The countdown starts at 2:10 if you want to skip the educational fluff at the beginning.

I’m from Scotland in the UK and once travelled from California through Nevada, Utah and Arizona. The scenery was stunning and the sheer space into which you could probably fit our entire country several times was exhilarating. It was a magical experience. You do have some stunning scenery over there in America.

25 yrs ago, on my bike with no plans, in a little town in southern S Dakota, I looked southward and mentioned to another biker that I might try that direction. A local guy heard me and asked, "How far can you get on a tank?" I said, "About 150 miles." He said, "Son, there ain't nothin' on that road for 200 miles." Saved my skinny keester. Many thanks, again.

Yeah, I heard growing up in Arkansas, that we were "country" or "rural." And we are culturally. But my entire conception of rural changed when I drove through central Wyoming

As a Brit, this blows my mind. I simply can't even imagine how big these spaces are until I visit it myself. Sure there are some "empty" spaces here, maybe if you climb up a large hill or mountain but you will always see a village or at the least a few cottages at the bottom. Couldn't imagine being on a road with nothing for 200 miles, thats like driving from London to Leeds and not seeing anything or anyone.

I’m from Lund, NV. Beautiful place in the middle of nowhere with 8 students in my graduating class.

There's nothing like a drive across Nevada. It's what you'd imagine a drive across Mars would be like. I love it here.

Grandpa used to say that even the Jackrabbits pack a lunch in Eastern Montana.

I'm from Alaska and people in the lower 48 states don't comprehend just how big it really is. The drive from Fairbanks to Anchorage is the most beautiful drive most people will ever make and you sort of take it for granted as a resident. It puts it in perspective that it's 360+ miles from one city to the next. I sure miss that drive.

When traveling in Utah, you should never let your gas tank go below half.

I remember a road trip we took six years ago. It was the middle of the night and we were driving through the middle of nowhere in New Mexico. I was sleeping with my head propped up on the window. I opened my eyes and thought I was seeing smoke. Nope! It was the Milky Way and it was the first time I'd ever seen it. I told everyone in the car that I thought I was seeing the Milky Way, so we pulled over in the dusty, dry dirt and took pictures in the middle of the night, in the middle of the desert under billions of stars. A memory and sight I will never forget!

When I lived in Death Valley National Monument back in 1979, I would sit outside my old travel trailer and the view of the constellations was amazing. The sky so clear, you can see the shooting stars, and when I went back in the 1980's for 49er Days, I saw a Russian satilite shoot across the sky. It was a sight to behold!

I spent some time in Wyoming. There are some beautiful places there and some scruffy, barren places as well. I once joked to myself about how no one would ever find me if I decided to lose myself in the wilderness. If you ever get sick of people, I recommend taking a vacation in Wyoming. You can find your quiet place there and no one will bother you.

In a strange way, this video was a comfort. Nice to know there is so much untrammeled land.

Alaska: “My time to shine”

I went on a road trip in 1992 with relatives, starting in Minnesota, drove through S. Dakota, Wyoming then Idaho. On the way back to Minnesota, drove through Montana and North Dakota. There weren't even any radio stations in parts of Montana. Beautiful parts of the country. Yellowstone Park was awesome.

Alaska is absolutely wild. The uninhabitable tundra area north of the Brooks Range is over two hundred thousand square kilometers of nothing. No trees, no human settlements, limited vegetation, and can get 24 hours of sunlight/darkness per day depending on the time of year. I drove up to Prudhoe Bay on the Dalton one winter and it was an otherworldly experience.

That area in idaho is no joke. I drove through the northern part and there was a sign that indicated twisty roads for the next 99 miles. There were absolutely no gas stations for over 130 miles. Directly south, if you look on the map, is a massive quadrant of no roads, no people, nothing. It's amazing.

My grandparent have a ranch in SE Oregon. It’s beautiful when it’s so silent you can actually hear yourself think. It’s my favorite place on Earth.

