How to Explore the River Canyons at Big Bend National Park in Texas

Leaving El Paso airport, the visitor has over 300 miles of travel before reaching the gates of Big Bend National Park; one of the more inaccessible national parks of the contiguous United States. Often considered the Texas outback, the triangular area from the bend up to the southern panhandle and west to El Paso is a rugged desert terrain of scarce and sparsely populated townships and sprawling cattle ranches. U.S. Highway 90, toward Big Bend, leaves Interstate 10 at Van Horn. At Marathon, take U.S. 385 south to the entrance of the park. The visitor center at Panther Junction is approximately 25 miles further; there the park road forks, each route ending at the Rio Grande, with Santa Elena Canyon in the west and Boquillas Canyon in the east. Sagebrush and varieties of cacti cover the otherwise barren landscape. Jackrabbits and roadrunners spring across the highway and a rare and occasional javelina may scurry across as well, though usually in the early morning. The national parks of the American southwest offer exquisite beauty and are often overlooked by vacationers seeking lakes, mountains or waterfalls.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Water
• Extra food
• Sunscreen
• Insect repellent
• First aid kit
• Camera

Exploring the Canyons of the Rio Grande at Big Bend

1. 
    
   The Window in the Chisos Mountains

   Camping in the Chisos Mountains is highly encouraged because the range elevation is much higher then the desert floor. There is roughly ten miles difference in distance between the two canyons if the Chisos Basin Campground is the starting point.

2. 
    
   The fare:$1.00 each way

   Driving west along the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive, the canyon trail head begins along the Rio Grande where the pavement ends. For two dollars round trip, an aged Mexican will boat visitors across the river into Mexico and for a couple more dollars children will chauffeur the visitor by burro into Santa Elena. The trail enters a narrow red walled canyon, around and over boulders, before ending just above the Rio Grande, milk chocolate like in appearance.

3. 
    

   Driving eastward toward Boquillas Canyon, the pavement ends and the trail begin in similar fashion. However, this trail is somewhat longer, winding, as the river, toward fantastic rock formations, reddish hues, and several soaring birds of prey.

Tips & Warnings

• Imperatively, do not leave Marathon, Texas without a full tank of gas and plenty of food and water. While there is gas and food in the park, this climate and terrain requires extra precautions.
• Check with rangers about current travel into the two Mexican villages across the river. If the rangers support the trip, it is well worth experiencing such authenticity; furthermore, the livelihood of many depends on visitor trade.
• To reiterate, the climate here is similar to Guadalupe or Death Valley. Water is the life blood.
• Protect for damaging sun and pestering insects.

Resources

• Big Bend National Park