Best route advice requested

I deliver new and used equipment throughout Canada and the US which means that I seldom go to the same place twice. There is a real need for advice from experienced drivers to individuals like myself and new drivers as to the best routing based on the truck, the load and time. I am hoping that this thread will draw in some of the "old hands" to share their expertise.

i recently drove a crane truck from Sarnia to Vancouver. This beast weighed in at 56,000 lbs, had maybe a 240 hp engine with a manual 10 speed transmission. Going up an ant hill was a 70 kph experience but coming down was just wild. I did not, because of the small motor have a lot of compression to hold the truck back, nor did I have an engine or exhaust brake. Despite dropping to 7th and pulse braking between 40 & 45 kph I had my very first brake fire descending into Merritt, BC coming from Vernon.

So here is the question. With that truck and weight; would I have been better off accepting the additional 2 hours of driving and travelled on the Yellowhead and then connected to the Coquihala rather than coming in from Calgary? Here's where I could use some advice since I do not know the elevations and road conditions from Edmonton to Vancouver.

i hope that a professional driver will offer some advice. Hopefully this develops into an on-going thread where I can return in the future.

Thanks,
WillyWideLoad (me, not the truck)

 

Some didn't!

 

Many thanks to Rzi-dzl

I have had a look at a topographical map and your recommendations make perfect sense!

 

Greetings to Pcfreak,

I had to go to Vernon to get a Hotel at a decent price. All the places in Kamloops wanted an arm and a leg. Oh what I would give for a sleeper unit like I had on my old Freightliner Columbia. I would also like to have the 450 hp engine, the 3 -stage engine brake and the 13 speed automatic manual transmission. I used to pass a lot of trucks going uphill through West Virginia and seldom had to touch the brakes except to come to a complete stop.

In the last 4 years I have only had a sleeper on the truck once and since it was a new undelivered truck I was told that I could not use it.

Thanks for the insight into the mechanicals of the diesel. I appreciate the advice on running the fan but I had no way to trigger it. I had the AC on full with the window open in hopes that the compressor would create some drag. I have only run to BC twice so I have a lot to learn about driving there - hence my question on the forum.

Cheers,
WillyWideLoad