Black Rock Desert Expedition

We’re heading back to Nevada’s Black Rock Desert in 2027, and this year we’ll explore a different route through this enormous landscape.

Over four days, we’ll travel far beyond the familiar images of the playa into remote valleys, mountains, canyons, and high desert. We’ll hike, soak in a natural hot spring, look for wildlife, explore the geology beneath our feet, learn about the emigrants who crossed this country generations ago, and gather around the fire at the end of the day. And yes, we’ll get the rigs out onto the playa.

This is the Black Rock Desert.

What You’ll Experience

There’s something surreal about driving onto the Black Rock Playa. The horizon seems impossibly far away, and the scale of the landscape is hard to comprehend until you’re standing in the middle of it. When conditions allow, we’ll explore the playa rather than race across it, stopping to get out, take photographs, and take in the openness and silence.

But this isn’t simply a guided drive. Education is woven throughout the experience, with opportunities to learn about:

• Off-road driving: tire pressure, terrain reading, line selection, momentum, gearing, and vehicle control.
• Vehicle recovery: recovery equipment, safe techniques, and how to think through a recovery before reaching for gear.
• Responsible recreation: traveling through landscapes in a way that preserves them for those follow
• History: the emigrant routes and people who crossed this landscape generations before 4WD and GPS.
• Geology: from the ancient Lake Lahontan lakebed to the volcanic and geothermal forces that continue to shape the region.
• Wildlife: Noticing the animals and ecosystems that survive in what can look like an empty landscape.

You’ll leave with more than photographs and memories. Our goal is for you to leave a more knowledgeable and confident explorer.

We will also be joined by Ecological Guide & Desert Naturalist Jeff Rosenfeld from Wildwood Open Lands Foundation. Jeff returns with deep knowledge of desert ecology, wildlife behavior, hydrology, geology, and Great Basin history. Having run these routes with us last year, he brings context and connection to every stop.

Get Out and Slow Down

Bring your hiking shoes. Some of the best parts of Black Rock aren’t seen from behind the windshield. We’ll build in hikes and short explorations along the way. We’ll also make time to soak in a natural hot spring. At the end of each day we’ll make camp in a remote location and gather for dinner. Sharing great food in remarkable places is a Fernweh staple: meals are prepared for the group, so everyone can put away the cooking gear, grab a chair, and enjoy the evening under the dark Nevada sky.

The Driving

This is a genuine backcountry expedition, but you do not need to be an expert off-road driver to participate.
Terrain will generally range from beginner to intermediate, depending on weather and trail conditions.

We may encounter:

• Playa and hard-packed desert surfaces
• Gravel and dirt roads
• Rocky sections
• Washes and ruts
• Steeper climbs and descents
• Narrower backcountry roads
• Mud or soft terrain if conditions change

We’ll travel together, communicate by radio and help one another through more challenging sections. Part of expedition travel is knowing when to adapt rather than force the original plan. It’s one of the reasons we travel together.

What Kind of Vehicle Do I Need?

This expedition is designed for capable, self-contained adventure vehicles: 4WD/AWD adventure vans with adequate clearance, expedition trucks and properly equipped 4×4 trucks and SUVs.

What to Expect

• Four days and three nights in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert
• Remote camping under dark desert skies
• Chef-prepared meals
• Off-road driving and skills education
• Short hikes and a soak in a natural hot spring
• Time out on the playa
• Wildlife, photography, geology, and Western history

Pricing:

Driver + Vehicle = $1450 USD
Additional Passenger(s) = $550 USD