First big motorcycle trip of the year. Fresh set of tires (approximately 150 KMs of use). Friday through Sunday, 700 KMs

Day 1: Baden

Started trip in light drizzle and 12 degrees C.

As the tour went on the rain stopped but I started to feel cold and replaced my light gloves with warmer ones I picked up along the way in Pforzheim.

With a small delay we made it to Heidelberg where (at least in the old town area) publicly accessible chargers were sparse. A friendly parking garage manager did help me by blocking a free spot that had just opened up.

After a quick bite (including a quick dessert to go from Zeit für Brot) we went on to Mainz way delayed.

To not have additional delays we decided to use the faster route via the Autobahn, but were held up majorly when a construction site merged three lanes into one and traffic stopped to a crawl.

We made it to Mainz right after the sun went down. But the charger near our hotel I had previously planned on using was in a parking garage with license plate recognition and they refused to let me in to charge.

I then found one in the old town area that showed as free, but when I arrived one was blocked by an electric car that had the cable in but wasn’t even charging and the other one by a rundown combustion Opel, so I had to drive up onto the sidewalk next to the charger.

I first tried the EnBW app and it appeared to unlock it but wouldn’t start charging. Two attempts via their website didn’t work. I then proceeded to download their app, where you had to unlock the charger first and then plug the vehicle in after it prompts you, it worked. Left the 80% charge target in because we wanted to spend time in Wiesbaden the next day.

Day 2: Franken

We stayed at the Ibis city, rooms and hotel bar were nice but when I woke up I was greeted by bed bugs.

During checkout the front desk wasn’t occupied, but since we stayed only for the one night I didn’t bother waiting around to complain.

We went on to meet up for breakfast with friends. Naturally, the public charger on the map was on fenced off company grounds and the gate guard didn’t even know about a charger for electric vehicles existing.

I then found one nearby that wasn’t on any map by ESWE unfortunately neither the Roaming, nor their app worked.

Weather was nice and sunny, lots of other motorcycle riders out.

We continued on to Aschaffenburg. Found a charger next to some industrial zone. Plugged it in, and due to the learnings of the days prior, went straight to the AppStore and downloaded the app. While charging we went to a nearby Biergarten for some coffee and cake.

The journey onwards to Würzburg was uneventful and nice. We switched to lighter clothes for the day.

After checking into the hotel at the border of the city we went looking for a charger nearby. All the ones we found, either didn’t work or had the wrong plugs. Finally when we wanted to go grab some lunch, we came by a company parking lot with lots of free chargers and a poster saying for public use, naturally not showing up on the map.

Day 3: Hohenlohe

The next day I grabbed a quick coffee double espresso from the hotel before getting my bike back from the charger, then got back and ate real breakfast.

The weather already didn’t look promising with light rain.

We drove on to Schwäbisch Hall, where after a long, time reach anxiety kicked in again. Perhaps it was a combo of using the rain mode (which reduces the power recovered from braking), being soaking wet and cold and wanting to escape to a bakery with a warm coffee and watching the battery gauge slowly go down: Plugged in for 15 mins, couldn’t find an open bakery and drove on for the final (about 35) KMs. Didn’t need the 15 mins of charging in the end.

Wind, overcast sky and pouring rain for hours make for a terrible riding experience.

In Schwäbisch Hall we found the parking lot of the DMV that had chargers. There was a sign for no motorcycle parking, which I conveniently ignored and pulled a ticket. The chargers are activated using your entry ticket and you pay for both charging and parking before leaving.

We went to a restaurant at the top of the Einkorn and met up with friends and family there for lunch. Pealed off several layers of soaked clothing in the hopes of it drying at least somewhat.

Picked up the bike on the way back and was surprised that on Sundays parking (and charging) is free!

It was still raining and we were cold all the way to Esslingen where we went into a gas station to top up and warm up for a few minutes.

Slight navigational mishap lead us onto the A8 for a short stint. After that we rode the B27 back home with the option to stop in Tübingen if we get colder or the range gets any lower.

In the end we made it right before the sun went down. Freezing cold and shaking. I plugged the bike back in at home with 17 KMs of battery left.

Summary

In good conditions the bike has way more reach than what our backs can endure on those seats.

Riding for hundreds of kilometers in wind and rain is miserable. I am now considering what adjustments I’m going to make to my gear for future trips.

I now have three more charging apps on my phone. Price-wise (the free charging not included) it averages about 60 cents/kWh. The best experiences were with chargers that somebody put there, but weren’t on any map. I’ll add them to Chargemap once I’m done writing this.