On one of my middle-of-nowhere motorcycle (street) rides in Nevada, I met a German couple. They couldn't believe how much nothing there was when they left Vegas. The wife was actually really scared of such a wide open space. I told them that some people in the USA are more afraid of the big cities...

I was born in the Andean Plateau. Over 12000 ft above the sea level and most places in the list are quite similar. If you are into this kind of landscapes I suggest you look for videos of Bolivian west specially The Uyuni salt flat. Edit. I’m expecting to climb the Sajama sometime soon. Best place on earth.

My home state is Montana. There are huge parts that I have not been to, and probably never will see. Wherever I have been is truly God's Country, beautiful beyond words. I wish I could have a do-over so I could see more of Montana. BTW, I just turned 80!

New Mexico born and raised. Can confirm there is only 8 of us here.

As a truck driver I have to say I have been through most of these locations the most remote one that I have been to was in Utah I delivered just outside the town of Bonanza Utah I looked it up before I drove there and in the 2020 census they had a whopping population of zero it was in the town of Vernal that I delivered to there is a power plant it was quite interesting delivering there

I worked at Crater Lake National Park, in Oregon. I was, well impressed. How deep the snow was. How dark and bright the stars were on a pitch black night.

We took a family trip through Central Idaho years ago. We were on what was essentially a logging road for 110 miles. We camped on the mountain that night and you could see no lights. You could see nothing man-made from where we were at. It was amazing!

A correction if I might add. #13 Nebraska Sandhills: It has LOTS of water. The area sits atop the Ogallala Aquifer (the largest underground freshwater source in the world). It has a high water table and many small ponds/lakes/pools form between the vegetated dunes. I did my Master's research project in the area based on the hydrology of the area.

I drove from San Bernardino CA to San Antonio TX. What a trip! The remote desert wilderness I seen was unforgettable. Especially past El Paso on I-10 .

Idaho and Montana could probably fill up most of this list, my mom and dad were born in a tiny town in eastern Idaho and they’ll tell stories sometimes. It’s incredibly beautiful up there, but it can get dangerous quickly, especially if you’re in the Wilderness Area or on the Salmon River (how fitting it’s called The River of no Return). Lost Trail Pass is another place that I remember my parents telling lots of stories about.

I have traveled all across the U.S. via my motorcycle. HONESTLY, the Sand Hills of NW Nebraska are absolutely beautiful and a hidden gem!! You can go 20, 30+ miles without seeing another car or human!! It's true cowboy country....like stepping back in-time!! Also, loved southern Utah....WOW!!

As somebody who is biking across the country and is currently in Oregon, the rural areas of Colorado/Wyoming/Montana/Idaho are unreal. Hours go by without seeing another house or development, sometimes 70 miles between places to fill up on water. It is truly lonely sometimes, but unbelievably enchanting and peaceful. It’s so rural it makes the most remote parts of New York seem bustling, it blew my mind.

As a born and bred Easterner, I love traveling in the Western US. I marvel at the sheer courage and effort that it took our forefathers and mothers to traverse this land on foot, on horseback and it wagons. People ask me what my favorite area of the West is and I always say that is impossible for me to answer as there is a ‘buena vista’ around every bend in the trail.

Lived in Vegas all my life and have spent most of my spare time in the last 30 years exploring the most remote areas I could find across the western US. Central Nevada is impressive in both its scale and emptiness. Southeastern Utah is one of the most beautiful places in the world. The Mohave desert is my regular stomping ground and it's not hard to go wander around for a couple days and not see a single soul. Most places in Arizona are never too far from some sort of civilization but it is still easy to find yourself alone among some of the most beautiful landscapes. I find peace and relaxation in being alone in nature. There are places in the world that would make our little Western US seem small and busy, but it provides all the solitude I will ever need.

