Big Bend 2014

My wife and I just got back from a trip to Big Bend. I've put a few trip reports from other trips I've made to Big Bend on Tacoma World, I'll try not to repeat too much....

Apologies - I was asked to record my GPS track and fully intended on doing so. I had a really full work week before we left and my plans to have work wrapped up on Friday by noon didn't work out - I was on the computer till 8ish and got distracted. I completely forgot to put the Garmin in my truck and didn't remember until we were two hours down the road. Hopefully, there is some useful information for you regardless.

Trip Planning Resources:

National Park Map:

$15 Big Bend National Park Map (National Geographic Trails Illustrated Map, 225)

http://www.amazon.com/Bend-National...98&sr=8-1&keywords=big+bend+national+park+map

Pocket Guide (National and State Park):

The Big Bend Guide

http://www.amazon.com/The-Bend-Guid...98&sr=8-2&keywords=big+bend+national+park+map

Hiking Guide (mostly National):

$26 Hiking Big Bend National Park (Regional Hiking Series)

http://www.amazon.com/Hiking-Bend-N...98&sr=8-5&keywords=big+bend+national+park+map

All 3 of the above are excellent, and I highly recommend purchasing well in advance to help plan your trip, as well as bringing with you to help on the trip.

Additionally, a laminated high quality detailed topo maps w/ trails/OR sections detailed is available for the state park. I don't have a link to order on line - not sure it is available for purchase anywhere but at the Big Bend Park Centers. You can contact them here to see if they will mail you one:

Barton Warnock Visitor Center
Lajitas, TX 79852
(432) 424-3327

If they won't sell you one and mail it, it's not hard to buy on the way in.

To be continued...

David

 

Saturday Morning we left Lumberton at ~7:00 am, took I-10 to Houston, then San Antonio. At San Antonio we left I-10 and took Hwy 90. Any resource you use (GPS, Mapquest, etc) will tell you it is faster to take I-10 than Hwy 90 - they are wrong. I've made the trip 3 times in the last 1.5 years, tried it different ways, Hwy 90 is faster (not a lot, but a little) and MUCH more interesting.

After you pass through Del Rio as you drive west on Highway 90 you feel like you are driving into the old west. When you cross the Peco's river you suddenly understand why that was considered a significant marker in the day. The terrain gets more interesting and rugged as you go, the country becomes more remote, cell phone coverage goes out for long periods. Many of the little towns along the way do not seem to be doing well in this economy and are all but abandoned ghost towns.

GET GAS WHEN YOU SEE IT!

We focused on getting where we were going, didn't stop or goof around any more than necessary along the way. We arrived at the Gage hotel in Marathon at about 4:30pm. The Gage is a surprisingly luxurious hotel in the middle of the desert. A little pricey, but not too bad. I've discussed it before, won't go over it a again - it's nice, we liked it:

http://gagehotel.com/

To Be Continued.....

David

 

The next morning we left the Gage by 7:00am headed for the national park. We took Hwy 385 south out of Marathon and made it through Persimmon Gap before sunrise. The Persimmon Gap check station was unmanned, so we rolled through without paying our fees and drove straight to our first planned hike - The Devil's Den (Hike 41 in the previously posted "Hiking Big Bend" guide). We parked at the Dog Canyon Trailhead and walked down the road to the bridge at Bone Spring Draw.

I snapped this pic of my wife on the walk in:



I was planning on documenting the hike with a few pics, but it didn't happen. The Park had gotten a lot of rain recently (The Rio Grande flooded a few weeks ago) and there was thick vegetation everywhere. A lot different than my previous trips to Big Bend. This, combined w/ no GPS (remember I forgot the Garmin...) and the third strike - I Left the map in the truck. We made it down to where Bone Spring draw ties in with 9 point draw. Everything was so overgrown we didn't realize at first that the two had tied in together. Then we couldn't find un-named drainage that was the entrance to Devil's Den.

Eventually we climbed out of the draw onto some of the surrounding hillsides where we gained some perspective and realized we had missed the drainage for Devil's Den. We climbed down, back tracked and started up to the Devil's Den. My understanding is that in the best of times it's a challenge to get to Devil's Den - the trail is heavily blocked w/ vegetation, etc. After our miscues and extra miles/hills hiked it was taking a toll on us dealing w/ the fresh growth and mud from the recent rains. After a mile or so, legs bleeding, tired and grumpy, we realized we didn't have the time to finish the hike and drive River Road West. Mrs. C9 never got to drive River Road West in our previous trip, nor see the Rio Grande. We dogged off the Devil's Den hike and back tracked to the truck.

Devil's Den will have to wait until the next trip...

to be continued....

David

 

Back to the truck, we continued south down 385 till we hit the main park road and went to pay our fees at Panther Junction. After paying fees / potty break, we drove west about 200yards and filled up w/ gas at the only gas station in the park, the SE on the main park road till we reached Glenn Springs Road.

