Colorado
DifficultCrooked Creek Road to Mount Evans Backcountry — Arapaho National Forest High Country Traverse via Georgia Pass
Quiet Divide crossing above South Park's big sky.
Feature: High Altitude
Oregon
ModerateLonesome Highway — Siskiyou Crest Road to Ashland via Mount Ashland Spine
Two states, one crest, zero crowds.
South Dakota
ModerateCuster Peak Road — Black Hills High Country Drive to Fire Lookout via Deadwood Backcountry
Northern Black Hills summit with 360-degree payoff.
Colorado
ModerateHalfmoon Road to Mount Massive Trailhead — Sawatch Range Subalpine Approach via East Fork
Base camp road for the Sawatch giants.
New Mexico
ModerateBrokeoff Mountains Rim Road — Jemez to Valles Caldera via Redondo Peak Divide
Volcanic caldera rim on loose Jemez gravel.
Montana
DifficultLonesome Highway — Beartooth Plateau North Slope to Clarks Fork Canyon via Line Creek Road
Off the Beartooth and into the deep canyon country.
New Mexico
ModerateLonesome Highway — Jemez Mountains High Road to Valles Caldera via Forest Road 376
Supervolcano rim road, elk, obsidian, solitude.
USA
ExpertMaze District Road — Hans Flat Ranger Station to Flint Trail via the Canyonlands Backcountry
The Maze: no margin, no crowds, no forgiveness.
California
ModerateGenesee Road to Shuteye Peak — Sierra Nevada Foothills Mining Spine via Bass Lake
Sierra summit, zero crowds, hundred-mile views.
USA
ModerateZion Plateau Road to Kolob Terrace — Red Butte and Lava Point Overland Circuit
Zion's back door, no shuttle required.