China
ModerateSichuan–Tibet Highway — Ya’an to Kangding via Erlang Mountain and Luding Bridge
G318's violent opening act — gorges, history, altitude.
Difficulty: Moderate
Level 2
California
ModerateMojave Road — Afton Canyon to Piute Valley via Government Holes and Lanfair Road Junction
America's oldest desert highway — still wild, still real.
Australia
ModerateGibb River Road — Tunnel Creek to Windjana Gorge via Napier Range Limestone Corridor
Devonian reef, cave outlaws, croc-lined gorges.
South Dakota
ModerateMojave Road — Afton Canyon to Needles via Government Holes and Lanfair Valley (Night Sky Variant)
Grassland benches and a volcanic plug at trail's end.
Canada
ModerateDempster Highway — Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk via the Mackenzie Delta Coastal Tundra
Gravel to the Arctic Ocean. No shortcuts.
Australia
ModerateGibb River Road — Home Valley to Wyndham via Cambridge Gulf and Keep River Rim
Croc country at the Kimberley's eastern edge.
Northern Cape
ModerateNamaqualand Diamond Coast 4×4 Trail — Port Nolloth to McDougall’s Bay via the Diamond Coast Desert Fringe
Diamond coast, cold fog, and no second chances in soft sand.
Nevada
ModerateLonesome Highway — Black Rock Desert Playa to Soldier Meadows via High Rock Canyon Rim
Playa to canyon. Flat to vertical. Nevada at its loneliest.
Botswana
ModerateNossob River Valley Track — Mata-Mata to Nossob Camp via the Kgalagadi Fossil Riverbed
Lions on a fossil river. No signal. No excuses.
California
ModerateMojave Road Central — Afton Canyon to Piute Spring via Mid Hills and Hole-in-the-Wall
Mojave's volcanic heart — canyon to cliff face.