"Bending on the Border " a Big Bend National Park Travel Page by mtncorg

Looming like a battleship, the Chisos Mountains rise high above the surrounding Chihuahuan desert plains, standing as a bastion to the border, a few miles to the south. The Chisos are the heart of this park and they are apropriately, smack in the middle of the park. As you can see in XenoHumph's fine pages, the Park is the best example of preserved Chihuahuan desert in the US - there are three other warm weather desert types in the US, as well: Great Basin, Mojave and Sonoran. The Chisos stand as a green oasis surrounded by hot harsh desert, ensconcing a myriad of plant and animal life unique to these mountains.

One road penetrates into the Chisos, slowly winding the 6 miles it takes to cross Panther Pass and come down into the Basin, a high hanging valley over a mile high - 5400 feet. Here you will find a large campground, a visitor center - there are three other visitor centers in the Park: Panther Junction (the Park's headquarters), Persimmon Gap (at the north entrance to the Park) and at the Rio Grande Village on the southeast edge of the Park near he entrance to Boquillas Canyon. From the Basin, several grand hikes emanate. Closest is probably the trail going towards the Window (4 miles), a deep cleft in the mountain wall that is one of the main features you notice from the Basin roadend. Through the gap that is the Window, you can gaze far off into the desert west. The highlight trail is the trail to the South Rim. It is a about a 14 mile round trip and the view to the south from atop the Rim is both airy and awe inspiring. For pictures, you should try and plan your hike to take advantage of sunrise or sunset to witness the myriad of colors washed out in the midday sun.

When should you visit the Park? Summer is simply too hot to enjoy the Park. Heat and arid winds can cause ground temperautres to roast you at up to 180F!! This is definitely a Park to come to in the normal off-season. The Park is a long ways from anything, as well. Its remoteness and the fact that summer is not a good time to visit ensure that you will not see the number of tourists other parks like Yosemite, Grand Canyon or Yellwostone attract. This is just as well. I visited the Park in early January. A bit cool at night but very pleasant during the day. We stayed at the little lodge in the Basin. If you want to stay here, get reservations and be aware that you can hear everything in neighboring rooms through the cinderblock walls. I would camp next time.
What gives the Park its name is the big U-turn made by the Rio Grande River. Here we come to another great reason to visit the Park; the River. The River serves as the border between Texas and Mexico and in the Park, the River traverses three superb canyons: Santa Elena, Mariscal and Boquillas. Outside of thunderstorm season - July-October - the River is not very difficult to run, the hardest part maybe the logistics involved in putting your boat in and taking it out at another - usually involving a not inconsiderable amount of road distance in between.

So, come to the Park for the desert, the mountains or the river and learn about the history and cultures that have intertwined themselves with this region when you get here. Remember, it is a very long drive to get here and there are no real towns to speak of nearby. Six hours to El Paso and a lot more to the cities of eastern Texas.
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http://www.nps.gov/bibe/riversb.htm for nps floating information

http://www.nps.gov/bibe/home.htm Big Bend home page