chaadster

Be careful of going too wide with the rubber on insufficiently wide rims; as a dyed-in-the-wool roadie (or should that be stained-in-the-chamois!), the feel of a fat, bulbous tire on the pavement is totally unacceptable for sporting work. 35c on 24mm internal width (IW) is great for my tastes in dual (i.e. paved and gravel) use, but 47c on 23mm IW is too sloppy, IMO. Big tires— especially if unsupported by rim width— are just too mushy if you’re addicted to the crispness and precision of traditional road riding.

For the OP, perhaps a tire like the Teravail Washburn 38c would make sense. It has a center slick and shoulder knobs, plus more volume than the currently used Contis, so airing down will help get the knobs on the surface for dirt, and airing up will let the smooth center piece do its thing for nice rolling on pavement. If the OP is doing 50mi on the road to 10mi on the dirt with 1k ft of climbing in that 10 miles, taking a few minutes to adjust tire pressure is time well spent, IMO. Getting up 18-20% grades on rocky surfaces might take some specialzed gear to accomplish, but I’d try a hybrid tread like the Washburn before going full knobby.