Questions before the trailhead

No. Every expedition opens with a technical driving session before the pavement ends, and instruction continues on trail for the length of the trip. You need a valid driver's license and a willingness to be coached.

Experienced guests receive more advanced coaching and line choices where terrain allows. Instruction is adapted to each group without compromising the safety plan for the departure.

Each booking is for one group of 1–4 guests. Your group books and pays together as one booking group.

A departure may include your group plus as many as two additional independently booked groups on the same expedition date, for a maximum of three booking groups on one departure.

Possibly. Zero Bar expeditions are small-group departures, not exclusive departures. Your booking covers your own group of 1–4 guests, and up to two other independently booked groups may join the same expedition date.

There are never more than three booking groups on one departure. If no other groups book that date, your group may be the only booking group on the expedition, but exclusivity is not promised or sold.

You drive. That is the point of the trip. Guides lead, spot and coach, and by the last day they are typically riding behind the group rather than in front of it.

If someone in your party would rather ride than drive, that is fine — say so when you inquire and we will seat them.

Prices are per booking group of 1–4 guests, not per person: Traverse at $4,800, Expedition at $7,400, and Grand Traverse at $9,600. Each booking group pays its own tier price, and a departure may include up to three separately booked groups total.

The full line-by-line comparison is on the pricing page.

At every tier: vehicles and fuel, your lead guide, permits and access fees, recovery equipment and satellite communications on every rig, technical instruction, camp infrastructure and water.

Not included at any tier: travel to and from the meeting point, lodging before or after, trip insurance, alcohol beyond dinner pairings, and gratuities.

A 50% deposit is due at booking, and the remaining 50% balance is due 14 calendar days before departure. Cancellations made 15 or more calendar days before departure receive a full refund of amounts paid. Cancellations made 14 calendar days or less before departure, missed departures and no-shows are non-refundable. See the Terms & Conditions for the full policy.

Dog Valley is most dependable in the snow-free months, Moon Rocks can be used through much of the year when ground and access conditions cooperate, and Black Rock routing depends heavily on dry playa and road conditions. Specific seasonal closures and agency restrictions are checked before each departure.

Departures are limited and expedition dates are planned individually, so dates are confirmed case by case rather than sold from a calendar.

Every vehicle carries two-way satellite messaging with SOS capability, independent of any cell network, along with trauma-focused first-aid supplies.

Before departure, the route is planned with practical evacuation points, the nearest appropriate medical facilities and potential helicopter access considered. Your pre-trip briefing identifies the assigned guide and that crew's current medical qualifications. No group travels on a single vehicle at any tier.

Most of the day is spent driving rather than exerting. The demanding parts are heat, long days, dust, and broken sleep at altitude or in cold — not athleticism.

Recovery drills involve real shovel and winch work. Tell us about mobility limits or medical considerations when you inquire and we will plan around them.

We send a packing list once dates are confirmed. In short: layers for a 40°F daily temperature swing, sun protection, closed shoes you do not mind destroying, and any personal medication in quantities that assume a delay.

Bedding, towels, water, camp equipment and all meals are provided.

Backcountry weather closes routes — snow and mud in Dog Valley, flash flooding or wash damage around Moon Rocks, and wet playa or remote-road conditions in Black Rock. When a route becomes unsafe or unlawful to use, we reroute rather than force it.

If conditions force a full cancellation before departure, the options in the Terms & Conditions apply.