I will be leaving Fernley NV heading toward Fresno Ca in a few days. I usually go over Tioga and through Yosemite, but this time I will be driving the bus pulling a toad. For those that know Tioga and it's steep long grades and windy roads, would I be wise to go through sacramento and down through Cali, or what would you do?
As far as I'm concerned it's worth it. Yes it is a bad a** grade going up from the east side. Inside the park it's not that bad. The biggest drawback IMHO is how narrow the road can be. When two busses pass in opposite directions it can be very intimidating. That's with competent drivers. Add a looky loo tourist in a motorhome it can result in a little shoulder ridin'. and/or mirror bashing. Rare, but I've seen it happen. PAY ATTENTION at ALL times. Pull over for seeing the sites that aren't out the windshield. Just a couple of miles past Tenaya Lake there is a pullout on the left, (going west). (It's called Olmstead point) Big parking lot usually plenty of room for a bus. On a corner so don't dilly/dally when you turn in. Many people miss the turn but there is another entrance just a little ways around the corner. Take the stairs down, turn right, go about 50 yards and turn right up the rocks, go another 50 yards and enjoy the most AMAZING view looking down the valley. If you drive all the way down towards the valley floor your passenger needs a strong stomach. It's narrow with BIG drop-offs on the passenger side.
I've done it numerous times in my MCI 5A, no big deal. just PAY ATTENTION.
Not much parking in the valley for big vehicles either. Camp Curry is the best bet then walk or free shuttle. Glacier Point is a must see, also. Incredible view.
Don & Sheila
I would highly recommend you stick with I-80 to highway 99 south to Fresno. You'll be a much happier camper then negotiating Tioga Pass pulling a towed. If you were running solo-then yes go for it. Plus it will save you both time and fuel staying on the big roads. It sounds like you've been through Yosemite before, so no big deal then. Good Luck, TomC
Yosemite is still pretty busy, we have been there 3 times in the last 10 days.
Thomas-
Since you indicate that you've been over Tioga numerous times, you're familiar with the road.
I drove it quite a few times back in my charter days, mostly in MC-8s and -9s. 8V71s and 6V92TAs.
It's a 2nd gear climb out of Lee Vining to the top of the pass, so simply sit back and enjoy.
It will take you at least 2 hours more to come thru the Park compared to the Sacratomato route - but you cannot match the scenery!
As Don posted, it is narrow in places, but the trick to that, should you encounter oncoming traffic and you're not sure, is: STOP! DON'T swerve. Just stop. Let them figure out how to get around you. Remember, if you hit a fixed object while you're moving, it's your fault. If you're the fixed object - it's their fault! So just stop and wait until they pass.
Make sure your brakes are adjusted properly, and that your Jake Brake works, too!
Of course, when you arrive in Fresno, and if you've got some time, free Pepsi's are available if you call the number that's in my profile.
FWIW & HTH. . .
;)
Ed -
Is Stevi getting lots of photos of Happy Dome?
RJ, thank goodness for digital cameras! She has taken hundreds of photos each time. ;D We have spent hours watching the idiots climbing El Capitan. Sure is a beautiful place though, even with the crowds! Every time we go we see something different. The place changes with the light. :)
I havent been that route ever. Never been to Yosemite yet and I have lived in cally most of my life. One of these days....... But the advice about stopping in narrow passages, all I can say is ............... YES!!! I got on a bridge on my maiden voyage and it was soooooo skinny backroads stuff I wasnt sure there was enough room for just me. I started out on the bridge though sloooooooow and sure enough an 18 wheeler came to the opposite side of the bridge just as I was about 1/2 way across. I flat out STOPPED and sweated as he roared past me! I swear he was suicidal! There were cars behind me, but they did NOT try to pass me and were very patient. SLOW is the word for narrow roads with no shoulders and especially with death drops on the side!
we have a friend who will be driving a motorhome and pulling a toad following us and she has no desire to go over tioga, so we will stick to the I-80 route. thanks for the replies!!
Probably a wise decision. Have a good trip.
Tioga Pass was one the easier runs for Wheezy Bus. Slow and steady will keep you out of trouble if you go that route. But, if you are in a knot while driving it, then you might not enjoy it until it's all over. Looks like the decision was made for you. Have a safe trip regardless of your route.
