Need Your Advice

[Winnebago2015]

Hello Folks,
Need to tap into your experience, so please advise. My wife and I are retirees and lately joined the Motorhome Class "A" RV family, we are planning our "FIRST" trip from SoCal to Denver in mid November to join our daughter and son for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year, and kind of worry about the mountains roads in winter, so I have a few questions:
1- I-15 and I-70 or better I-40 and I-25
2- Please note that the coach will be our primary residence for approximately 8 weeks.
3- Of what I need to be most concerned, as far as the coach system/appliances etc. etc. how about the water use....city or holding tank.
4- How long the coach can be sitting on the level/support hydraulic pistons?
5- Or best, stay home and take our first trip in spring or summer.
Thanks a bunch
Gerard and Doris
Coach: Winnebago
Pull: Grand Jeep Cherokee "Summit"
Travel partners/navigators: Toy Puddles: Kody and Toby
Affiliates: Good Sam Club - Elite Member
Society of Plastics Engineers "SPE" - Senior Member
Music: Country

[Bill_Satellite]

Thanks for your post. Very interesting information. Did I miss the part where the OP was headed for WA? As to the route he is traveling, if the pass was clear when he approached the bottom of the pass it would still be clear 10 minutes later when he crested the pass. It is was already snowing he should already be parked. I don't care where I go, I am never going to have chain on-board as I would never install them on my coach. I don't believe anyone else should either. A weather forecast is pretty dang accurate these days (not perfect, I agree) so if it says there's a chance of snow, stop. If it says it will be clear and 50 degrees, drive!

[msturtz]

Bill.Satellite wrote:
First, DO NOT BUY CHAINS! If the Interstate you plan to travel has chain requirements in place DO NOT DRIVE! Tomorrow or a day or 2 later the road will get better and you will be able to travel safely. Leave earlier than you need and allow plenty of travel time.
The short route is 15 to 70 but you have an 11,000 foot pass (no problems if the road is dry) and you may have to wait for it to clear. What I would do to ensure the best chances of a safe and easy drive would be 10E to Las Cruces and then 25N all the way in. It will add about 200 miles to the drive but at least half the trip will be in areas that never get snow or get a bit snow which quickly clears. There are no huge passes to deal with and while the I-10 trip has some pretty boring scenery, the I-25N drive is beautiful.
I have done both in the Winter and both will work if you watch the weather forecasts and either go or stay based upon that.
You will also be able to stay absolutely toasty warm in your RV and the tanks will not freeze if you camp in cold weather if you follow the procedures your coach was setup for. That mean you are going to burn A LOT of propane since the house you are visiting will not have the necessary 50amps to run some electric heaters. The furnace will blow hot air into your wet bays and keep everything warm there as well. If you would like some added piece of mind you can put 1 or 2 150W light bulbs (if you can find them) in the bays as well. It's pretty well insulated so a little heat goes a long way. It it's below 32 outside when you are driving you will need to run the furnace at that time as well. I spent last Winter in Detroit with temps sometimes dropping to -25. I had 50amp so I had electric heat in the coach, lights in the bays and I spent about $700 on fuel! Had a great time! I also bought a little weather station with a remote temperature sensor which I placed in the wet bays to ensure I could see if everything was staying warm enough down there to prevent any issues. Make the trip, have a great time but use some common sense and drive when the roads are clear of snow.

I'm sorry to disagree on one point. It is state law in many states that you must carry tire chains if you travel over any passes in a vehicle that is over 10,000# combination weight. Note this does not apply only to commercial vehicles. In fact in Washington State you must carry tire chains and a spare set of tire chains if your combination exceeds the 10,000# weight. The weather in the mountains can change in an instant and you can be stuck in a snow storm that was not predicted. Too many times people travel over passes without the proper equipment and cause accidents and jam up the roadway unnecessarily. I have a commercial driver's license and experience driving on slippery roadways. Please always carry the right equipment. Just because you aren't a commercial vehicle does not mean that the laws of physics don't apply. I do agree that in most cases it is prudent to delay travel if possible to avoid known poor weather. This is especially true if you are unfamiliar with driving in adverse conditions.

[Bill_Satellite]

First, DO NOT BUY CHAINS! If the Interstate you plan to travel has chain requirements in place DO NOT DRIVE! Tomorrow or a day or 2 later the road will get better and you will be able to travel safely. Leave earlier than you need and allow plenty of travel time.
The short route is 15 to 70 but you have an 11,000 foot pass (no problems if the road is dry) and you may have to wait for it to clear. What I would do to ensure the best chances of a safe and easy drive would be 10E to Las Cruces and then 25N all the way in. It will add about 200 miles to the drive but at least half the trip will be in areas that never get snow or get a bit snow which quickly clears. There are no huge passes to deal with and while the I-10 trip has some pretty boring scenery, the I-25N drive is beautiful.
I have done both in the Winter and both will work if you watch the weather forecasts and either go or stay based upon that.
You will also be able to stay absolutely toasty warm in your RV and the tanks will not freeze if you camp in cold weather if you follow the procedures your coach was setup for. That mean you are going to burn A LOT of propane since the house you are visiting will not have the necessary 50amps to run some electric heaters. The furnace will blow hot air into your wet bays and keep everything warm there as well. If you would like some added piece of mind you can put 1 or 2 150W light bulbs (if you can find them) in the bays as well. It's pretty well insulated so a little heat goes a long way. It it's below 32 outside when you are driving you will need to run the furnace at that time as well. I spent last Winter in Detroit with temps sometimes dropping to -25. I had 50amp so I had electric heat in the coach, lights in the bays and I spent about $700 on fuel! Had a great time! I also bought a little weather station with a remote temperature sensor which I placed in the wet bays to ensure I could see if everything was staying warm enough down there to prevent any issues. Make the trip, have a great time but use some common sense and drive when the roads are clear of snow.