Back in the late 80's I drove a motorcycle through Nevada on Highway 50, Highway 50 is called "The loneliest highway in America". I'm here to testify! Got a flat, guy pulls over to help, offers to take me into town because tire is ripped, can't fix that. I ask him how far it is - "89 miles". Ask him how far the last town was - "92 miles". How much closer to the middle of nowhere could I manage to get? I would drive along and see a mailbox next to a dirt road going off over the horizon - no house though. No lights visible at night. Nowhere even to pull over - two lane road with desert sand on each side.

Alaska is so remote even their major urban area looks like a suburb of a major city in the rest of the country.

Thanks for showing MN's boundary waters. If you love rugged camping and canoeing it's a must to experience.

When I moved to California, I flew over west Texas, new mexico, and Arizona to get here. Coming from Florida, which is very flat, I was amazed at how beautiful the scenery is in all of these places. Even in CA I am still in awe looking at the mountains just on a trip to Walmart etc, whereas the people from here tend to take it for granted. The only other place I have lived was Maryland's eastern shore and also Delaware. So I had never seen nature so big in my life.

As a German, you can hardly imagine that, because here you are happy if you get a place two miles without people. 😑

I was wondering when and what part of Montana is gonna pop up, then he chooses the whole state LOL

I’m from Seattle and some of my favorite parts of Washington to travel was the Northern Central Cascades. There is nothing. No people at all, u are alone. Untouched nature that impacted me like no other place I’ve been too. Truly there is something magical to this area.

We just did a month-long road trip around the West covering Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico. It was the most amazing trip of my life. The landscape, food, people, scenery and sunsets were incredible. Cant wait to go back! 🇺🇲

Funny how we use the term empty to mean "lacks humans" when really a lot of these beautiful places are far from empty! Good video; had no idea about central Idaho. May the KZfaq algorithm stay in your favor

I rode my bicycle from San Francisco to southern Maine. My favorite section was from Reno NV to Salt Lake City UT. The emptiness of the desert was majestic. It was clean; so few marks of people spoiling the land. One could imagine this was how has been for thousands of years.

I have traveled through pretty much all of these, including Alaska. There is something special about cruising for miles knowing that you have such a huge expanse to yourself. Every American should drive cross country at least once. You'll have a whole new appreciation for this magnificent place!

This is really eye opening. In this world where everything has become so instant and connected by technology and populated with people, it really blows my mind that there are SO MANY huge swaths of land on which possibly nobody has even laid eyes in the US. Great video

I drove across the country and around the border of Oregon and Idaho ( very few signs giving me info on were I was, just followed a GPS) I hit a road that scared the crap out of me. Thank God I filled up my gas tank just before I hit this stretch. For at least two hours I drove without seeing nobody, no cars, no gas stations,no stores of any kind, no houses, having no phone signal at all in the middle of summer. By the time I realized that the nothingness wasn't going to stop anytime soon if I was a little low on gas I likely would not have had enough gas to even go back the way I came. I realized if I broke down there was nobody or stores or anything I would find to help. My phone was never going to work to call for help and the heat was crazy. It was all open land almost no suitable shelter, water, or even creatures to hunt. If you had to walk it .. it would take long likely a week to hit another person. I realized if I broke down I very well could die out there. Im from New York City and had no clue that nothingness like that exists and is that vast. Living on the east coast that was unimaginable. I flew to Oregon because of a sick friend who couldn't fly due to health issues so I flew there and drove him home. It was a emergency so I didn't prepare at all so that road was very scary. It was also my favorite part of the trip. I loved that endless stretch of road. I want to go back to drive it again but don't remember were it was. Just followed my GPS. I loved the road but seriously if I didn't get lucky by gassing up when I did or if I had a car not running that great I could have never come home. Scary stuff for a city boy not expecting that. At least I would think I would see another car or truck. Nothing was out there and nothing was coming. Hard to imagine in this overpopulated country with stores everywhere that parts of the country are like that and go on like that so long. I was gunning it likely doing around 80 for two hours or more (it seemed forever) non stop. It was nuts

I was an OTR truck and to me the most scenic areas I could drive through in a truck were in Utah and Nevada. I just loved how you can see just open uninhabited land for miles with snowcapped peaks that look like they can't be more than a few miles away but are really 40-50 miles away.

