Big Bend National Park TX

We left Mar 11 at 6 AM for Big Bend National Park in West Texas.  The Park is 800, 000 acres.  The park lies in the Chihuahuan Desert and includes the Rio Grande river and the Chisos Mountains. 

Our first stop was to see the Davy Crocket Monument in Ozona.

Then we saw Paisano Pete a giant roadrunner model in Ft Stockton.
 
We arrived at the Park entrance at 1300 and all campgrounds and roadside camping was full.  The park rangers are telling us about backcountry zone camping and we pick a different zone of the park for each night.  Looks like we will get more hiking and backpacking than we bargained for.

The window through the Chisos Mountains basin.  We completed the window trail.

Our first night camping.  Park rules for zone camping are you must be over 1/2 mile from any road and not visible from any road.  30 mins walk each way from truck through thick cactus and no trail.  saw roadrunner, kangaroo rat, quail, and jackrabbit.  3 trips made in near 80 degree temps.  Luckily no rattlers or tarantulas spotted.  Night very windy and cool.   Luckily no rain as we crossed many dry creeks to get there.  Woke at 3:30 to almost full moon.  Coyotes howling and running loudly around us was freaky.  Stayed in tent until it finally warmed up at 0830.  Never got to use heater as it worked on the 12v marine battery in the truck. 

 

We packed out and hiked the Dugout Wells trail (1 mile).  Then we drove 6 mi down a rocky 4x4 trail to Ernst Tinaja.  A Tinaja (Spanish for earthen jar) is where water is trapped in a bowl in the rocks.  The acid in the water eats through the rock and makes it deeper.  The Tinaja was named for Max Ernst who was a justice of the peace, notary, and county commissioner in the area and was shot and died in 1908. 

Next we hiked the Hot Springs trail.  There was a bathhouse, resort, and store there until 1942.  There was people bathing in the ruins of the bathhouse in the hot springs when we were there. 
 
Next we hiked the Boquillas Canyon trail (1.4 miles)

Then we drove River road East 4x4 dirt trail to our next campsite on Black Gap road near elephant tusk mountain.

Black Gap Primitive Road, 4 wheel drive recommended

First we hiked the Mariscal MIne trail, it was a Mercury mine in 1900-1923.

Then we hiked the Rio Grande Village trail and saw this snake.

It is in the water but was very close to us before we backed up and it retreated under the grass. 

Next trail is Grapevine Hills (2.2 miles)

Window of boulders

 

Next we completed the Lost Mine trail to the top of a mountain (4.8 miles, 1300 feet elevation increase).  We saw 3 bucks and 2 doe Mule Deer.

Very windy on the top.  Smog from Mexico reduces visibility.

 

Then we went to the west side of the park to camp off old maverick dirt road.  It was dark by the time we went looking for a campsite and that made it more challenging.  We got a small amount of rain, and finally got some pictures of the sunset and a faint rainbow.

The next day the digital camera was full and we were out of film in the 35mm.  We managed to buy some the next day at Castolon an old army post.  We paid a Mexican 2 dollars to row us across the Rio Grande and we got some authentic Mexican food in Santa Elena Mexico and saw a small dinosaur bone and fossil museum.
 
The 4th day we hiked through Santa Elena Canyon (1.6 mi), Tuff Canyon (3/4 mile), and Burro Mesa Spring (2.2mi) then got home about 9PM and went to work the next day. 

The wildflowers were in bloom when we were there.

I took this from the truck traveling on river road east.

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