We aired down to 20psi at Glenn Springs road, then drove to Black Gap Road, River Road West and back out to the Main Park road by the Tuff Canyon Trail on the West Side of the park. We detoured of River Road West to check out the old Woodson's site and Buenos Aires. Again, I've detailed this whole section pretty good in other reports, not going to repost everything again - it's a long (70+ miles) off road run that rates easy to moderate that can be run in a stock 4x4 (and probably a stock Pre-Runner, but I wouldn't want to go alone...).

My only picture from Glenn Springs Road from this trip:



After we hit the main park road (and aired up the tires) we turned south (west) and drove to the Santa Elena Canyon. We didn't have time to hike the Canyon this day, but we did stop at the overlook and snap a few pictures:



After that brief stop, we continued on to Old Maverick Road. This is a relatively smooth gravel road and we moved on at a brisk pace towards the Maverick Entrance Station on the west side of the park:



From here we ran to Study Butte on Hwy 118, stopped and filled up w/ gas and ice, then continued on to Terlingua via Hwy 170. At Terlingua we stopped at the Big Bend Holiday Hotel where we had reserved the "Oh Clem" room. The hotel was clean and nice, lacking a little lighting.

We walked down to the Starlight theater to get some dinner. The starlight porch and the little general store were littered w/ locals catching a quick beer buzz at the end of the day. Decent meal at the Starlight then back to the room to get some rest.

To Be continued...

David

 

The next morning we were up early again. Packed and loaded and over to the little outdoor breakfast place about 100yds east of the Starlight before sunrise. We ate our breakfast burrito's and drank our strong coffee in the cool morning and watched the sun come up over the mountains. My sunrise pictures never come out worthwhile....



After breakfast, we drove to Lajitas. We stopped at the General store (last gas for 50 miles), bought ice and two 2 gallon gas cans. Filled the gas cans and the truck one last time before heading to the State park.

Then we drove to the Barton Warnock Visitor Center in Lajitas, presented our confirmation # for our campsite reservation and paid our fees. You can reserve your campsite(s) in advance by calling (512) 389-8919. In addition to a variety of campsites ( http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/state-parks/big-bend-ranch ), they have a ranch house that has 3 rooms to rent ($200/per night) and a bunk house (m/f segregated) for $30/night. All can be reserved by calling the above number. Campsites can be viewed by looking online. I have not seen all of the campsites - of what I've seen, the best campsites are Las Burras 3 and Chorro Vista, both of which require a 4wd to access.

After we left Lajitas we drove down River Road towards the State Park entrance. Beautiful drive:





Saw some Peccary (we actually saw a bunch on this trip, but only was quick enough for this pic):



Stopped along the way at a few of the scenic vistas:







TBC....

David

 

Continuing down river road towards the State Park entrance we stopped at Closed Canyon and hiked the trail:







After Closed Canyon we stopped at a river access point, where we walked out to the Rio Grande (just to say we had done it).



One of the park Ranger's recommended the Hoodoos Trail also. We were low on time, so we didn't hike it, but we did stop for pictures. Looks like a very worthwhile quick hike for next time:



TBC...

David

 

Fantastic! Great Pics and Looks like a great time. Sometimes no GPS makes for a better trip!

 

Thanks!

Stand by, I do have some new Off roading stuff and a ton more pics. Just got back late last night, trying to get caught up on a bunch of stuff and post when I can. It might take me a day or so to get it all up.

David

 

Great trip and pictures!

 

We finally reached Big Bend State Park and drove in on the LONG main dirt/gravel road, it's a little rough but not terrible. When we reached Agua Adentro Pens we pulled over for a potty break (not sure what you call these facilities, basically a modern day outhouse) and aired down the tires. Then we turned south on Oso loop. I documented Oso loop pretty well on another trip report, won't repost.

Last time I did Oso loop we did not run Las Burras, so I ran down Las Burras this time. Nice trail, leading to a stunning view of the Mexican cliffs/mountains on the Rio Grande and one of the nicest camping site in the park (Las Burras 3).

Las Burras Trail:







TBC....

David

 

After reaching the end of Las Burras, pictures, soaking it in, stretching our legs, etc., we turned around and drove back to the Oso loop. Upon reaching the Oso loop we turned east and finished the loop coming out close to Cinco Tinajas Trailhead off the main road (supposed to be a cool slot canyon to hike there, didn't make it this time).

We drove on to Sauceda Ranger Station and checked in/asked about road conditions to Chorro Vista and Fresno Canyon. The Ranger there said the road to Chorro Vista was in pretty good shape except the two main climbs before Vista del Chisos were torn up bad from people attempting in two wheel drive. The Ranger also warned us about the Fresno Canyon trail (which we would run the following day). This trail starts off following the Fresno Creek (dry) and occasionally crossing and winds up just driving the dry creek bed. The Ranger told us to stop following the trail and stick to the dry creek bed when we reached Right Hand Shutup Trail - someone flipped their jeep in that trail section a few weeks back and there had been major difficulty extracting him and jeep.

