Not All Challenging Roads Are Out West

[dickandlois]

I was looking around the web and found this description of a Rt. in Eastern Pennsylvania.

I have not tried to drive this Rt. with the coach and I think I will pass even trying.

From the Pennsylvania East section of the Mountain Directory East:

Pennsylvania highway 125

(between Shamokin and Good Spring, PA.)

Large vehicles may want to avoid this 18 mile section of road. It crosses four mountains and includes numerous 15 mph hairpin turns and many more 20 and 25 mph curves. Regardless of your direction of travel you will have to climb and descend some very steep hills. Much of the grade is 7 to 9% but there are numerous sections that must be 12% or more, some lasting almost a mile. Brake shoes don't have enough time to cool much between descents.

Rich.

[huffypuff]

No hair pins turns for me, would this be in a in a big rig book also?

[dickandlois]

Ray, I have Over The Road Atlas and have not seen it mentioned!

I do have hard copies of the Mountain Directory East and West though, but it is one Rt. that I did not notice in my older copy. It might be time to upgrade.

This is a link find more information about the Directory.

http://www.mountaindirectory.com/cb/index.html?hop=roundpub02

Rich.

[bm02tj]

One I do not need to do over is from Placerville CA to Georgetown with a 44 ft rig.

I used the whole road and then some.

I will try some out east in a year or so.

Happy and safe travels.

[krivanj]

You might also skip TN Rte 129, better known as "Tail of the Dragon"

[wayne77590]

You might also skip TN Rte 129, better known as "Tail of the Dragon"

You had better skip that one. There are 300+ turns in just a few miles and some you would be reading your license plate if you could make it around them.

Thanks for the info on 125.

[rwilli]

On the subject of roads; does anyone know the condition of I-65 through Indiana? I have been avoiding this washboard excuse for an interstate highway for 2-years now--in favor of traveling I-57 through Illinois as an alternate. The last time I travelled I-65 more warning lights came on from the vibration and potholes than I ever knew the coach had.

[uechiyondan]

We drove 65 from Indianapolis to Louisville last month. I did not notice any bad pavement.

As for difficult roads, The Appalachian chain from PA all the way down through North Carolina is full of tight twisty roads I would not necessarily want to drive a 40' + coach on. The mountains may not be as high, but the roads can be just as steep and sometimes the hairpin turns much tighter. If you look at the map, and it has lots of tight squiggles, it is probably a great road for the motorcycle, or the sports car, not so good in the coach.

[HarveyWhite]

Sounds like the story of the guy going down a road with all the hair pin curves ran his battery down honking at his own tail lights..Lol

[wildebill308]

I have driven some nasty roads in the North East Lots of steep hills and twisty roads. Lots of hills going East West in Northern Vermont, New Hampshire and eastern New York. Be extra carful to watch for low/narrow bridge signs.

Bill

[jplante4]

I let TomTom take me down County Route 16 (Platt Clove Rd) in the Catskills in eastern NY. We were going to the Saugerties KOA from the finger lakes region, and I chose "shortest route" (I know better now). This would apply to Rip Van Winkle Campground as well from the west.

This road is crushed stone/gravel and a 13% grade (down grade going east). I stopped several times to let the brakes cool off. It's some kind of local shortcut, because there was a fair amount of opposite direction traffic, including 1 ton pickups. It was a white knuckle ride for sure. All I could think of was "God, I hope there's isn't a 10' underpass at the end of this road".

[wolfe10]

Jerry,

I remember some of those grades in VT.

Were you in second gear with exhaust brake on during the descent of those 13% grades. If so, am surprised you needed much use of the service brake.

[jplante4]

Hey Brett,

No, this was last year in the 28' gasser (before I bought the Sahara). The Sahara with the exhaust brake would have handled the grade a lot better, but I'm not sure about some of the corners. I just didn't know any better. Should have turned around when I saw the "4 ton road ahead" sign. I'll stick that in my "never again" file. Never accept a GPS route that I haven't thoroughly researched again. If I had looked at this road on Google Maps, I would have seen the "road closed Nov-Apr" note. Yikes!

I ended up just letting her roll in first gear and using the brakes to slow to nearly a stop on the level-offs. This actualy worked fairly well and I didn't get much above 35 mph on the roll.