[ncrowley]

I-40 and I-25 are a better route in the winter. Your big problem with be Raton pass. If you cannot get over the pass, I would recommend a stay at the NRA Whittington Center.
Since you do not have many miles under your belt, I would recommend you not take your RV on this trip. There is a sticky thread about how to manage an RV in the winter. I involuntarily stayed in an RV in a lot of snow and cold weather and I did not find it enjoyable. I hope you have a well insulated coach and the area where the tanks are is heated.

[msturtz]

I have camped in cold weather in both a travel trailer and in a Class C motor home. We now have a Class A motor home.I have driven in snow and ice in a with a truck and trailer which is very difficult and in a motor home. With the truck and trailer the truck had studded snow tires and I also had 4 tire chains. The truck had a G80 mechanical locking differential and 4 wheel drive. With the motor home it was equipped with a Tru Trac limited slip differential ABS and snow tires. The Class A motor home has Eaton NoSpin locking differential and ABS and tire chains for all four rear tires. The major challenge with a motor home is most of them are configured with an open rear differential which essentially turns them into a one wheel drive vehicle. This coupled with regular tires and no traction control you are very limited in where you can go. It is possible with tire chains but the road must be sanded there cannot be too much snow on the road and the grade cannot be too steep. Putting tire chains onto 22.5" tires on the side of the road is no fun either. The trick is to go slow and take your time. Don't go down any major grades that are not serviced i.e. sanded and plowed. By all means don't go down steep down grades on compact ice and snow without tire chains. We four season camp so we can get caught in ice and snow. We have always gotten through. We carry the right equipment and have made specific factory approved modifications to the coach to be safe. On the other topic most Class A diesel motorhomes are equipped for cold weather use with heated basements and enclosed plumbing and dual pane windows. Some Class A gas motorhomes are also equipped similarly. We added a mechanical dehumidifier to keep the motor home from having condensation problems. We just connected to water just long enough to refill our freshwater tank. The sewer hose was connected only long enough dump the black and gray tanks.

[sch911]

imgoin4it wrote:
Popsie has a good way to go, however as you travel you can watch the weather forcasts and probably see in advance if I-70 through Flagstaff has bad weather/good weather and make the decision on the fly as whether come down to I-10 or stay on I-70. I assume you have checked out possible places to stay in Denver area. Not lots of places in my opinion. I have daughters there and have stayed in colorado springs when visiting. Did that a couple of weeks ago hoveverr you are at a different time of the year.

Don't you mean I40??

[Sully2]

Winnebago2015 wrote:
Folks, got to tell ya, you are never to old to learn, and today I learned a bunch, one more question, I live at almost 5k elevation, we got some snow in January, just a little, but there are few days that the temp drops below frizzing, do I need to winterize my MH, means drain all the water to include the water heater, right? do I need to put any antifreeze in the system or leave it dry?

Drain everything that has a drain...blow out plumbing system with compressed air. Put RV antifreeze in all traps...kitchen sink..bathroom sink...washer drain...you name it

[Dennis_M_M]

Best place for a stay in Denver is Cherry Creek. You are limited to 14 days and you need a vehicle pass for the MH in addition to the camping fee. They will give you a pass for the towed.

They have some loops with heated standpipes so you can fill your fresh tank. Last November we hit a VERY cold week in Denver - hit 14 below one night and stayed below freezing most of the week. Went through four 40 lb. LP tanks with a cold weather package on the rig.

Closest acceptable parks to Denver that we have found are in Golden or the KOA in Strasburg which is open all year.

If temps drop below freezing where you are it is safer to winterize. Not a big job once you get the drill down. Lots of threads on the forums with detailed instructions.

Experienced or not I would not recommend trying the MH on snow covered roads.

[2bzy2c]

Winnebago2015 wrote:
Folks, got to tell ya, you are never to old to learn, and today I learned a bunch, one more question, I live at almost 5k elevation, we got some snow in January, just a little, but there are few days that the temp drops below frizzing, do I need to winterize my MH, means drain all the water to include the water heater, right? do I need to put any antifreeze in the system or leave it dry?

Hard to say. TO play it safe, I would winterize. One hard freeze and you are looking at significant $$ to repair freeze damage, that is if you can get to it.

[2bzy2c]

WyoTraveler wrote:
How to retract a jack from frozen ground would have been a better question. JMHO.

X2^

[Winnebago2015]

Folks, got to tell ya, you are never to old to learn, and today I learned a bunch, one more question, I live at almost 5k elevation, we got some snow in January, just a little, but there are few days that the temp drops below frizzing, do I need to winterize my MH, means drain all the water to include the water heater, right? do I need to put any antifreeze in the system or leave it dry?

[Winnebago2015]

WyoTraveler, you are not kidding me, here in south cali if you get few drops of rain you got 100 car accidents, I do have experience driving in the rain and snow but none driving big rig in that conditions, and chains are nightmare on a regular car, don't even want to think about MH

[Winnebago2015]

thanks imgoin4it, if I make it to Denver, I'll park my rig on our daughter driveway, it's long enough, but maybe I wait till spring, I think darsben is right, not only the snow on the road, but how to keep the all tanks from freezing.

[2gypsies1]

I'd recommend you visit in spring. Snow, cold and possibly ice do not go with RVing - especially for newbies. 🙂 We were caught in a blizzard just east of Flagstaff the end of April one year. The interstate was closed down.