getting around the passes
 

is there a way I can get from San Francisco, around from Donners pass going across CA to NV , & also the Laramie / Cheyenne pass , I would like to hook up with I-80 across country ,in an rv

Your question isn't that clear . . . are you asking if you can get from San Francisco across the Sierra to Nevada without having to drive mountain passes?

The answer is no. The only way to get from SF to Nevada w/o going through mountains is to head south to Bakersfield and on to Las Vegas. Or perhaps down to Bakersfield and up the east side of the mountains on hwy 395. But both of those routes are hundreds of miles out of the way.

But many people do manage the passes in Motorhomes so unless it is terribly underpowered/old/decrepit you should be able to cross on hwy 50 or I-80.

oh, and there are other routes that have mountain passes but not horribly high ones - but they are also out of your way.

when you look at a map you will see the mountains run from N Canada to the south of south America.....the answer is no.

>>the answer is no.<< . . . unless one goes south and across to Las Vegas. There is a bit of a break in the mountain chains. But that only gets one to Nevada . . . you have other issues on the rest of your route.

If you're worried about driving on narrow, twisty roads, you'll be on the freeway, so you should be fine.

Lee Ann

There is no Laramie / Cheyenne pass.

"There is no Laramie / Cheyenne pass."

There actually is a bit of a pass between Laramie and Cheyenne but nothing for you to worry about. Interstates have to be built in a way for all traffic to be able to navigate them---grades, curves, shoulders, etc.

From a local:
"There is a pass just east of Laramie with a steep climb that maxes out about 8400 ft. (up from Laramie at 7200 ft. about 10 mi. away). Everything else is pretty flat."

">>the answer is no.<< . . . unless one goes south and across to Las Vegas. There is a bit of a break in the mountain chains. But that only gets one to Nevada . . . you have other issues on the rest of your route."

you can also cross the cascades at grade along the Columbia river but there will be a pass outside of Pendleton so neither comment really matters.

At 8400 ft that is nothing but a big hill. Been over it a number of times and hardly classifies as a pass.

Maybe, the OP means under certain weather conditions. What month?

Jungle11, it would be helpful if you returned with a few comments about your concerns about the passes. Most major roads, especially interstates, are relatively straight with modest grades. Not like the old days of hairpin curves and very steep grades. Now you can still find that on some of the older US highways but not on interstates.

A list of Americas 10 worst passes...

http://www.dieselpowermag.com/towing...a/viewall.html

At least none of them are along I-80 which the OP is intending to use. Does make for interesting reading

One can avoid I80 over the Donner summit by going up to Redding, and then circle north of Lassen to drop down to Susanville and join US395 to go to Reno. But that is a long way around.

thanks, sorry was busy last few days , now i'm leaving from L.A. area , how is I-40 to I-25 to take I-70 thru Colorado?

You will still be driving through the mountains in Arizona and New Mexico. Once you cross Raton Pass into Colorado, you'll be on the east side of the Rockies.

What time of year will you be traveling? What are your concerns in driving through the mountains? If you could give us more information, we could give you a little more help.

Lee Ann

I would take I40 to I44 to get to I70, unless you have to go through Colorado.