FuelFunnel
Mossyrock, WA
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Clover Flats Campground which is located on DNR land about 34 miles west southwest of Yakima, WA. Elevation is 6300 feet. Supposedly the last three miles of the one-lane gravel road is a 12-13% grade. I will be towing a small aluminum trailer, no brakes, with 2 4-wheelers (approx 1500 lbs total trailer) in my 31-foot gasser (1991 Holiday Rambler F53).
What do you think?
--Piece of cake.
--Just take it easy.
--Check it out in a lesser vehicle first.
--Let me out, I'll walk.
Kris
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Golden_HVAC
Fulltime, CA, USA
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Joined: 08/19/2003
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With no place to turn around on that last 3 miles, I think I would take it with the ATV, and check for deep ruts in the roadway, before commiting to towing up that steep road. You might get 1/2 way up only to find a new creek has washed away a lot of dirt, and only the short wheelbase 4 wheel drives can cross the washed out area.
If you did have to back down the roadway 2 miles to a safe turn around place, let me out, I will walk.
Fred.
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bsinmich
Holland, MI
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Before considering that I would surely want to flush the brake fluid to eliminate any chance of losing brakes due to moisture in the brake fluid. Then I would do as Fred suggests. What if someone else is coming the opposite direction on that one lane part?
2003 Newmar Mountain Aire, Workhorse W22, 2008 Saturn Vue, Falcon 5250, & US Gear Unified Tow Brake
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MCDDY
Louisiana
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Just a thought here Kris. Can either of your ATV's pull the trailer w/1 ATV aboard if you were in a back down situation?
Dave
GEAUX TIGERS
Dave, Miss Sue & Lucy the Scotty
Big Easy Area.
FMCA 153192
2000 Monaco Windsor, 40' 2 Slide, ISC 350 HP.
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RVnRobin
Can't remember being a
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I would check it out with the ATV first. Hopefully, at a turn around spot at the bottom. That steep a grade for that long may not be a good thing for just your RV. And then there is the coming down part! And, my experience is that brakes tend to not work as well when backing up, compared to going forward, and going down hill.
If you do find it do-able, I like the idea of taking the trailer up with the ATV. Two ATVs, one trailer, two people going up. One ATV two people back down. One person in RV, and one on ATV to act as spotter on the way back up.
While I haven't been to that specific campground, I have been in that area. It can be very rugged.
Our RV is our home for nealy eight years.
I think I finally qualify as a full-timer.
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LVJ58
Las Vegas, Nevada
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I certainly wouldn't attempt it with our 38' heavy gas coach, however you may be able to to it with lighter weight coach.
All I can say is Good luck and be careful,
Jim & Sherry Seward
Las Vegas, NV
2000 Residency 3790 V-10 w/tags & Banks System
2003 Suzuki XL/7 toad
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BENT ARROW
CO.
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I have found since we bought the MH it's better/smarter to give up on some of the places we have camped in the 4X4 truck. If you have never been on a dirt road it's better to check it with a ATV for everything then at the top ask anyone starting down to wait even if there are turnouts. Some roads I know well but prefer to do after dark so I can see headlights above or below me.
Since I am the driver I am not getting out, just not going up a 13% grade with gravel and maybe digging a hole with my drive tires.
Bent Arrow
99 PACE ARROW 35'
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FuelFunnel
Mossyrock, WA
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Thanks for the advise, everyone.
There are two other campgrounds down lower: Tree Phones CG at 4800 feet and Ahtanum CG at 3150 feet. If I don't check-out the road up to Clover Flats CG ahead of time in my Bronco, I will camp and ride the ATV's out from one of those and play it safe.
I really enjoy the air at higher altitudes and the stars at night, but if it means cooking my transmission to do so, it's not worth it.
Kris
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falconbrother
North Carolina
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We went up and back down 4 miles of a 9 - 10% grade last week (in the car). That really felt pretty steep and it was paved. I would probably skip the 12 - 13% gravel grade in the RV unless it was really important. I mean really, really important. If I was going to do it I would be crawling along. Like, 1st gear. Coming down a 13% grade could turn into a runaway train pretty quick.
When we had the cabover camper on the Ford truck we did stuff like that all the time. I wasn't really all that bad. But, the class A is another animal. When we did the off road stuff in the truck/cabover we just took it slow and made sure we did what we could to know what we were getting into.
Once we went up the side of a mountain and ended up in a bind when the road dead ended at about a 14% (or worse) grade, rock wall on left, cliff on right. No lie, the right front wheel ran off of the cliff. It was about 150 foot fall down to a creek if we rolled over. I pushed the emergency brake and the cable broke. My wife slid over and held the brake pedal while I got out to access the situation. All I had to do was let the truck roll back and the wheel came back up on solid ground. But, I had to back all the way down that mountain on a narrow, rocky and a little muddy road/path. We ended up in a few binds similar to that exploring with that rig.
Not crazy about ever doing that again. I'm just too old. Point being, if I didn't feel comfortable and had any other choice I wouldn't do it in a class A. I would do it in the old Ford 4x4 and cab-over for sure. The class A is, in my opinion, for the mostly flat roads and highways.
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