We thanked the Ranger and drove out to Chorro Vista. I have thoroughly documented this section before (my wife didn't make the previous trip to the State Park, so this was all new to her). Regardless, I'm going to share a few pics of the trail - I'm stunned every time I see it...







It was 6:00 by the time we reached Chorro Vista and got camp set up. Mrs. C9 wasn't wanting to hike, so we fired up the stove, cooked dinner and had a plastic cup of wine (no glass in park). We camped in a Napier truck tent. This was our first time using the tent and we were pleased with it. Not the ideal set-up for every situation. In general, I would prefer to be able to leave my tent and drive away. In this area, the rattlesnakes have a reputation for crawling under a tent to snuggle with you through the tent floor, so a little elevation off the desert floor was welcome.



TBC....

David

 

The next morning I got up before sunrise to fix coffee and breakfast, Mrs. C9 had the beginnings of a sore throat/sinus infection going. After breakfast, she doctored herself up w/ over the counter medication and we decided to make our planned hike to view Madrid Falls. There is a dedicated "Madrid Falls" hike which offers the best view of the falls. The best view over-all (IMO) is the Madrid overlook. Get a "Big Bend Ranch State Park - Fresno West Rim -" map from the Ranger station, take the route just north of the campsite that curves west around the ridge then back south, then east before tying in with the main hiking trail.

Views from the Madrid Overlook Trail:







The Falls (green...)














We elected to jump off the trail and climb the modest cliff faces (2) and steep hill to go directly back to camp - not because it save any time, but because we're not "that old" yet...



TBC...

David

 

It took about 3 hours of semi-strenuous hiking to finish the Madrid Overlook trail. When we got back to camp, we broke camp and then drove back to the Saucedo Ranger station. On the way, we decided to change our plan. We had planned to camp another night at Chorro Vista, but we were both feeling beat up from the hike and my wife was still a little under the weather. We were able to get cell service a few miles from the ranger station, so we called the Lajitas Golf Resort (http://www.lajitasgolfresort.com/) and booked a room.

We got to the Sauceda Ranger Station about 1:30 in the afternoon. We let the Ranger know we wouldn't be staying a second night, then drove off to go check out Fresno Canyon.

TBC....

David

 

That looks like a lot of fun!! Great trip

 

After we left the Ranger station we drove North, then west on the Main Park Road until we hit La Posta where we cut onto the Fresno Canyon Road. Shortly after getting on the Fresno Canyon road, we noticed movement ahead as we began to climb:







After the burros (burris?) we continued on and dropped down into Fresno Canyon:







A short way into the canyon there is a primitive dwelling on the side you can get stop and check out:







TBC....

David

 

As we continued on down the Canyon we eventually came to the Right Hand Shut Up Trail. We remembered the Ranger's warning to stick to the creek bed after this portion of the trail (or was it before this section?). We were riding down the trail and I snapped this pic of the canyon wall to our left:



Immediately after this photo was taken, the trail began to dip down to the left towards the creek bed again. There was a steep short ramp at the bottom, not the hardest thing I have gone down, but still I knew it could be tricky. At the last second I realize the brush and limbs from the vegetation on the left are hiding some 3' deep wash outs. I stopped and backed up till I could turn around, slightly rattled that I came close to flipping my truck after being specifically warned about it...

This is no place for a screw up! You are on your own, many strenuous miles from help....

I forgot to take pics on the trail. When I got back to that point in the creek bottom I took a pic of the problem area - note the vegetation covering the washed out hole on the right side of the down slope:



After this I stuck to the creek bottom. There were some largish rock formations to go around/between, nothing to terribly difficult, just pay attention. There is some soft sand down there also, though I had no difficulties with it either. The creek bed splits into different channels and comes together many times. It becomes a little disorienting after a while.







Just past Los Portales, we realized it was 3:00 and we were out of time, we turned around and headed back out. Snapped this picture on the way back out of the Canyon:



We drove back out past the Sauceda Ranger Station, back to River Road and back to Lajitas. When we pulled into the parking lot of the hotel I took this picture of my dash:



I had zeroed my trip odometer when I filled up in Lajitas the previous day. I had a full tank of gas plus the 4 gallons I (the extra 4gallons were already in the tank at this point).

TBC...

David

 

Thanks for the pictures David, my parents go out to Terlingua and Big Bend at least twice a year and its always beautiful out there. The wife and I are hoping to go with them next year and stop by Chinati Hot Springs as well. Also I didn't know you lived in Lumberton, I think I've seen your truck before.