If you can’t handle roller coasters and you’re thinking to drive on the Sichuan-Tibet Highway, you might want to rethink your plans. The highway crosses over 14 mountains that have an average elevation of 13,000 feet. The oxygen levels along the highway are only half of what we have at sea level. As you can see in the picture, the road also has 99 switchbacks to get down the Yela Mountain.
If you can handle that, that’s great, but you’ll still need to worry about the landslides which happen on the regular. Oh, and not to mention, there are also some parts of the highway which aren’t paved. So, yea, good luck!
Cotopaxi Volcano Road
Cotopaxi Volcano Road is exactly what it sounds like; a road in Ecuador that leads up to an active volcano, Cotopaxi, in the Andes Mountains. The Cotopaxi volcano has erupted more than 50 times since 1738 and numerous valleys have formed surrounding the volcano.
Ecuador is known for having bad roads, but the Cotopaxi Volcano Road is on another level. While that itself is enough to send chills down your spine, that’s not all. The road is unpaved and covered in potholes which are hidden among the dirt road. On top of that, part of the road is a stream which tends to flash flood with even small amounts of rain. Needless to say, the road claims the lives of several tourists annually and you should exercise full precaution should you visit.
Trans-Siberian
Another famous network of highways in the world is the Trans-Siberian highway. The Trans-Siberian runs for almost 7,000 miles from St. Petersburg to Vladivostok. Many parts of the road weren’t finished until years after its initial construction.
Although most of the road is now finished and nicely paved, it’s almost impossible to keep the road maintained thanks to its sheer size. Despite millions travelling on this road every year, the road is very dangerous. Because it’s in Siberia, you could run into trouble in the winter if you run out of gas. Parts of the road are in complete desolation.
Cat and Fiddle Road
As you can see from the sign, this road in England is not to be taken lightly. The road is nicknamed “the widow maker,” because it turns spouses into widows. It has a very high incidence of fatal accidents due to its many sharp turns. Motorcyclists who are thirsty for adventure see these turns as a reason to bring their bikes out to the open road. But, because the road is in the countryside, other members are also encouraged to come hang out in the road, livestock. This poses an additional danger. Cows and sheep like to wander out into the middle of the road frequently.
So, if you’re planning to drive out to this road any time soon, be sure to watch out for speedy motorcyclists and cows who are just chilling, grazing, and are completely unaware of their surroundings. In order to manage the danger, safety measures have been taken, like lowering the speed limit.
Skippers Canyon Road
If you don’t trust a road that was hand carved 140 years ago, then don’t come to Skipper Canyon Road on New Zealand’s South Island. The road is so narrow that if you come up against a car coming in the opposite direction, one of you will have to reverse until there’s a wider place to pass.
This could lead to you reversing for up to two miles on an unpaved road with no barriers. And even worse than this, if you get into an accident on this road and you’re in a rental car, the rental car insurance might not cover the damage done.