Australia
ModerateLarapinta Drive — Hermannsburg to Glen Helen via Namatjira Drive and the West MacDonnell Gorges
Ancient gorges, red rock, and real desert silence.
Feature: Historic
Canada
ModerateDempster Highway — Dawson City to Eagle Plains via the Ogilvie Mountains
Gravel, permafrost, and tundra with no backup plan.
Afghanistan
ExtremeWakhan Corridor Road — Sarhad-e-Broghil to Bozai Gumbaz via the Little Pamir Plateau
Marco Polo sheep, Silk Road ghosts, no exits.
California
ModerateMojave Road — Fort Piute to Needles via Lanfair Valley and the Piute Gorge Wash
Fort Piute to Needles — the Mojave Road's eastern run.
Romania
ModerateTransfăgărășan Highway — Bâlea Lac to Curtea de Argeș via the Argeș Valley Descent
Romania's switchback masterpiece through the Fagaraș.
Australia
DifficultGibb River Road — Galvans Gorge to Mornington Wilderness Camp via the Kimberley Plateau Interior
Deep Kimberley — corrugations, gorges, real wild.
Canada
ModerateKluane Slims River Flats Road — Haines Junction to Kluane Lake via the Donjek Route Approach
Glacier-carved outwash, grizzlies, and zero pavement.
Northern Cape
DifficultRichtersveld Tatasberg 4×4 Trail — Eksteenfontein to Tatasberg via the Orange River Desert Plateau
Mars terrain above the Orange River — alone and honest.
Colorado
EasyPawnee National Grassland Backcountry — Crow Valley to Pawnee Buttes via the High Plains Desert Edge
Prairie solitude and sandstone sentinels on the High Plains.
Mongolia
DifficultGobi Desert Bayanzag Flaming Cliffs Road — Dalanzadgad to Bayanzag via the Southern Gobi Desert
Dinosaur bones and open Gobi — bring your own compass.