Toughest Tows In The Nation, Anyone?......

Just went from TX to OR up through CO and WY, then UT and ID. I can tell you that goin up to 8700 ft in WY had several 6% pulls of 3-4 miles. Of course we were in the wife's little SUV, so in 4th gear locked TC it ran along fine at 65MPH, but trying to get to 70 put it in 3rd. Plenty of big truck pulling along at 30 MPH or less struggling to get up and then roaring by on the downhill all night on the way home we went through WY after midnight. Long trip- won't do that straight through again. Lot of steep pulls though and great scenery when we went west the week before in the day time.
 
There is a 15% grade here in the Black Hills on Highway 40 (Hayward Hill) That I have pulled a GN trailer hauling a 16K lbs Log Skidder up, its a 4wd Low Range 2nd Gear pull to the top (Half Mile Long) and you just have to hope theres no gravel in the lane.. Seen a Few Log trucks lose Rear-ends on the hill..Its one that many try to avoid or only travel when the roads dry
 
Steepest grade on any Interstate Highway is 9%. Any other highway has no limits. Some US routes out west have 13-14% grades, state routes a little higher, and local routes being even steeper.

I17 from Sun Valley to Flagstaff is no joke, nor US60, Salt River Canyon.
I70 west of Denver, I80 between Laramie and Cheyenne or outside Salt Lake are not that fun in a semi, I wouldn't wanna go through there in a pickup pushing gross without an exhaust brake. I don't mind slowing down going up the hill, it's the hauling ass down the other side when I want to go slow that bothers me.

US97 has some nice grades that slows semi's and pickups down. I remember last time I ran it, I passed a few OBS Powerstrokes, an early Duramax, and a couple 1st Gen CTD's going up a few of the passes. Each truck was puffing some smoke, and by no means did I fly by them, but I did pass them. Figured most of the drivers were taking it easy.
 
West Chilcotin is supposed to be the steepest in North America at 19% and the steepest in the US (highway) is the Dalton in AK at 12%. There are some streets in San Fran that are a HELL of a lot steeper than that though.
 
I worry more going downhill than uphill when heavy.
 
West Chilcotin. Are talking about the highway into Bella Coola? Not sure on the grade, but it is pretty steep.
 
I-76W (PA Turnpike) east of Pittsburg is pretty nasty in a Big truck, right before you go thru the mountain.
 
I have to agree, Loveland Pass on 70 in Co is steep... And there are some good hills in Western NC and Eastern TN on 40. Pretty much most of 70 from Denver to the Eisenhower tunnel really. At least its paved now, lol. When my dad first started hunting out in CO he told me 70 was gravel. :O
 
BIGRPOWR said:
grapevine in 100* + weather.
sherwin grade from bishop,ca to mammoth ..10 miles long, starts at 3k ends at 8k
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I'm with Mike, Grapevine on the Bakersfield side, going up or down.

Hwy 46 has a good short but very steep grade right where the 41 joins up with it and where James Dean kicked the bucket.

Joe
 
I havent had change to drive the grape vine but heard that it can get bad. how about good old donner summit. It is the only place that I know that has 3 or 4 run away truck ramps in a 5 or 10 mile strench of road I way be wrong about how far apart they are.
 
Wolf Creek pass, way up on the great divide. Trucking on down the other side.

Or Red Mountain pass going from silverton to ouray, co.

Like other people said, it's the going down that's the worst. I could us a good exhaust brake.
 
alright, you're not going to be towing over it, but anyone driven Independence pass out of Aspen!? not what I was expecting at all! glad the truck wasn't DRW!! LOL
 
malibu795 said:
iirc mains one bellefonte to stroudsburg dropping down into the river valley on the state line
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The hill leading down to the 299 on I-80 is named 5 mile hill around here. I believe it's a 7% grade and I know in my tractor trailer I'm in 8th gear at 35-40mph with 30k in the trailer.
 
Try towing up pine street in San Fran towing a 10k car trailer with a f250 on it with a 89 1st gen 2wd open diff while raining and having a taxi suddenly stop in the right lane and you have to cross onto the cable car tracks and go from 25-30 mph to -5mph cause you lost all traction..... i slid all the way back down past grant street. that was scary as all hell.
 
Another time was when i was trying to get about 8k pounds of granite to my friend who lived on vallejo st. and i was going up broadway, he told me to hang a left on webster.... all i saw was the steep hill sign..... it was so steep that my trailer instantly locked up the brakes and i slid all the way down the hill past vallejo and stopped up against the curb. I think that hill is at least a 25% grade.
 
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