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A road winding through red rocks in the desert
Photo by Jake Blucker / Unsplash

Desert roads of the American West

Red rocks, empty highways and the best places to stop.

Some roads are the destination. In the desert, the drive between two parks is often the best part of the day.

Getting there

Start from Las Vegas; the first red rocks are less than an hour away.

Where to stay

Small motels and a few nights of camping under very dark skies.

Snowy mountains under a starry night sky
Dark skies, a few hours from the city. Photo by Benjamin Voros / Unsplash

What I would do differently

I would drive in the early morning and rest through the afternoon heat.

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Prices in this guide are what I paid. They move every season, so use them as a rough guide.
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Lena Hartmann

I left a desk job in 2019 to travel slowly. This blog is everything I wish I had known before each trip: honest itineraries, real budgets and the places worth the detour.

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