Mountain Directory has warned drivers about steep grades for decades, and the information is genuinely useful. The limitation is that it is a reference you consult, not a router that plans around the grades for you. This guide compares the reference-book approach with rig-safe routing that folds grade avoidance directly into your route.
Mountain Directory has done RVers a real service for decades: it catalogs steep and difficult grades so you know what is coming. The information is trustworthy and the intent is exactly right. Its one limitation is structural — it is a reference you consult, not a router that plans around the grades for you. You still have to cross-check your intended route against the listings, leg by leg.
Rig-safe routing folds that grade awareness into the route itself. Instead of looking up whether your path crosses a bad climb, the router weighs elevation and grade as it plans and can prefer a flatter alternative outright. Camp Roostly offers a flattest-route option, shows per-leg grade before you drive, and — because it also knows your height and weight — avoids low bridges and weight limits in the same pass.
Plenty of RVers keep Mountain Directory as a reference and let a rig-safe app handle the actual routing and in-dash navigation. Camp Roostly runs turn-by-turn on CarPlay and Android Auto, online or fully offline, and scores each campground on cell and Starlink coverage so the destination works as well as the drive.
Camp Roostly plans around low bridges and steep grades, then navigates turn-by-turn on CarPlay and Android Auto — with a connectivity verdict on every campsite. Free to start.
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