Colorado
ModerateSlumgullion to Cebolla Mesa — Lake City Backcountry High Desert Bench
Gunnison country bench. Crowds don't find this one.
Trail Type: High Clearance
Arizona
ModerateGold Road to Oatman — Black Mountains Desert Pass via Sitgreaves Summit
Route 66's roughest mile. Burros included.
Montana
ModerateLonesome Highway — Big Belt Mountains Divide to Canyon Ferry via Magpie Gulch
Big Belts divide. Nobody else up here.
USA
DifficultBirch Creek to Heart Mountain — Shoshone National Forest Absaroka Front Road via Dead Indian Hill
Absaroka front, geological freakshow, zero crowd.
USA
DifficultRed Canyon to Cassidy Arch — Capitol Reef Backcountry South Desert Circuit via Swap Mesa
Butch Cassidy country, Chinle clay, zero mercy.
USA
ModerateLonesome Highway — Bighorn Mountains Powder River Pass to Hunter Corrals via Cloud Peak Wilderness Edge
Wyoming high plateau, zero crowds, big sky.
North Dakota
ModerateBloody Run Hills to Elkhorn Ranch — Little Missouri Badlands Remote Circuit
Roosevelt's badlands, one river crossing, zero pavement.
California
ModerateNacimiento Lake to Pozo Summit — Los Padres Coast Range High Road
Los Padres ridgeline with zero cell bars and zero crowds.
USA
ModerateCactus Flat to Bagpipe Butte — Henry Mountains Remote Desert Circuit
Utah's forgotten range, bison, and zero crowds.
Colorado
ModerateRattlesnake Canyon Road — Mesa County to Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness via Grand Valley Rim
More arches than Arches. Zero crowds.