Also I think everyone should visit at least one of these places. It gives you a completely different perspective on things and the view of the sky at night actually being able to see the stars is just the coolest thing I have ever seen. No light pollution at all

So I live about an hour from a Utah national park. I visited it a couple years ago and some guy was talking to me and was blown away that I could live next to such beauty. He was like so do you come here all the time then? I laughed and said no. The reason Utah has so many national parks is because they were barren deserts. If it was remotely usable land the pioneers cultivated it in the 1800s. Plus There are literally hundreds of places I could go that wouldn't involve snuggling up next to a bunch of tourists and walking REI catalogues. Ebenezer Bryce was once asked how amazing it was to homestead a beautiful place like Bryce canyon. His answer was well it's a hell of a place to lose a cow. Here's a tip for tourists too. Walking through the 105° desert in an $80 moisture wicking shirt is actually no more pleasant than walking through it with an $8 Walmart shirt.

After growing up in the Canadian sub-arctic, I eventually visited most of the places in this video ---- with the exception of Alaska, my reaction was almost always "this is really nice, but, hey man, I need some more elbow room!"

Being from South Dakota, I am really surprised not seeing us on the list!

Having been in Washington all my life and visited basically everywhere on numerous road trips, I think I'd say that south eastern Washington is way more desolate than the north central part. From Pullman south to walla walla east there's virtually nothing except deer, wheat fields and the occasional farm house.

As a truck driver who has been to all lower 48 states. This video is 100% correct ‼️

I LOVE that there are still "empty" spaces left in the US!!! Man-Kind has destroyed so many beautiful places!!!

Top 15 Emptiest Parts of the U.S. exists Canada: Amateurs

Hello! 😀 I have been resisting traveling to and experiencing the wild blue yonder. I thought east of the Mississippi was the only place to “live”. But after watching and listening to your videos for over the past couple years…well, I’m officially converted as of this day. I need wide open spaces and fresh air. Thank you for your patience with me. 😊🎉

Driving i80 from California to Utah, once I was in deep trouble, there are like 100 miles of straight HW no gas station, and I was sweating as my car was showing Empty gas in the middle of the stretch. Stunning wilderness of emptiness in the middle of nothingness !! There is similar empty stretch in Wyoming too, only diff in Wyoming is its cold AF. In here I was lucky to find a small gas station outta nowhere called "buck mountian or something area"... Lady was super helpful and chatted for a while and she told me where she lives there are like 300 people altogether and the only source of entertainment is a Theatre !! I was shivering in that cold where as lady was having her day of the year saying what a beautiful bring sunny day was it !!

Been to and/ or through most of these places, and if you decide to go, you'd better be prepared. These aren't places you want to break down in.

To be fair, western Utah and central Nevada are the same place, just an imaginary line in the middle of it. And yes, nothing there. That’s the way we hope it stays...

I drove through part of Utah that was pretty empty and I recall seeing a sign identical to that one that read last chance for gas for 163 miles. What exits there were were ranch exits. I remember thinking how screwed we would be if we broke down out there. Seeing those deserts on the list was no surprise. Those images brought me back to the Sam Kinison bit where he talks about starving people moving where the food is. But none of that can touch a low-level flight over the Polar Cap. I had that opportunity when I was in the service and it is just nothing but ice as far as the eye can see, with a bit of blue where the ice breaks up. I remember this very strange sense of calm coming over me because it dawned on me that if we did go down we wouldn't have to worry about staying alive because nobody was ever going to come looking for us anyway. Like I say, it's a strange feeling, one where you had to be there I suppose.

I lived in South Jordan Utah for 7 months before (from Kentucky) and loved road trips my friend from there would take me on. There was an area where we saw many wild horses running about ❤️

Nevada is about 85% federally owned land.

This is the travel guide for misanthropic people. No people, no problem!

