Bighorn Mountains

[kitster]

My wife and I are planning a trip to Yellowstone this fall. I'm hearing that the northern crossing on route 14 is a must better scenic route across the bighorns. I'm thinking that my truck setup with the towing package and exhaust brakes should be fine but my wife isn't so sure. Since we've never really made a trip like this before, we would like to know if anyone has similar equipment to ours and has made that crossing, what are your thoughts?

[sande005]

I did it with the truck and old 5th in my signature (and many other bigger mountain crossings). I love the Bighorns. Grades are steep, but not extreme. There are many 10-15 mph hairpin turns. There are also several very long downgrades where you will get very familiar with managing your gearing, exhaust brake and foot brakes. It's where I learned how to lockout higher gears in the tranny to force engine braking, to avoid overheating the truck brakes (my very first long down hill they did get really hot, but not to the point of fade!). Budget your time to allow for slow/very slow going. None of it is plunge-off-the-cliff-and-die driving. The scenery is exceptional, and you will quickly adapt to being able to control things and enjoy the views. A great route to get familiar with mountain driving.
That said, AVOID 14A, and stay on the main route of 14. 14A is not recommended for RV's.
If you plan to overnight, research carefully - the defined campsites can be small, with very limited facilities, and they are popular. There are huge areas for dispersed/boondock camping also, with some being almost their own RV villages. But they require getting off the main road and following a dirt road/track, so may not be a first time choice.

[Second Chance]

Moved to Campgrounds, Destinations and RV Trip Planning.

I never plan a trip without referring to my copy of The Mountain Directory (the electronic version on my laptop):

https://mountaindirectory.com/

RV Trip Wizard, a paid subscription, is also very handy for planning RV-compatible routes and helping you find places to stay.

Rob

[WondersAwait]

I never plan a trip without referring to my copy of The Mountain Directory (the electronic version on my laptop):

https://mountaindirectory.com/

I have seen a few people post about this and considered picking it up but haven't yet. I have a similar trip planned as OP (Midwest to Wyoming) coming up this summer and think it might be time to take the plunge and purchase this directory.

[kitster]

I did it with the truck and old 5th in my signature (and many other bigger mountain crossings). I love the Bighorns. Grades are steep, but not extreme. There are many 10-15 mph hairpin turns. There are also several very long downgrades where you will get very familiar with managing your gearing, exhaust brake and foot brakes. It's where I learned how to lockout higher gears in the tranny to force engine braking, to avoid overheating the truck brakes (my very first long down hill they did get really hot, but not to the point of fade!). Budget your time to allow for slow/very slow going. None of it is plunge-off-the-cliff-and-die driving. The scenery is exceptional, and you will quickly adapt to being able to control things and enjoy the views. A great route to get familiar with mountain driving.
That said, AVOID 14A, and stay on the main route of 14. 14A is not recommended for RV's.
If you plan to overnight, research carefully - the defined campsites can be small, with very limited facilities, and they are popular. There are huge areas for dispersed/boondock camping also, with some being almost their own RV villages. But they require getting off the main road and following a dirt road/track, so may not be a first time choice.

How do you lockout higher gears?

[sande005]

How do you lockout higher gears?

On my F150, the shift stalk has a button for + and -. Hitting the - progressively prevents the tranny from shifting into higher gears, so 5th can be locked out, and 4th is the highest, or 4th with 3 being the highest, etc. Coming down a long grade, I prevent it from ever going higher than 3rd gear (or sometimes even 2nd!) so engine braking limits the speed increase. I do watch rpm's and tranny temps in those situations, but never got even close to a red line point, even though the engine howl was more than I am used to. Kinda nice (but loud) comin' down a 6% grade for 15 miles and rarely having to touch the brakes. Never drove with exhaust brakes so can't say how well they work, or if your truck may have both methods available. On mine, I also found that cruise control also tries to limit the speed increase, if it gets too far above the set speed. Not precise, but every bit that keeps me from pushing on the brake pedal helps.

[lorend]

My wife and I are planning a trip to Yellowstone this fall. I'm hearing that the northern crossing on route 14 is a must better scenic route across the bighorns. I'm thinking that my truck setup with the towing package and exhaust brakes should be fine but my wife isn't so sure. Since we've never really made a trip like this before, we would like to know if anyone has similar equipment to ours and has made that crossing, what are your thoughts?

If your Ram is like mine with the tow haul and exhaust brake package you should be in great shape for any hill. With the tow haul and exhaust brake I can have my truck and 5er slow down to less than 20 mph on an 8% downgrade. Seems silly to have to use the fuel pedal to go down hill. lol. Rob in post #3 mentions the mountain directory. I second his thoughts on it if you are going to do much driving in the west mountains. In post #2 Sande mentions not going on 14A. The mountain directory says the locals refer to the pass as "Oh, MY GOD HILL" . The directory says a 10% grade for 10 miles. That is a lot of downhill. Sounds like staying on 14 is good advice.

[Hoopy Frood]

I rode a motorcycle over the old Alt. 14 back around 1980, with a stop at the Indian Medicine Wheel, very cool. The views from up there were superb, but the down hill toward Cody was not for the faint of heart. You basically came to the edge of the plateau, and the road went down, very sharp switchbacks, and narrow road. We met a guy coming up with a small trailer in tow, and he was having to make two point turns going around the switchbacks. I remember thinking, "That does not look like fun. Why would anybody haul a trailer?". I came over it 10 or 15 years ago, motorcycle of course, and the new Alt. 14 isn't too bad, considering.

[ajg617]

Still debating on return from YNP and Grand Tetons. Remembered the signs for Big Horn Mountains last season and started to look at that as a jog on the way back. Will be returning from Alpine with an overnight stay in either Worland then head east over 16 or Greybull (preferred stay location) to Ranchester on 14. Was thinking about heading up 89 to pick up 14 east around the lake but unsure of the tunnel clearances on 14 through Yellowstone to Cody though I'm assuming they are truck capable to get provisions into YNP. Motor Carriers just says all YNP roads are restricted. Watched a number of YT videos and there seem to be many 5th wheels and Class As inside the tunnel boundaries but I can't tell if they came in from another direction or not.

[marine6805]

Just last summer made the East-West trip through Yellowstone, via Cody, and never had a traffic delay or road closure. Only issues were recently reconstructed roadbeds that were either plain old hard pan or pavement prepped that hindered steady speed. Other than that it was an absolutely marvelous trip. Our 7th or 8th journey through Yellowstone. Never ran into any grade issues either.