VRBO.
AirBnb has a filter to select EV Chargers. VRBO doesn’t have an option for this yet.
Here is how to find places with EV Charging on AirBnB
Use the search feature.
And then click on FILTERS and select ‘EV Charger’
See screenshots below
Charging Inside Park
There are a few L2 chargers you can use. Here is an overview of chargers in the valley
Yosemite Valley Lodge parking lot
There are 8 L2 chargers in Yosemite Lodge parking lot. These are free to use by anyone. Max charge speed 6-11 KWh.
Charger Types: J-1772 and Tesla
Beware, there could be a lot of competition for these chargers.
What to do while charging:
As these chargers will take a few hours to add any significant amount of charging, here are some things you can do while charging.
Checkout Yosemite visitor guide for activities for the season. And now there is even an app for Yosemite 🙂
Yosemite Valley Lodge is pretty centrally located in the valley. There are a lot of activities you can do.
- This is probably one of the scenic charger locations 🙂 Take a walk around. Yosemite falls is about a 20 minute walk.
- Get something to eat at various restaurants at Yosemite Lodge.
- Get your Yosemite gifts and memorabilias at the Valley Lodge gift shop
- Take the valley shuttle to see valley attractions. This is really a stress free way to see the valley. No driving, no stressing about parking, just enjoy the sights
Yosemite Village Store
One L2 charger (6 kw) in VIllage store – free to use by anyone
Ahwahnee Hotel
Two L2 chargers at Ahwahnee hotel – for hotel guests only
What can you do while charging:
- Dine at Ahwahnee restaurant – a very unique experience
- Get a drink at the bar – a nice way to enjoy this majestic hotel without shelling out too much for fancy food 🙂
Charging Etiquette
Please be considerate of others. For example if you are at 70% full, don’t keep it plugged in till you get a full charge. Keep it free for someone who may need to charge urgently.
Places to Charge Outside Yosemite Park
You will find fast chargers outside the park. It is highly recommended to charge at these and enter the park near full charge.
Here is an overview of chargers around Yosemite (Image from : Plugshare)
Along highway 120
Groveland
Groveland is a great place to charge before heading into the park. Because hwy 120 climbs rapidly up to Groveland. There are plenty of fast chargers and things to do while charging.
For Teslas:
Groveland Supercharger (map | plugshare)
Plenty of superchargers available (150kw)
What to do while charging:
- Plenty of cafes and restaurants nearby
- Great ice cream at Grove Mercantile (map)
Other EVs
Groveland Visitor Center (map | plugshare)
Couple of Chargepoint chargers at 50kw.
What to do while charging:
- Plenty of things. See above.
Buck Meadows
This is actually my favorite place to charge before going into Yosemite.
There are a few Electrify America charging stations (150 kw). (map | plugshare)
What to do while charging:
- Get something to eat at Lucky Buck Cafe (website, map)
- Nearby Yosemite Westgate Lodge is a pretty decent place to stay (website, map)
Rush Creek Lodge
Has one fast charger and a couple of L2 chargers.
What do while charging:
- Rush Creek Lodge has a nice restaurant (website, map)
- Get pampered at fabulous spa at Rushcreek (website)
Along Hwy 41
Oakhurst
Oakhurst is a pretty good size town.
For Teslas, there is Oakhurst Supercharger (website, map, plugshare)
For other EVs, there are couple of fast chargers around town
What to do while charging:
- Plenty of restaurants and cafes nearby
Fish Camp
For Teslas, FishCamp Super Charger (website, map, plugshare)
Other EVs, no fast chargers here, sorry.
Summary
Hope you found this article useful. And happy travels!