I drive Nevada all the time and I love it. From Vegas, I take US-93 up to NV-318 then to NV-6 before I get back on US-93 to get to Twin Falls, ID. US-93 is also called the Great Basin Highway. One of these days I'm going to do it by car and really take my time to explore the small towns. As for SE Oregon, I was "trapped" for 3 days in a little town called Burns when my truck got stuck on ice about 65 miles away. I was very lucky to get a ride there from some folks who were behind me on OR-78 when my truck started sliding on a small hill. I had to stop the truck, which had slightly jack-knifed on the two-lane highway. In order to straighten out the rig, I had to put it in neutral and slide in reverse down the hill in order to get it on the LEFT shoulder, which was only about 3-feet wide. The people behind me watched me as I put out my cones, triangles and hazard lights. I came back 3 days later when the weather had cleared. The battery had died so I had to head back to Burns and come back with a wrecker to pull me free from the ice and re-solder the battery cables, which had completely corroded. Word to the wise if you're a trucker: DO NOT take these back roads in the winter!

I grew up in Georgia. In my 20s I worked in construction. Usually working 6-8 months nonstop then off for 2-3months. On my months off I would just load up my truck and drive out west since I never traveled that way. Southern Utah and Southwestern Montana were my favorites. Like you, I would just look at a map, find a place with very few roads, and go explore. Fun times.

I so miss living near central Idaho. It's been quite a shock to move to Indiana. It's hardly crowded here but it feels cramped compared to what I got used to.

When driving from NJ to Arizona, I remember the stretch of road from Amarillo, Tx to Tucumcari, NM was pretty barren. I don't think we saw 5 other cars.

I'm absolutely loving the stories and experiences in the comments, lovely to find videos which foster such discussions!

Being from NC, I took a trip from Vegas to the Grand Canyon and I realized that it is so empty out west! It was like going from town to town each like an hour apart.

In North Central Washington, on the very northern end of Lake Chelan, sits a tiny little community called Stehekin. Stehekin is completely cutoff from the road system, and the only way there aside from private float plane or a very, very long hike is to take a ferry in, a 3 hour journey from the town of Chelan at the southern end of the lake. It is the closest thing to an Alaska bush town you will find in the lower 48.

Grew up in Centeral NV and took me a bit to understand how truly empty it is. Seemed normal as a kid. Now I live in NC and there's no breaks between towns, which is different to me.

That why I always travel with an Atlas in my vehicle. We rely to much on our GPS and phones for directions. My Atlas has saved me numerous times. Pretty scary when you realize you have no reception and forget to save a screen shot of your destination, especially while traveling in the white mountains. Seasoned traveler advice 😊

I'm from the high desert: a portion of the Mojave desert and the only place in the world, other than Joshua Tree National Park, that Joshua trees grow. Once you get past the major highways or interstates, there really is almost nothing for miles and miles. It's so close to some pretty big suburban cities like San Bernardino and Riverside so the sudden transition after you cross the San Bernardino and San Gabriel mountains is shocking the first couple times. I hated living there for so long because it was super isolating and there was nothing to do, but it's so beautiful and living in Sand Diego now for school I kind of miss it. The darkness at night and the gorgeous sunsets are unmatched in my opinion, let's keep it that way.

My favorite place (that I have been to so far) is Nevada. I traveled Route 50 years ago with my father. It was the most fun I ever had traveling. I loved being in the literal middle of nowhere. It is an experience I highly recommend for those who enjoy travel by car. Thanks again for a great video!

I relived some of my favorite vacations with you! Central Nevada, highway 50. I went back to fill up my tank when I saw a sign: No services next 163 miles; my favorite vacation photo ever! I like living in a big urban area but I love to vacation in deserts and remote areas. When I see "no signal" on my cell phone, I'm very happy. At a planetarium in Wyoming I learned that 50% of Americans have never seen the Milky Way, what a shame! Thanks for some great ideas for my next trip!

I was driving in Nevada many years ago and I thought this is what the moon must look like, minus the craters. No sound at all, except the wind which you can hear before it reaches you.

