Bumpyroad
Virginia
Senior Member
Joined: 12/01/2005
View Profile
 Offline
|
RV Buddy wrote:I am looking for a flat route and that is why the subject posting is "Taking the grade into account". Any help here on flat route finding?
Thank you,
well, this previously posted one certainly isn't very hilly, a few bumps in south VA
rv2go wrote:
Pick up I-81 and travel it thru VA an TN to Knoxville, TN.
Take I-75 to Chattanooga TN.
Take I-59 to I-12 near New Orlens, LA
Take I-12 west to I-10
Take I-10 to Houston, TX
In Houston take US 59 to Victoria, Tx
In Victoria pick up 77 to Brownsville.
This is the route I take, only I start in Knoxville. There are no bad grades along this route.
that's how I go to Houston. but I-59 is awfully bumpy IIRC. but no really good option.
bumpy
|
grey`eagle
N31° 55’ W95° 30’ ----- ESE of One Tree, TX
Senior Member
Joined: 07/06/2004
View Profile
Offline
|
RV Buddy wrote:I am looking for a flat route and that is why the subject posting
Like the man said, I-95 - I-20, etc.
You can't have your cake and eat it too.
It's either a small amount of grade on I-81 and a little more across Cumberland Gap in TN. Neither one isn't any concern, unless your TV is a Ford Ranger, Dodge Dakota, or something similar.
OR - it's unforgiving traffic on I-95 thru PHL, BWI, DCA or RIC and I-20 thru Hot Lanta.
'04 F-250 PSD TV
'04 CF28CK Cruiser
Now enjoying mother earth at ground level and one mile per minute.
|
smkettner
Southern California
Senior Member
Joined: 03/21/2005
View Profile
Offline
|
RV Buddy wrote:I would like to save a little fuel by choosing a route that would have the least amount of grade.
I have found that the shortest most direct route on the main highway will generally use the least amount of fuel. 55 mph saves fuel. Don't use full throttle to go up the hills to save fuel.
|
paulj
Seattle
Senior Member
Joined: 06/11/2007
View Profile
|
Most of the concern on this forum about grades has to do with the maximum grade on a particular segment, or long sustained grades. These are typical of mountain pass crossings in the western states. Pass elevation also matters during snow season.
RV Buddy appears to be more concerned with some sort of average grade. It is unclear whether a down grade counts the same as an up. Do the ups and downs across rolling hills count the same as one long pull over a mountain range? Having to use engine braking on a down grade could chew into any savings from coasting. In some cases there is a trade off between grades and miles. Are you ahead if you drive 10% more miles, to avoid a section that cuts your gas mileage by 10%?
In the worst case, what proportion of this trip would cross gas-guzzling grades? 10%? 20%?
|
paulj
Seattle
Senior Member
Joined: 06/11/2007
View Profile
|
Google Maps in terrain mode is a good way to explore routes. Zoomed in you can tell where the route is crossing hills or following valleys. For example, much of I81 follows valleys along the length of the Appalachian mountains, with only a few crossings from one valley to another. Zoom in far enough you can see contours, and calculate grades - though that is practical only on segments a few miles long.
You can ask it for directions, and get miles. You can graphically add intermediate points, and see how much that changes the miles. For example, the direct route that it gives use I81, and passes through Knoxville, Chattanooga and Birmingham. Dragging it to use Columbus and the Mississippi valley adds 100-200 miles to a 2100 mile trip.
If your real goal is to save money, not just gas, you need to take into account gas prices along the route. Some states have higher gas taxes than others. Some markets are more competitive than others, or closer to distribution lines.
|
|
|
creeper
Richmond Hill, Georgia
Senior Member
Joined: 12/22/2003
View Profile
|
RV Buddy wrote:I am looking for a flat route and that is why the subject posting is "Taking the grade into account". Any help here on flat route finding?
Thank you,
Try a topo map.
Blog and projects page
See Profile for more pictures and links
Link Exchange
|
Bill&Barb
Beamsville,Ontario
Full Member
Joined: 10/01/2005
View Profile
Offline
|
I agree with many of the the posts that generally grades are not a major issue. Mileage and speed are more important. This is probably due to the fact that I drive slower up and down grades and use my tow haul mode.
That said, the apparent shortest route takes you down I81 to Chattanooga and then Birmingham. I know there's a fair grade west of Chattanooga. (Check "Mountain Directory East").
To avoid it, I guess you could head down via Atlanta to Birmingham, but I would only do that if you concerned about towing over the grade, not mileage.
|
Guy Autorino
Emerald Isle N.C.
Full Member
Joined: 09/23/2007
View Profile
Offline
|
We like back roads, more to see and that's half the trip for us. Hills don't bother me and as someone said the best senery is in the mountains.
|
tatest
Oklahoma
Senior Member
Joined: 05/14/2005
View Profile
Offline
|
RV Buddy wrote:Thanks all for the interest. With this trip I get to visit some new territory and I am really looking forward to the ride. I do notice using more fuel in the hills, doesn’t everyone? Given that I am making our own timetable I was wondering if going for flat land trip might be a little easier at the pumps?
With such a long drive I was wondering if I might save a little fuel going west across the Mid Atlantic States and dropping down the Mississippi valley vs. dropping down through hills of the eastern seaboard and crossing west along the Gulf. Beside I have taken that trip a few times.
So this is a chance to do something new. I don’t need an extra fuel tank, additional maps thanks I am good and between Flying J and TA we can get enough diesel to keep moving. So I am looking to hear if anyone has experience they would like to share about a flat land trip.
Thanks,
A trip without as many hills might look something like this;
91 S to Hartford, CT
84 W to Scranton, PA
80 W to Youngstown, OH
71 S to Columbus, OH
70 W to Effingham, IL
57 S to Sikeston, MO
60 W to Poplar Bluff, AR
67 S to Little Rock, AR
30 W to Texarkana, TX … 59, 79, 77
A trip with hills might look something a little like this;
91 S to Hartford, CT
84 W to Scranton, PA
81 S to Knoxville, TN
40 W to Little Rock, AR
30 W to Texarkana, TX …
Any suggestions?
Both routes take you across the Appalachians. Actually, the I-80 route will have you going up and down hills more, it cuts across the grain of the mountain range. Same for crossing on I-70 or I-40. The I-81 route mostly stays in long valleys that run parallel to the grain of the land.
You don't even need mountains to be going up and down steep grades all day. Consider crossing western Tennessee, southern Missouri, or northern Arkansas, or southern Indiana. The E-W routes run against the grain of the drainage system, with short steep grades every few miles. Without ever climbing above 1100 feet, and no elevation changes greater than 400-500', people convince themselves that they are in the mountains, when it is just a carved up low plateau.
How you see this is to use a mapping program that shows topography. Even Streets and Trips has a terrain mode.
The only way to stay on flat land is to go down the Eastern Seaboard to I-10, staying on the coastal plain, then across the Gulf Coast to Texas. You've done this one. So have I, it gets pretty boring after the first five or six times.
I've also crossed the Appalachians on I-80, I-70, I-40, US-50, US-60, and gone down to Atlanta to cross on I-20. They all have many short, steep grades, up and down. But they provide some variety.
Tom Test
Itasca Spirit 29B
2001 Ranger Edge
|
lawnboy1
Palmyra,Pa
New Member
Joined: 12/27/2007
View Profile
Offline
|
what you towing with a four cyl?
|
|
|
|
