Community Forums

CamJam1 · 02-20-2020, 03:40 AM

Zane Grey Highway (AZ-260) between AZ-87 and Camp Verde is gorgeous drive with spectacular views and little traffic east of Camp Verde, though it has a pretty sizeable downgrade headed west. Pine/Strawberry part of AZ-87 would not be my first choice in a moho, but to each their own. I certainly did worse in Idaho last year, though it wasn't fun.

bigchick · 02-20-2020, 07:47 AM

az 87 north of pine / strawberry is totally doable in any type of rv and it is done daily by hundreds of rvs / semis. and yes there is a curve that is marked at 20 mph and yes there is an upgrade going north (downgrade going south) to get to the top of the rim. the technique is to simply take this slow!!!!! any rv or semi will be slower that a car. but they understand. just take your time and take it safely. there are pullouts at the top and the bottom of the grade.

as far as the comment about taking lake mary road to flagstaff that is only applicable if you are going from payson to flagstaff. if you are going to camp verde you take az-260.
there are two issues using az-260 to i-17 to get to flagstaff.
- lake mary road is 22 miles shorter
- using the az-87 / az-26o / i-17 route requires you climb to the top of the rim (7,000+ ft) then go down to camp verde (3,500 ft) then climb back up to flagstaff (7,000+ ft). the lake mary road only requires you to get to the top of the rim and then it is basically level all the way to flagstaff.

twogypsies · 02-20-2020, 05:57 PM

260 into Camp Verde is a very nice way to go and many RVers do it.

I don't think the OP was talking about going to Flagstaff - at least not first. He wanted to go from Phoenix to Sedona. No need to go to Flagstaff to get to Sedona.

CamJam1 · 02-20-2020, 10:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigchick

az 87 north of pine / strawberry is totally doable in any type of rv and it is done daily by hundreds of rvs / semis. and yes there is a curve that is marked at 20 mph and yes there is an upgrade going north (downgrade going south) to get to the top of the rim. the technique is to simply take this slow!!!!! any rv or semi will be slower that a car. but they understand. just take your time and take it safely. there are pullouts at the top and the bottom of the grade.

as far as the comment about taking lake mary road to flagstaff that is only applicable if you are going from payson to flagstaff. if you are going to camp verde you take az-260.
there are two issues using az-260 to i-17 to get to flagstaff.
- lake mary road is 22 miles shorter
- using the az-87 / az-26o / i-17 route requires you climb to the top of the rim (7,000+ ft) then go down to camp verde (3,500 ft) then climb back up to flagstaff (7,000+ ft). the lake mary road only requires you to get to the top of the rim and then it is basically level all the way to flagstaff.

True about the altitude changes/and grades going the 260/I-17 route, though I think the OP was inquiring about Sedona too. Personally, I'd just stick with I-17, but I've lived here 43 years and none of it is new to me. If it's new country to you the AZ-87 route is more scenic and it's understandable why some might prefer that route.