slgwv's photos with the keyword: extreme

Yes, this really is a "designated vehicle route," meaning it's open to motorized vehicles. It's the remnant of a uranium prospecting road, probably from the early 50s. My stock Wrangler wouldn't be able to make it, 4x4 or no, but when we were here later we did see specially equipped Jeep Wranglers on this road, with monster tires and (presumably) skid plates like battleship armor. Window stickers proclaimed them members of the "Battle Born Jeep Club," "Battle Born" being Nevada's state motto, in case you were wondering. The inset shows the road a bit farther up, when it makes a right turn up the draw just behind the last sunlit outcrop. You can see rubber skid marks here and there in both these pix! Painted Hills area, about 20 miles north of Reno, Nevada.

Extreme jeep track, the remnants of a prospectors' road from the early 50s, in the Painted Hills about 20 miles north of Reno, Nevada. We walked! But we did see vehicles from the "Battle Born Jeep Club" on this road. They had monster tires and (presumably) skid plates like battleship armor. "Battle Born," in case you're wondering, is the state motto of Nevada, in reference to its entering the Union during the Civil War.