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Big Bend National Park |
Dates: (6 days, 5 nights; Sun-Fri) |
Assembly Point: |
Tour Cost: $1,995 (includes all lodging, all meals, full-day raft program, park entrance fees, van shuttle between Midland and Big Bend, leaders, trail maps & narratives) |
ItineraryIf someone had suggested to us hard-core Coloradans in our early adventure days that we would ever stage a program in Texas, at the very least we might have smiled and raised a collective eyebrow in disbelief. Merely a reflection of our parochial ignorance in those days and a reflection of how much we yet had to learn about this western land we call home. Clearly, we had yet to discover the wonders of Big Bend National Park.
Nestled in the southwest corner of Texas, not close enough to any major city to provide any meaningful clue as to its location, Big Bend requires a little scrutiny to understand its remote and wild character. The park is situated along a 107-mile stretch of the Rio Grande, including that point where the river turns sharply to the north (hence, its name, "Big Bend"). This section of the Rio Grande is protected as a Wild and Scenic River and the spectacular limestone gorges through which the river flows are among the astonishing, varied natural features contained within the park's boundaries. The vast Chihuahan Desert, extending northward from Mexico, dominates a considerable expanse of the park, but standing in stark contrast to the desert lowlands are the rugged, forested Chisos Mountains, whose peaks reach an elevation of 8,000'. Without a doubt, Big Bend offers some of the wildest and unspoiled land remaining in the "lower 48".
We've planned our Big Bend program for early spring — the absolute best time to visit this park. With an estimated 1,100 plant species, 430 species of birds and a wide range of other wildlife, including gray fox, pronghorn antelope and mule deer, spring is an exciting season in this desert environment.
We've structured this program in a manner that will provide the varied experiences that are the essence of Big Bend. We'll hike the high country of the Chisos, explore the erosional landscapes of the Window, the Chihuahan Desert environment and the breathtaking gorges carved by the Rio Grande. A full-day's raft journey on the Rio Grande in spectacular Santa Elena Canyon is another dramatic feature of this program.
We'll assemble at the Chisos Mountain Lodge mid-afternoon of Day 1 (we'll provide a van shuttle from Midland to the park earlier that day). We'll arrive early enough to hike leisurely along the Windows Trail to the spectacular Window, a pour-off that offers a magnificent view of the desert lowlands (4 miles). Early the following morning, we'll hike from the lodge into the Chisos as we head for the South Rim on what generally is recognized as the quintessential hike in Texas. The views along the trail of much of the Big Bend country extending into Mexico are unsurpassed (13 miles).
We'll head south from the Chisos Basin along the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive on Day 3 to the Mule Ears Trailhead. Our hike to the base of Mule Ears Peaks will showcase the incredible beauty of the Chihuahan Desert at a time when the Chihuahan well may be in full spring bloom. The variety of cacti, yucca, ocotillo and other desert plants along the trail is truly amazing (7 miles).
We've planned a relatively moderate hike to the Lost Mine for Day 4, our final day in the Chisos highlands (6 miles). Following the hike, we'll van shuttle from the park through Terlingua to the Lajitas Resort on the Rio Grande, where we'll spend our final two evenings. Later that afternoon, we'll explore Closed Canyon, an interesting slot that leads to the Rio Grande (2 miles).
On Day 5, we'll team with Big Bend River Tours for a thrilling full day rafting adventure on the Rio Grande as it twists through the Santa Elena Gorge. The sheer limestone walls that line the gorge soar 1,500 feet above the river.
We'll hike leisurely through the narrowing canyons atop Burro Mesa on our final morning to the spectacular, towering pour-off at the mesa's southern edge (4 miles). We'll then head back to Midland later in the day.
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