Big Bend National Park

After leaving our friends in Lubbock, TX, we headed south to visit Big Bend National Park. This would be our first visit to Big Bend and we were looking forward to doing some hiking and seeing the sights. We did not get a campsite within the park, so we stayed at a small, but well reviewed, RV park in Terlingua, just outside the northwest border of the park.

Our first full day in the park had expected highs in the low 90’s, so we decided to use this day for the recommended Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive. We stopped at most of the attractions along the drive and ventured into the desert for a 3.5 mile hike at Upper Burro Mesa Pouroff Trail. The drive included a turnoff to the Sotol Vista Overlook that provided incredible views. We stopped to checkout the ruins of a couple homesteads that were active in the 1930’s. One of the ruins had a central fireplace still standing that appeared to be made of petrified wood. It was beautiful to look at now and we can only imagine what the place must have been like in its day.

The scenic drive ended at the iconic Santa Elena Canyon where the Rio Grande River has created a 1500 foot chasm out of the surrounding limestone. We were able to hike along the US side of the river into the canyon for a mile or so. Given the natural boundary imposed by the sheer cliffs, there was no need for any man made border boundaries in this area.

The next day, with the weather a bit cooler, we took on our big hike to the south rim. The hike would take us by the side trail to Emory Peak on our way out as well as our way back. We figured we would decide whether to do the peak upon our return trip. We opted not to do Emory Peak, deciding the sights we had seen on the south rim and the 14 miles we were already doing was more than enough. The hike was diverse and the scenery spectacular and we both felt pretty good after the longest hike we’ve taken since early this past summer.

When we made it back to the parking lot, Amy noticed a vehicle that she was certain belonged to Mark and Sandy from our week in Lubbock (we knew they were going to be at Big Bend as well). After looking around the area, we found them and made arrangements to spend the following day with them near their campground in Rio Grande Village at the southeast corner of the park.

We spent Friday with Mark and Sandy, checking out the area around the Rio Grande Village. After walking around the campground, we hiked the short nature trail that took us to the edge of the river where one could easily walk across to visit Mexico. We then returned to the campground and enjoyed lunch before heading out to hike the Boquillas Canyon trail. It was great to bump into members of our RV family while down in Big Bend and even better to spend the day together. We’ll see Mark and Sandy again at the New Years hangout in San Antonio.

On Saturday we got up early to make sure we could snag one of the coveted parking spots at the trailhead for the Lost Mine Trail. This is one of the more popular hikes in the park and we could see why with excellent views through most of the hike. They claim that some of the best views can be had at the saddle about a mile up the trail. To emphasize this, when we got to that point in the trail we stumbled upon a wedding photo shoot in progress. Nice setting as the sun was rising and I’m sure the young couple was going to have some awesome pictures.

While at the peak of the Lost Mine trail, we came across a family that we had seen in the restaurant the night before. Upon recognizing each other, we struck up a conversation and they asked us if we had checked out the ghost town in Terlingua and whether we had been to the Starlight Theater. We had heard of the Starlight Theater but were unaware of the ghost town. This new information sealed the deal for what we would do in the afternoon and evening.

The Starlight Theater does not take reservations and is a very popular dining location so we went early to check out the ghost town and get in line for when the doors opened at 5:00 PM. The ghost town was interesting with the church being the only building still operational. Terlingua has turned into an artists town and has a very laid back environment. Its not uncommon to see the porch in front of the Starlight full of people just mingling and maybe playing and singing music. We were 3rd in line and got a table shortly after the doors opened. The food was very good and the atmosphere was nostalgic. This was a great way to end our stay in the Big Bend area.

Fort Davis

We moved from Terlingua to Fort Davis on Sunday in order to check out Davis Mountains State Park and Fort Davis National Historic Site. We drove into the state park on Monday morning to do a hike. After the hike, we drove up the scenic Skyline Drive in the park that offered views over the old fort. We left the park and drove into Fort Davis to grab lunch before checking out the historic site. The Fort Davis National Historic Site was very interesting and we enjoyed the exhibits and restored buildings that gave us a glimpse of what life was like in the late 1800’s.

On our second and final full day in the Fort Davis area, we decided to visit the McDonald Observatory. We tried to get tickets to the evening’s star party or the guided tour but they were all sold out and we learned they tend to sell out several days in advance. The self guided tour was interesting in its own right but the visit would be even more fascinating had we been able to participate in the ticketed events. We will have to return to this area in the future and plan enough ahead to get advanced tickets.