Your engine will be gasping like a fish out of water, especially at 11,000+ feet over the highest pass, but you have good equipment and will do fine. Don't ride your brakes going down. Gear down and make the engine do the work.
Plan ahead- take oxygen! J/K- I went over there with an empty truck going West and found it quite an experience for me and the truck! Make sure that whatever gear it takes to go up that you lock it in that gear on the way down and be smart with the brakes and don't try to down at 55 if you went up at 35. The other thing I will say is if you don't have a trans temp gauge- GET ONE! That long and hard of a pull will overheat a tranny faster than anything else, especially if you start pushing it and use the engine temp to gauge how hard you are pulling. Keep the tranny cool or you will be parked and wondering how hard that wrecker will have to pull to get your rig into town to get fixed. Good luck, be careful and smart and like the others said- the slower you go, the more scenery you can take in. Also- the more pullouts you stop to look out from and let that engine idle for a few minutes the cooler it and the trans will be.
Mat
'05 Dodge 3500 SRW 4x4 QC LB SLT- CTD 325HP/610TQ w/ 6 speed manual
'06 Coachmen SOA526RLS 28' 5th wheel Loaded PLUS
Bearing Buddies, Kingpin Stab., Slide Out Stab., Roof Vent & Tire Covers, 15K BTU ducted A/C+ 13.5K in BR, 100W Halogen back up lights
I had a 2001 Chev 1/2 ton with a 5.3 towing a 24ft Starcraft 5er. I also had an ATV trailer behind that. Stay in the right lane, watch your RPMs, don't ride the brakes and you will be ok.
There is no place to boondock in Colorado. Repeat after me, there is no place to boondock in Colorado.
2006 Dura Max LBZ now in the driveway
Reese 16K slider-rocker
26ft Thor 5th wheel
2 Polaris Sportsman 500s
64'6" nose to tail when "Double Towing"
I agree with the other Colorado guys. Just a word of advice on when you get out of the Eisenhower tunnel, make sure to gear down and don't ride your brakes. If you are going East the road will look long and somewhat level but it isn't!! Same goes for traveling West but the good thing is that Silverthorne is pretty much after the tunnel and you can pull off and let your brakes cool down. Going East, Georgetown is right there after the tunnel and do the same there. There are lots of areas on the way up to the tunnel where people can pull off to "chain-up" in snow season, so use those pull off areas to your advantage if you need them during the summer season. Once you get onto I-70 going West from Denver, there will be a few steep inclines that you will have to travel and one right away that is a long incline but not really steep. Just be alert that whole stretch and you should be just fine.
Oh Hum Bug. It is an interstate Highway . There are literly tens of thousands of RVs of all types go though there every year. Don't get scared off by some of the replys. You are in for a beautiful drive all the way to I15. Personlly I think it is the prettiest of all Interstate drives. Enjoy your trip. I'm never sure if some of these guys try to be fun or are trying to scare people. Take Oxygen you got to be kidding.
Ben & Jean
Tick a GSP
Full time since 1995
Spending the summer in Utah
2002 39' Winnabago Jouney DL
330 Cat
2005 GMC 4X4 PU
2 Yamaha Kodiak ATVs web site
You will be in first gear most of the way. You will want to keep it in first gear on the way down. You might experience 20 to 30 miles of first gear operation at a speed of about 30 mph (or whatever you're comfortable with hearing the engine run at.
Many truckers will be driving about 30 to 35 mph as well, so don't worry about holding up traffic.
I've towed over the Kootenay Pass in British Columbia. The hill is similar in length and steepness, but it's only at 5800 feet, not 11000, and a two lane with passing zones, not an interstate highway.
big ben wrote: Oh Hum Bug. It is an interstate Highway . There are literly tens of thousands of RVs of all types go though there every year. Don't get scared off by some of the replys. You are in for a beautiful drive all the way to I15. Personlly I think it is the prettiest of all Interstate drives. Enjoy your trip. I'm never sure if some of these guys try to be fun or are trying to scare people. Take Oxygen you got to be kidding.
Exactly what I say. I have never seen so many paranoid people in my life except on here.
hpk
2000 Ford F-350 SRW 4X4 PSD Jayco Super Lite 29.5RKS 5th wheel 50 gal X-ferflow in the bed tank. Banks big exhaust and Stinger kit.
A real Humbug also - Mountain Directory proponents fit there. That book is a waste of time - has scared more folks away from beautiful drives than any other poster on this web.
On your route - east bound the only run away ramps yopu will see are on the westbound lanes! I suspect Bick B must own the Directory publishers. The only time you see his posts - it is "buy the Mountain Directory"!
Watch your aerosol cans, potato chip bags, etc, ; things expand at high altitudes and explode. If you happen to have air mattresses let most of the air out.
Take your time, RV's climb those hills all the time, just don't push it , it's about 60 miles to the tunnels as I recall. Watch your temp gauges and brakes.
I think east to west is easier than west to east.
Tallyo
2007 Winnebago Adventurer
W-24, 6 spd Allison
Saturn VUE w/ Brake Buddy Vantage
Drinks-6, Eats-4, Sleeps-2
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