The math
Section 1 ends here. Section 2 starts here.
Some overnight stops take a spreadsheet. This one takes a map. The official Nevada Backcountry Discovery Route, the NVBDR, starts in Oatman, Arizona, among the wild burros of Route 66, and runs its first section all the way to Pahrump. The next section starts in Pahrump and points north to Beatty. Finish Section 1 and you're already in the right town.
RuthVille, our vintage trailer court near Pahrump, is about six miles from the Nevada BDR route. Ride in dusty, park the bike, light the fire. Next morning, you're back on the track for Section 2.
The official Nevada BDR page has the current GPX tracks, section-by-section notes and route updates. Load them before you leave home and line up your Pahrump night against the stage you're actually riding.
Section 1
Burros, sand and the oldest bar in Nevada
Section 1 is a proper day. Wild burros on Oatman's main street, the Colorado River at Laughlin, the gravel climb over Christmas Tree Pass, then sandy two-track south of Searchlight that has you standing on the pegs. Past the Ivanpah solar plant to Primm, then fast gravel toward Pahrump, with a stop at the Pioneer Saloon in Goodsprings, the oldest bar in Nevada. When it's dry, watch for silt beds in the Pahrump Valley.
Ride all day. Sleep in a trailer you didn't have to tow.
Lights out
Four trailers, no front desk
Every trailer comes with
- A real bed with fresh linens and towels.
- Heat and AC, because the desert has opinions.
- Morning coffee, on the house.
- A shared fire pit and a tiki bar. We bring the bar and the tiki. You bring the rest.
- Bortle Class 2 dark skies and desert silence, no extra charge.
Four restored aluminum trailers, each sleeping two: the Rocket Box, the Artan, Dead Man's Party and the Imperial. No RV required. All the fun of having one, none of the towing, and every one of them has a story you step inside. The Rocket Box for the space nerds, the Artan for the creative types, Dead Man's Party for anyone who still knows the words, and the Imperial for the mid-century crowd.
Plan the stop
Arrival night, layover or base camp
Pahrump works three ways. Roll in at the end of Section 1 and roll out on Section 2. Make it your arrival night, about an hour from Las Vegas, and start the route fresh. Or stay a few nights and turn it into base camp: Death Valley National Park is about an hour the other way, and Beatty, where Section 2 ends, is the park's northern gateway, Titus Canyon and all.
Pahrump is the supply stop for the whole east side of the valley, so fill the tank and the cooler there, and check fuel, food, weather and the route for the days you ride. Heading out, Section 2 offers a side trip to Big Dune, north of Pahrump, then a dry lake bed that looks like the moon and a pond full of endangered pupfish on the way to Beatty.
When you request your trailer, tell us when you'll roll in, how many bikes are coming, and whether a truck and trailer are tagging along. RuthVille reads every request and confirms personally, usually within a day, and exact directions arrive with your confirmed reservation.
And do the bike work at home. Order replacement parts by the exact model and OEM number, fit them, and ride the bike before you load it. Nine hundred miles of Nevada is a lousy place to test a repair.
Spare day?
Trade a BDR day for a Roundup day
Death Valley Roundup
Park the big bike for a day and ride with Death Valley Roundup, our supported small dual sport ride from just outside Pahrump. A KTM or Husqvarna dual sport with fuel, a chase truck for your gear, Chef Ruth's homemade lunch and a cold beer at the finish. It's built for intermediate and advanced desert riders, on Saturdays in the cooler months.
