A Weekend In Mammoth Mountains Made Me Really Wish I Had the Apple Watch Ultra But I'll Wait for the Next Upgrade

The Gist: I was charging my Apple Watch on and off during my three days to Mammoth, California. With the Apple Watch Ultra, I think I would not have been so worried about running out of battery. Plus, there are other Ultra features that could have come in handy. But I'll wait for the next Ultra upgrade.

In a hurry to beat the rush hour out of Los Angeles on Memorial Weekend, I had not paid attention to how much battery I had left on my Apple Watch 6 which currently is running at 80% capacity. That means, I charge my Apple Watch intermittently on any given day. Any given "normal" day. I can afford to do that because I have a charge at home, in the car, and at work to juice up my Apple Watch whenever I feel the need to do it or when it is running near empty. 

Friday was obviously not a normal day. I had expected to leave work early to begin the six hour drive to our lodge but unforeseen issues came up, which is a fact of life, you know? I rushed hone, put the stuff in the car and off we went (I didn't forget my wife and dog). During that time, I was so concentrated on getting underway that I had not checked to see how much my battery life remained on my watch.

By the time we got there, it was past midnight. After checking in and unloading everything, we were in bed by 1:30 after a quick shower. And then up again around 6 for breakfast, walking the dog, and checking out the record breaking snow. It was awesome and finally there. 

And I had probably charged my watch for around 15 minutes. 

By the time we set off for a trailhead, I think my Apple watch was only around 30% charged. I had used it to check my oxygen blood level and breathing/heart rate. Interestingly, my blood level had dropped to around 87% and heart rate was elevated. I suppose this was due to the 9,000-foot elevation. Boy, it was hard walking around. Both my wife and I felt light headed the first few times we bent down and stood up. Quite an interesting experience. 

Back to the watch - I charged 5 minutes here and there whenever we drove from one location to another. And we did drive a lot while we were there because we were constantly in search of trails that had not been snowed in. 

By the time dinner came around, I still had only managed to keep my Apple Watch charged around 30%. I thought to myself that if I had the Apple Watch Ultra with nearly double the battery life was the regular ones, I don't think I would have to worry at all about the battery life. 

So why not get the current Ultra? I would if I felt I need it right away or soon. I don't know where our next trip will be or when. Perhaps if it is only months away, I would likely get it whenever the next $50 off deal I see on Amazon rolls around. Given how little vacation time we have in the US, the next vacation is either Thanksgiving but I want to stick around town for that with family (ones that I like) and friends. So, perhaps Christmas then. 

By then, Apple might have released the Apple Watch Ultra 2 - I imagine it will have improved sensors, a more efficient CPU, and, rumor has it, bigger screen. Around town, my Apple Watch will continue to serve my needs.