Hey my sister lives in central Idaho on The River of No Return. No roads in. It’s 4 hours on a dirt road and a 6 mile hike down the mountain into her canyon, or a 2 hour dirt road and 1 hour of jet boat plus a 5 mile hike up to her secluded canyon homestead. The arduous trip doesn’t stop me from visiting her four times a year though! I love the remote country!

I think this is an excellent video. I keep coming back to it because I dream about bugging out to a wilderness location to escape society. Very comforting.

The sand hills in North Central Nebraska are a very important geological formation when rain falls in that area it goes into the ground and replenish is the Ogallala aquifer in certain parts of the underground reservoir for that reason it forms a very important rain catchment basin

Nebraska is really an amazing state to drive through. As long as you stay off Interstate 80 you're going to see some spectacular sudden changes in geography.

No people can be a good thing! Silence is golden!

Well done my friend. I have travelled through most the of areas you mention. I spend 6 weeks in North Central Idaho every summer. Truly a lovely place. I enjoyed traveling on the Loneliest Highway in Nevada and even took a long side road of of it which was even more amazing. Great videos. Many thanks. ZK

There's a conga line of Bigfoots in Idaho! Perfect habitat for them. Excellent video!

crazy that the "emptiest" places also happen to be some of the most beautiful

Have you ever experienced a view on the crest of a hill/mountain where you look out and as far as you can see there are no humans or signs of a human...? No power lines no roads nothing but nature...? Most people have never been to such a place...

I've been working national parks and living in the open northwest US for over a decade, Idaho/Wyoming and Alaska have been my home for years now, I'll never forget my first drive out here, at first I was scared, and then was washed over with a feeling of refreshing isolation, I'll never leave

I did an internship in the Frank Church Wilderness in Idaho. It’s the largest contiguous wildernesses in the lower 48, wolves, elk, bear, mountain lions and moose. Very remote

I can tell ya, from experience, stopping on Hwy 50 between Fallon and Austin to stretch your legs, the wind will blow around your feet just for the company.

It’s always refreshing to hear someone pronounce Nevada as Nevadans pronounce it. It gives the Geography King credibility!

Just found your channel and subscribed immediately. I am not a big city guy at all, I love the vast empty wilderness and you nailed it with this video. The one place that I've never been but want to is Alaska. That is my dream vacation. I love your style and presentation, straight forward with no fluff. You come across as an awesome person. Thank you for doing this video.

Dude !!! -- You nailed this topic. I don't find anything to nitpick about or question. You even gave mention to the 3 least populated parts of the East. Excellent Job, Big Guy

I live in Buffalo, Wyoming and I feel truly blessed.

I am so glad I found this channel. It's hard to find other geeks for this sort of stuff. In my home state of Colorado, in spite of population growth, there's still plenty of lonely and beautiful places here if you get away from the I-25 and I-70 corridors. I've been all over the Rocky Mountain West and Mother Nature is definitely more exaggerated here.

Your channel is awesome! Love nerding out here

Thank you for providing us a wonderful knowledge!

Fun fact: Davy Jone's Locker in the 3rd Pirates of the Caribbean movie was filmed at the Salt Flats in NW Utah

I remember while in the Navy, my ship was in the middle of the Atlantic (talk about being in the middle of nowhere!) and I could see so many stars and of course the Milky Way. Very powerful and breathtaking sight. It gave me goosebumps every time I saw it! I miss doing that. I was in the Navy for four years (1984 - 1988).

Have seen several of your videos. This is the best yet. Nice work.

Great video! I share your fondness for remote areas. I live in Utah and some of my favorite places are in Idaho. Now I know why.

Rode my motorcycle across North Dakota, from west to east. Emptiest place I've ever been, although I've only rode across 17 states, so there's a lot I haven't seen. But knowing that North Dakota didn't make the list, gives me an idea of how empty these places in your list are. Great video once again, as I love your channel, and always learn something new and just find geography very interesting. Keep uploading and stay safe. Cheers mate.