SC to ME, towing

There have been some questions lately about the towing ability of the 2.7 vs. 3.4 motors in our trucks. Well, I just drove halfway up the east coast, towing a little over a ton (U Haul 5x8 loaded), with a 2002 4x4, standard cab, 2.7 liter 5 speed. The truck has 179000 miles and is running 265 70x16 tires.
Some thoughts are that...... it was a grunt......
The truck is new to me.
In the past (in other vehicles) I have made the run up through the Shenandoah, but I wanted as flat as possible this time and so went straight up Rt. 95.
I ran at between 55 and 65 Mph. I never made it to 5th gear, I did the whole trip in 4th.
Once I got used to high RPMs, the trip was pretty uneventful.
After that high speed run, the engine is running much better......
All things being equal, If I had the choice, I'd choose the 3.4 for towing a heavy load. That said, I've run the 2.7 all around in African driving and it's never let me down. It didn't let me down this time either...... There are just better ways to get the job done.
Pete in the Great White North.

 

Where are you in Maine? Maybe you know of shone better wheeling locations