How do we get there?

[Sandy___Shirley]

We are having some issues with our GPS, so we are trying to get places the old fashion way using Google Maps or Map Quest. Seems as if those sites do not care at all that you are driving a 37 foot motor home towing a car behind you, and we can’t find an option to let the site know what we are driving.

Take a right on route 123 and go 10 miles, oops, it didn’t tell you that there was a 10’ clearance bridge along that route!

Does anyone know of an online driving map URL that will let you say that you are driving a truck or bus so that it doesn’t take you down back roads where the turns are difficult even for cars?

[zigzagrv]

I use CoPilot (free download for basic)on my tablet. You can select RV and two different heights; 12'6 and 13 feet. I use that to check my route for low bridges.

[webslave]

I find it a little humorous that a GS member, obviously online, hasn't tried the GS Trip Routing Program... It is what I use routinely and I go Pa to Or to Az and back to Or and then home to Pa annually. Take different routes to vary the scenery and it hasn't let me down yet for routing (has RV warnings that are customizable) or finding a suitable campground. If you don't like the road it has you on, just drag the route over to where you'd rather be. We did that a couple of times to go around a mountain on a straighter road than the twisty one that went over the top... Once you have your route you can print it to PDF on paper or a file on your device. I print it to paper so that my wife can verify on an Atlas that it is correct, and I have the GS Rand McNally GPS unit that I download the entire trip to.

[Kayteg1]

D.E.Bishop wrote:

Kayteg1 wrote:
I've been turned away too many times from firetrails, that GPS wanted me to enter to take it seriously.
Than it is government that does mapping that GPS uses, so it takes about 8 years for new freeways to show on the routing.
I felt pretty stupid driving 210 freeway in So California who as I check was 6 years old and my recent GPS showing swamps and asking me to turn around.
So if I am planning to take back roads, what I actually consider adventure, I go on google maps and zoom on satellite pictures. Takes good internet and some time, but will also allow you to notice some stuff map will never show.

Kayteg1, what recent GPS showed the 210 as swamps? I live very close and use it frequently when shopping or traveling East and I never knew there was a swamp, even back in the days before the 210 when we went Foothill to Baseline to the old Cajon Pass.

Folks on here have suggested using the 210 to avoid LA traffic for yeats, I've never heard anyone mentioning a swamp. There are a lot of washes out there but no swamps.

Sorry for not being precise with time.
That situation happen few years ago. The 210 between Glendora and San Bernardino was built about year 2000 (from my memory, so give or take couple). I drove it with 2007 GPS what was showing farmlands and "swamps" in my location. I mean I consider the map showing swamps, what you should take with grain of salt 😉
Than that nagging FEMALE voice that kept telling me to turn around. :S
I had a project that made me driving SF to San Diego every couple of moths and 210 was the best, although I-5 via LA at 10PM was not bad.

[ncrowley]

The RV specific Garmin has proven very accurate so far. We always check our route before we go using the trucker's atlas.

[koda55]

I bought the Garmin 660 with life maps. I put all my info for my rv. So far it has been correct. I can dual select. I can select car or rv.

[D_E_Bishop]

Kayteg1 wrote:
I've been turned away too many times from firetrails, that GPS wanted me to enter to take it seriously.
Than it is government that does mapping that GPS uses, so it takes about 8 years for new freeways to show on the routing.
I felt pretty stupid driving 210 freeway in So California who as I check was 6 years old and my recent GPS showing swamps and asking me to turn around.
So if I am planning to take back roads, what I actually consider adventure, I go on google maps and zoom on satellite pictures. Takes good internet and some time, but will also allow you to notice some stuff map will never show.

Kayteg1, what recent GPS showed the 210 as swamps? I live very close and use it frequently when shopping or traveling East and I never knew there was a swamp, even back in the days before the 210 when we went Foothill to Baseline to the old Cajon Pass.

Folks on here have suggested using the 210 to avoid LA traffic for yeats, I've never heard anyone mentioning a swamp. There are a lot of washes out there but no swamps.

[paintedtugboat]

Our Rand McNally for RVs has been very reliable. It allows you input your length and height and keeps you away from high railway crossings that may hazardous and from underpasses that do not meet your requirements.

[catkins]

As mentioned, any of the Truckers Atlas you can purchase. If a road is OK for Trucks, I know it is OK for me. If not marked OK, I can then research what the issue is. Sometimes roads are OK to use anyway. All Atlas contain lists of low clearances also. Interstates will be fine, most higways and some local roads. Happy Trails!

[darsben]

2gypsies wrote:
I wouldn't put much faith in the Truckers Atlas. We've never used it but I just read on another forum that the Truckers Atlas said it was o.k. to drive Bear Tooth Highway. If any of you have driven that in your small car you understand the concern I'd have with that Truckers Atlas.

We love mountain driving but we do various research first. We look at the 'Mountain Director for Trucker and RVers' first to see if our planned road is listed. That's usually a 'go' for us. However, we still might Google that road number to see if there would be any surprises. We then create our route on Delorme mapping program and only then will we transfer it to a GPS. We would never plug in a beginning and ending point in a GPS and follow it -unless all you drive are interstates.

In 16 years of full-timing and traveling constantly and exploring secondary roads we've never had an issue of 'oops'.

AH, One of those friend of a friend heard from chicken little that the boy was crying wolf.

[2gypsies1]

I wouldn't put much faith in the Truckers Atlas. We've never used it but I just read on another forum that the Truckers Atlas said it was o.k. to drive Bear Tooth Highway. If any of you have driven that in your small car you understand the concern I'd have with that Truckers Atlas.

We love mountain driving but we do various research first. We look at the 'Mountain Director for Trucker and RVers' first to see if our planned road is listed. That's usually a 'go' for us. However, we still might Google that road number to see if there would be any surprises. We then create our route on Delorme mapping program and only then will we transfer it to a GPS. We would never plug in a beginning and ending point in a GPS and follow it -unless all you drive are interstates.

In 16 years of full-timing and traveling constantly and exploring secondary roads we've never had an issue of 'oops'.

[Janss]

I find it humorous that you think online maps are "the old fashion way". I thought paper maps are the old fashioned way.

[Kayteg1]

I've been turned away too many times from firetrails, that GPS wanted me to enter to take it seriously.
Than it is government that does mapping that GPS uses, so it takes about 8 years for new freeways to show on the routing.
I felt pretty stupid driving 210 freeway in So California who as I check was 6 years old and my recent GPS showing swamps and asking me to turn around.
So if I am planning to take back roads, what I actually consider adventure, I go on google maps and zoom on satellite pictures. Takes good internet and some time, but will also allow you to notice some stuff map will never show.

[azdryheat]

I Google Map it first then verify the route with my Motor Carrier's Atlas - if the truckers can use the road then so can I. I've gone so far as to do a Street View on Google Maps to see what the road actually looks like, especially in the mountains.

[bluwtr49]

I've been extremely happy with Garmin products and might try this one for my next GPS.

Garmin

Personally, I always double check the next days drive against other sources including this site. Anyplace I want to go someone else has already been there so posting a route question has always been beneficial.