New Mexico
ModerateZuni Mountains Loop — Cibola National Forest High Road via Oso Ridge and Agua Fria
Sky island loop above the Rio Puerco that nobody runs.
Surface: Dirt
USA
ModerateLonesome Highway — Seminoe Reservoir to Alcova via the Miracle Mile Road
Red canyon, blue river, zero cell signal.
California
ModerateLakeshore Trail to Lime Point — Shasta Lake Backcountry Road via Packers Bay
Shasta's hidden backside, no houseboats required.
Colorado
EasyLonesome Highway — Pawnee Buttes Road to Pawnee National Grassland via Crow Valley
Prairie spires, pronghorn, and no cell bars.
Alaska
ModerateNellie Juan Road to Whittier Tunnel Backdoor — Chugach National Forest Passage Canal Circuit
Glaciers, tidewater, and one heck of a tunnel.
Montana
ModerateCoyote Corrals to Big Pryor Mountain — Pryor Mountains Wild Horse Range High Road
Wild horses, limestone benches, no guardrails.
Nevada
ModerateNolan Creek to Amargosa Desert — Death Valley’s Nevada Back Door via Beatty Cutoff
Death Valley's back door — Nevada side, no crowds.
Colorado
ModerateLonesome Highway — Breaks of the Piceance to Cathedral Bluffs via Yellow Creek
Colorado's forgotten badlands don't forgive rain.
California
DifficultMineral King Road — Sequoia’s Switchback Gauntlet to the High Sierra Subalpine
Marmots eat brake lines. Bring spares.
South Dakota
ModerateBlack Hills Backcountry Byway — Rochford to Mystic via Nemo Road and Boxelder Creek
Gold rush ghosts and granite canyons.