The Million Dollar Highway, Colorado

This stretch of highway is beautiful, with a gorgeous alpine road that that connects Durango to Ouray with the help of three 10,000-plus-foot mountain passes. But the 12 miles south of Ouray -- particularly for Durango-bound drivers, who are exposed to the unprotected cliff sides -- are steep, winding and completely unforgiving of driver error. Originally hand-carved by Russian immigrant Otto Mears in the 1880s, the modern highway remains open through even the slippery snowy months. As the locals say, though, you'd have to "pay me a million dollars" to drive that stretch in the snow.

The Trans-Siberian Highway, Russia

The Russian Federal Highway system stretches thousands of miles across Siberia's arctic forests and frozen steppes, linking Moscow to Yakutsk (which, with its average January temp of –37ºF, is the coldest city on Earth). During the 10-month-long winter, these highways are rerouted across frozen lakes and rivers and at risk of mountainous snowdrifts, whiteout conditions and engine-seizing cold. Conditions are no better in the summer, when the 700-mile-long unpaved Lena Highway to Yakutsk turns into a heavily trafficked mud pit.

Stelvio Pass, Italy

On the way up to the second highest paved pass in the Alps, the 9,045-foot Stelvio Pass, drivers are met with 48 hairpin turns. But if you spend too much time taking in the breathtaking scenery, you’ll probably miss one of the 180-degree corners. On the way down, maneuver another 38 hairpins and hope your brakes don’t give out.

Trollstigen, Norway

The twisting "Troll's Way" zigzags through 11 hairpin turns at grades of up to 9 percent on its way up to a 2,790-foot mountain pass. This road wouldn’t be dangerous enough without the 1,050-foot Stigfossen waterfall that plummets down alongside the route and into the valley far below.

The Road of Death, Bolivia

The route from La Paz to Coroico is a 40-mile-long stretch that links the high Andean capital city of La Paz to Coroico - with an extremely steep drop - 11,500 feet below in the Amazon basin. Local trucks and overcrowded buses often misjudge its sharp turns, plunging over the guardrail-free cliffs into the canyon below. There is an average of 200-300 fatalities a year.

These roads are nothing to mess with, and only just a few of the truly dangerous roads that are out there. If you find yourself having to travel on them, or you are just an adrenaline junky, take all of the precautions necessary! Have you visited one of these roads or driven on one that was equally intense? Let us know in the comments!