Thread drift! RJ, Stevi got her new camera on may 23rd. As of yesterday she has taken 5113 photos. ;D
We made a run in the jeep today up over Tioga Pass and back down. Nice trip but i am really glad we weren't in the bus today, as at one place we met 2 pickups hauling 5th wheels or trailers, and as they both came around the corner going too fast the front rig was a little bit in my lane but the 2nd one was well in my lane. I got over as far as i could without going off of the pavement. Most of that road has very little for shoulder and what it does have is rough. It also looks like the lanes are only 10ft. wide at the most. I could have reached out the window and touched the @$# end of the second rig as it went by but i was too busy hoping to keep it on the road if he clipped me. I am sure the bus would have had damage. Why does everybody think that they are race car drivers? I also noticed that many people were driving with their wheels on the center line. The tour buses were doing that too but they are a little wider than the cars. :)
Sounds like the kind of road to avoid in a bus. Thank you, I have been on a few like that in the bus and dont care for them.
You could do the trip in a bus but you would really need to concentrate on the road and traffic the whole way. If you want to sight see, ( and who doesn't in that place. ;D) you need to take a car and even then you better pay attention.
Really guys? When I traveled it I was in the company of many 45' tour buses and they didn't have a problem. It's not that bad unless you are an interstate only traveler I suppose. I usually don't pull a toad so I am used to using my bus for everything. Also, it is hard to get into much trouble when you travel at the speed of Wheezy Bus. More time behind the wheel will cure your fears and build your confidence. Good luck and have fun.
I came over I 80 from Reno last week. There is a lot of construction on doner pass. There is obout 10 miles of one way where the lane is narrowed down to where there is just enough room to get thru.
I had to leave my bus in Reno for repairs and came back to Fresno in my toad. I'll be going back to get it in a few days. From Reno I'll go to Tahoe and then back to Sacramento on 40. I sure wouldn't recomend 80 over Doner now. They have cement baracades separating the lanes. In a couple of places the center has been bumped and made the lane even narrower.
JL
I usually drive more 2 lane roads than interstates with the bus and i have driven it almost 40,000 miles. :) I was once a logger and spent a lot of time in the mountains on narrow roads in pickups even when i wasn't working. ;D I am an equipment operator and am used to moving around in very tight places with just inches to spare at times, so i would say that i have enough experience and confidence. I don't worry about me and my abilities.....it is other people that i have to worry about. I could run my bus over Tioga 100 times and probably not have a problem.....but yesterday if i had been there with the bus there would have been an unavoidable accident. There just wasn't enough room to get out of his way with a bus. We just barely made it with the jeep.
Maybe a little off-topic, but has anyone seen this show? Go to this page and watch the video clip: IRT Deadliest Roads (http://www.history.com/shows/irt-deadliest-roads/videos/irt-deadliest-roads-sneak-peek#irt-deadliest-roads-sneak-peek). It might make the road over Tioga pass seem not-so-bad. ;) :D ;D
Mike
I "can" maneuver in tight roads without a big sweat, I just prefere not to if I have a choice. Has anyone here gone down Main Street in Virginia City on a packed weekend? I did with cars parell parked on both sides of the skinny road and tons of traffic on the little 2 lane road built for a horse and carriage! Not fun, but definitely doable.
We airflighted a Harley guy off the corner down here last night. They think they can take that 25 mph corner at 60 mph, it dont always work out so well. The people and the kids in the car he totaled with his Harley were fine, but he probably would have done better bouncing his head off the pavement with a helmet. The point is, you cant ever anticipate what everyone else is going to do, all of the time. Statistically, more accidents are head on, on straight road, go figure. You would think curvy roads and corners would be number one instead of number two.
If the Bus can clear everything with enough room, and you have enough power (or can pull off here and there) to not have a train of cars behind you, I say go for it. I never wanted to be the slow a$$ motorhome in front of a mile of backed up traffic. I either drive fast enough to keep em off my butt, or pull off and let em go.
I dont know about this Tioga Pass, but if you dont do it, you might forever wish you had. You only get to go around once,.... no guts, no glory.
I have been looking forward to that show. ;D Tioga is not as bad as those roads. :) It does have a few turnouts at viewpoints but not many to allow traffic to pass. The places that you can pull off are usually rough, with a dropoff of a few inches from the pavement, narrow, and not very long. A lot of the road has the fog line right at the very edge of the pavement and then you either have a bank, trees, or a ditch right there. There are plenty of places where they could widen the road and make turnouts, etc. But they haven't put the money into it. This has been a park for well over 100 years so you would have thought things would be a lot better. They are however grinding and repaving a lot of hiway 41 in the park and that is a big improvement just from the first time that we went in on it on this trip. With all of that said, Tioga is do-able with a bus, but to really enjoy it,..... take the toad. ;D