The reference to planting a rose bush reminded me of a recent camping trip in the Mojave Desert. We had trouble staking our tents (a necessity given the windiness of the area). The very hard rocky soil precluded driving a half dozen stakes more than 2-3" deep. The stakes were essentially heavy 10" spikes. I was using an engineer's hammer with a 4 lb. head. It was very hard ground! We eventually used other staking expedients. Some areas several miles away were considerably softer. However I did not have any serious concerns about our 4x4 truck becoming stuck.

I did see a game warden go off a dirt road and dig his truck into the sand. Naturally I stopped to offer to help him with the extraction. He politely declined, and then immediately checked my hunting license, tag, and gun. <img src="images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" /> Oh, well...

In contrast, in the SW Arizona desert, we have been stuck in the often loose, soft sand several times. Nevertheless, we had no major difficulty in traversing the desert dirt roads (mostly in a 4x4).

In short, the desert's soil conditions are as variable and disparate as Don said.

John