Lynn01
nc
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I am new to RVing. I have a 20ft 3500lb camper and a f250 98 powerstroke automatic. I would like to travel i40 eastbound and will need to pass through the steep decline that goes between old fort and black mountain in NC. I remember it being difficult, but have never done it with a Camper in tow. Anyone tried? Any suggestion, or is that route best avoided?
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rvten
Crossville,TN
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Joined: 11/30/2000
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Drop to a lower gear or 2 before you start down. Engine brake on if you have one.
Have made Black MT many times. I just turn Tow Haul on and let the trans. do the work.
* This post was
edited 06/02/12 02:22pm by rvten *
Tom & Bonnie
Crossville, TN.
Aspect 29H 2008 Type C
Ford Flex SEL 2010
There is no B+
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dupreet
High Point, NC
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Joined: 08/03/2007
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Came down it last summer when we bought our TT outside Asheville. I was a bit nervous as 30 years back I had my TT brakes fail coming down the mountain. As mentioned, come off the top in second, first if you want to hang with the semis. If you need more than engine braking, give it a hard "slowdown" hit and allow your brakes to cool...don't ride them.
You will be fine.
Todd
PS, the trip back up at 6-8mph takes forever!!!
Todd
1993 Ford E-350 pushed by a 1988 Wilderness 24' TT
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Terryallan
Foothills NC
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I would suggest starting down SLOW, Maybe even stop at the top in the brake check area. Especially if you don't have some sort of engine brake. Keep to the right lane, and 35 mph. Having brought a 18 wheeler down with no Jake, or anything like it. Just take your time, a diesel with out some sort of engine braking has nothing but the brakes to hold it back. Be good to them.
Terry & Shay
Coachman Apex 288BH.
04 F150, 5.4, Lariat SuperCab
Lazy Campers
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BillMFl
Florida
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Wel you probably haven't crossed the Rockies. Several routes thru the Blue Ridge area are a little itimidating for flat landers (like those of us in Florida) but the highs and lows and steep inclines are very brief compared to out West. Your rig can handle far more than you might think. Just save the brakes on the down side by down shifting BEFORE you reach warp speed!! Pump the brakes rather than standing on them. Out west those 6%+ grades go on and on and on seemingly without end, but in NC they are brief by comparison. Oh and stay in the right lane unless passing slow movers. The big trucks will roar downhill to gain momemtum for the next uphill. Halfway up the hill they will be crawling. With your rig you can do the speed limit pretty much all the time if you want to. I've owned two F350 diesels and towed big 5vers all over the country that weighed 3 or 4 times what your rig weighs. Just go easy until you get your confidence and you will be a pro in no time.
Order is illusion. Chaos is reality. But right or wrong I'm still the captain. 
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Lynn01
nc
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Thanks so much for the tips. Very helpful. The camper has its own brakes, which helps too. I did pass a TT having to use the runaway ramp on its way down, as I was going up, on the last trip going that way. Appreciate it.
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Handbasket
Asheville, NC
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Joined: 01/17/2003
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Be aware that the inside lane in both directions is closed for construction before you get to the bottom of the mountain. NCDOT website has it listed by mile marker, I'm sure. It's less the length of the grade (4 miles) than the number of curves.
Jim, "Dark matter happens."
'06 Tiger CX 'C Minus' on a Silverado 2500HD 4x4, 8.1 & Allison (aka 'Loafer's Glory') www.tigervehicles.com
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Terryallan
Foothills NC
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BillMFl wrote:Wel you probably haven't crossed the Rockies. Several routes thru the Blue Ridge area are a little itimidating for flat landers (like those of us in Florida) but the highs and lows and steep inclines are very brief compared to out West. Your rig can handle far more than you might think. Just save the brakes on the down side by down shifting BEFORE you reach warp speed!! Pump the brakes rather than standing on them. Out west those 6%+ grades go on and on and on seemingly without end, but in NC they are brief by comparison. Oh and stay in the right lane unless passing slow movers. The big trucks will roar downhill to gain momemtum for the next uphill. Halfway up the hill they will be crawling. With your rig you can do the speed limit pretty much all the time if you want to. I've owned two F350 diesels and towed big 5vers all over the country that weighed 3 or 4 times what your rig weighs. Just go easy until you get your confidence and you will be a pro in no time.
The big trucks don't Roar down Black Mountain. It is 7 miles of not only steep grade, but very twisty turns. If they tried, they wouldn't make it, and many don't. Trucks don't do those type of curves very well.
IF however you meant the 35 MPH truck speedlimit, You are correct. There are also huge warning signs hanging over the road, and will flash, and tell you when you are going too fast. I've made them flash at me several times.
BTW. I've driven across the Rockies. While they are higher, They are no worse than Black Mountain.
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BillMFl
Florida
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My advice was meant to be more general for a newbie. On most steep areas the truckers love to gain speed towards the bottom of a hill and carry the momentum up the next. And they often get really aggresive if somebody is blocking the left lane. Also wanted to reassure her that a diesel pickup has more than enough power and brake capacity for steep terrain with a 3500lb tow. Most of us never forget our first RV trip, especially thru mountain areas. Black Mountain is a mole hill compared to Rocky mountain passes like say Independence Pass to Aspen that climbs up to over 11000 ft. and I don't think there is a pass in the East that is even much over 5000 ft. The Rockies are way longer and more demanding on brakes, etc than a short thrill ride in the Carolinas. Lots more rusty wrecks at the bottom of ravines, that will never be recovered, out West than in the East. But I will grant you that plenty (especially smaller back roads) that cross over Appalachins can be hairy enough for a relatively short time.
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Handbasket
Asheville, NC
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BillMFl wrote:..... Black Mountain is a mole hill compared to Rocky mountain passes like say Independence Pass to Aspen .....
Gee, I'll be sure to tell NCDOT that all the tax dollars they spent on six-laning, a mandatory map stop at the top, three runaway truck ramps, raising the concrete barrier, and radar-triggered warnings were just a waste of money.... and to tell my 4 friends who were killed by a runaway truck at the bottom of the mountain in the early 70's that they're not really dead.....
Jim, "If I agreed with you, we'd both be wrong."
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