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RICHARDH
Junior Nomad
Posts: 84
Registered: 11-15-2006
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| Quote: | Originally posted by RICHARDH
... and probably took the pass both ways with the Mirage. |
That is, I drove the Mitsubishi up to Sonora Pass from the Kennedy Meadows area, and probably did so several times. I remember hiking (a loop) south
up Blue Canyon, then east over to the Pacific Crest Trail, then north to Sonora Pass, and then west down the highway back to the car, and I also
remember hiking northeast up an apparently unnamed canyon just northwest from Blue Canyon and then east out to the highway. As you say, that's
beautiful country. Very!! I may have driven the Mitsubishi over to the eastern side maybe as far as US 395 and then back to Sonora Pass and the
Kennedy Meadows area. (But I probably didn't drive the pickup/camper up to Sonora Pass.)
Thanks for reminding me, Joe! As you point out, the highway will probably be snowed in and closed when I head out for Baja, and, besides, Sonora Pass
is a bit out of my way.
Do you happen to know what the (maximum) percentage grade is for Hwy 88 leading up to Carson Pass from the east? I'm pretty familiar with that one?
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RICHARDH
Junior Nomad
Posts: 84
Registered: 11-15-2006
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Hook
RichardH, an oversized differential? Do you mean that a rebuild increased your rear axle ratio (which would be a good thing for climbing).
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The radiator, the differential, and the rear bumper are apparently special, heavy-duty stuff; everything else is apparently standard. The pickup
belonged to a county transportation department before I bought it. I think the pickup was probably special-ordered from the factory with that
differential.
When the last transmission was installed, no care was taken to match the speedometer gear ratio to the existing differential. So now my odometer
reads 20 percent in excess of the actual distance traveled. In other words, the engine probably turns over 20 percent more than it would with a
standard differential covering the same distance traveled.
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bajaguy
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9247
Registered: 9-16-2003
Location: Carson City, NV/Ensenada - Baja Country Club
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Mood: must be 5 O'clock somewhere in Baja
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Drove northbound on 395 last Saturday....Sonora, Monitor and Ebbetts passes are all closed
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mtgoat666
Select Nomad
Posts: 17383
Registered: 9-16-2006
Location: San Diego
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Mood: Hot n spicy
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| Quote: | Originally posted by RICHARDH
Does anyone have any good ideas on how I could conduct such a test? If stalling is necessary for testing purposes, the roadway should be fairly wide
and straight -- no-stalling on steep, narrow, hairpin turns -- very dangerous. I know of some fairly steep grades that my pickup/camper will handle
reasonably well, but I have no idea what the numerical percentages are for the grades.
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Measuring grade as percent is a matter of measuring rise over a horizontal distance (rise/run) -- look it up on the internet and I'm sure you can find
a diagram.
To measure slope of a road, you can probably use an inclinometer (a level with a slope-scale apparatus). I have an architctural tool that does it
(you can probably find in any good hardware store [maybe not home depot]). I have seen off-road shops sell chaep tilt meters that you can mount in
vehicle cabs.
Seems to me not worth worrying about. If you find a paved road that you cant drive up, then back down. If your truck can't handle the steeperst
paved street you find in your local hilly town, and you are losing sleep over the matter, then you better get another truck if you want to haul a
camper. Or ditch the camper and take a tent!
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Skipjack Joe
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8084
Registered: 7-12-2004
Location: Bahia Asuncion
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| Quote: | Originally posted by RICHARDH
Do you happen to know what the (maximum) percentage grade is for Hwy 88 leading up to Carson Pass from the east? I'm pretty familiar with that one?
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The steepest part is climbing up from Red Lake to the pass itself. I would say it's around 9-12%. It's very similar to hwy 120 going east towards
Tioga pass.
Regarding Leavitt meadows: I've hiked around there in the fall along the trails that the horsepacker's use but didn't run across any great fishing
lakes. It's my understanding that if you hike in way back there you eventually cross the great western divide and into yosemite national park. I
believe that there is a Dorothy Lake in there where the rainbows average 16" and there are lots of 20 inchers waiting for you fly.
That's too much hiking for my old legs. Have you ever been to Kirman Lake, Hook? It's one ridge south from Leavitt Meadows. There is a drop off point
from hwy 108 and a 2 1/2 mile hike through sagebrush country to this little gem. It has trophy brook trout and a few cutthroats. The time to get them
is Oct 1-15, when they are spawning. A size 18 pheasant tail stripped in on a slow sinking line. 20-25 fish a day is normal. You need to carry in your
float tube. This picture was taken from there.
P.S. tenting in baja is a drag in my opinion. Setting it up and then taking it down. Wind blowing so hard you can't sleep at night.
[Edited on 1-7-2007 by Skipjack Joe]
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mtgoat666
Select Nomad
Posts: 17383
Registered: 9-16-2006
Location: San Diego
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Mood: Hot n spicy
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Also, after you find the diagram on the internet and figure out how to measure grade -- you could build a slope meter using a weighted string, a
level, and a plastic protractor -- and hang the contraption in the cab of your truck and always know the grade at any time.
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RICHARDH
Junior Nomad
Posts: 84
Registered: 11-15-2006
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Many thanks, Skipjack and mtgoat666.
What was puzzling me about what the definition could be is that percentage is usually a percentage of something, but discussion of grades usually do
not specify what the percentage is a percentage of.
It turns out that the percentage is the percentage that rise is of run. (So a 45 degree slope is a 100 percent grade.)
Here's a URL.
http://www.bookrags.com/research/grades-highway-mmat-02/
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ElGato
Junior Nomad
Posts: 36
Registered: 12-23-2005
Location: Santa Cruz, Ca.
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Mood: Virile
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 The Grade or Percent grade may not be the most important consideration when
climbing. My friend who lived in the Santa Cruz Mtns by San Jose,Ca. kept blowing engines going home. He couldn't understand why until he started
talking with his mechanic and found out that the grade to his house was steep enough that the oil pump couldn't suck the oil due to the incline and as
a result the engine wasn't being lubricated. Just passing along what happened to my friend.
Baja Joe  |
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