A Quick Visit to Big Bend National Park

Deep in southwest Texas lies a well-known but rarely visited national park. Big Bend may seem like it is located in the middle of nowhere, but the hundreds of miles of natural beauty of this national treasure provides a great reward to anyone who takes the time to explore it.

We had four days to travel from our Habitat build in Las Cruces, New Mexico to our next Habitat build in Fredericksburg, Texas. This would be another test of our ''no reservations and no specific destination'' van lifestyle. Why not get off the main interstate and experience a whole new level of exploring? Glad we took a few days for a quick visit to Big Bend National Park!

The beauty goes on for
hundreds of miles!

Big Bend encompasses the Chisos Mountain Range, a good portion of the Chihuahuan Desert, and 118 miles of the Rio Grande River. With over 800,000 acres, it is larger than the state of Rhode Island. And with only a little over 400,000 visitors each year, Big Bend hosts less tourists in a year than the Balloon Fiesta did during its nine day stretch. It is home for more than 1200 species of plants and 450 species of birds. The uniqueness of the ever-changing scenery, fauna, and flora kept us engaged during our long drive through the park. Keep your eyes sharp ... you may even see a tarantula crossing the road, just as Doug claims he saw!

Our home base for two days was the exclusive Chisos Basin Campground. I emphasize ''exclusive'' because we could have never hung out here during our Wildebeest days. There is a sign at the beginning of the six mile road leading into the basin warning against driving any vehicle over 25 feet long. The roads were definitely twisty and narrow, but Baby Beest handled it like a pro. Our reward ... a cozy campsite surrounded by the Chisos Mountains. The view of the bright Milky Way and thousands of stars in the night sky proved to us that Big Bend has definitely earned its certified ''dark-sky park'' status.

The next day we took a hike along Big Bend's popular Window Trail. This 4.4 mile round-trip trail started out near our campsite and lead us past a variety of vegetation and rock formations.

Agave and prickly pear cacti

Lizards cooling themselves in the shade

An agave century plant

Fall foliage along the creek bed

Our reward came as we approached the end of this out-and-back trail. Walking along the rocky stream bed of Oak Creek, we approached ''The Window''.

The view of the distant desert floor and mountain peaks was perfectly framed by the rocky cliffs ... giving us a magnificent window view of the rest of the park.

The next day we checked out of our scenic campsite and took a ride through the desert on the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive.

Our destination ... Santa Elena Canyon, beautifully formed by the Rio Grande River.

Our mission ... to hike the short nature trail that would lead us a short ways into the canyon's shady depths.

Our main obstacle ... the murky, muddy, and fast-flowing Rio Grande River that was not going to allow us to cross over into Mexico today.

Our heros ... the group of youngsters who decided to take off their shoes, grab a hiking stick and attempt to cross over to the flooded trail bed to reach the the nature trail on the American side of the river.

From that distant southwest edge of Big Bend, we began our drive out of the park and on to our next destination. But along the way, we were again treated to endless beauty that added interest to our long drive ... like one of our favorite desert plants, the ocotillo.

... or the rock formations. What do you think these look like?

Three days in Big Bend National Park gave us a much appreciated rest after our Las Cruces Habitat build. But, as you can imagine, our quick visit was not long enough to see and do all that there is to see and do. Big Bend is a huge, diverse national park in the middle of nowhere ... and we will be back!

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