Big Bend, November 2000
For me, the trip does not begin to get interesting until I get beyond Del Rio. Up to that point the drive is fairly mundane through the praries of the coastal plain and cultivated land of the Rio Grande Valley. Beyond Del Rio you soon realize that you are getting into the desert. The road runs roughly parallel to the Rio Grande - crossing sections of the Amistadt Reservoir then climbing steadily through cuts in the limestone hills.
About forty miles west of Del Rio you come across Seminole Canyon State Park. Apart from the usual campsites and trails there is the canyon. Named after the Black Seminole 'Indians' who escaped to Mexico to retain their hard won freedom and were then enticed back as employees of the US Army the canyon is similar to many other canyons which cut through the Trans-Pecos region. The main difference is to be found in the Fate Bell Rock Shelter. Reaching back about a hundred feet under the canyon wall the shelter is close to four hundred feet wide and has been inhabited, on and off, for several thousand years. The floor is about twenty feet deep in accumulated debris - all carried in by the people who lived there. Scattered all over the ceiling and walls are numerous cave paintings depicting the events and symbols that were important in their lives. Shamen, animals, hunting trophies, religious symbols, images from drug induced trances. I'm sure you can see them all there - it is just difficult, sometimes, to be sure which is which. The paintings decorate the walls from high above down to a depth of almost fifteen feet below the current floor level. Apparently there was no regular trash pickup in this neighborhood. The accumulated trash is a treasure trove for archeologists who have found woven sandals and items of clothing as well as bone tools and rocks for grinding grain. It is also a magnet for treasure hunters who, over the years, have caused a lot of damage. Because of this you may only visit the canyon with a guide. The expedition takes almost two hours but is well worth it.
Shortly after Seminole Canyon the road crosses the Pecos River gorge - about three hundred feet above the river - a spectacular view. One more item of particular interest before the long drive through the wilderness is the town of Langtry which still contains the original "Jersey Lilly" saloon and courthouse where Judge Roy Bean dispensed justice as the "Law West of the Pecos" in the late eighteen hundreds. A fascinating place to visit.
From Langtry there still remains over two hundred miles of driving to reach the park headquarters. Along the way are three towns where food, gasoline, and lodgings may be obtained - Sanderson, Marathon, and Alpine. The spaces between these towns are open and empty. Don't go too far without filling up with gas and carry plenty of spare water. Fellow travellers can be few and far between!
From Alpine we headed south towards Study Butte but left the main road after about forty miles and began our sixteen mile drive along dirt roads to get to Terlingua Ranch. It is a long haul - but worth it. The ranch is well away from the tourist centers of Big Bend and offers basic but comfortable cabins and a down-to-earth restaurant that is a focal point for the local community. It was a relief to get there, find our cabins, then head off up the trail to watch that desert sun go down.
Feeling well rested the next morning we ate a hearty breakfast at the restaurant before heading out to tackle Christmas Mountain. We drove the first two miles to its flanks along a dirt road that gradually deteriorated to the point where we were forced to fill a two foot deep washout with boulders before being able to ease the truck over it. Once we got to the turnaround at the base of the mountain we were on foot for a steady climb up the rough trail that zigs and zags its way up the mountainside. The trail reaches the top of 'Big Christmas' in three not-so-easy stages. The first two stages are deceptive. You are lulled into believing you are approaching the summit but both times the trail weaves around the edge of the summit to present you with a higher summit just beyond. The last few hundred feet is a steep scramble with no clear trail. You emerge to see a small collection of solar powered communications antennae perched on the summit. The view is amazing. Almost three hundred and sixty degrees of panorama with sheer cliffs dropping hundreds of feet on two sides. As well as the Chisos Mountains (centerpiece to Big Bend National Park) the view tempts ones eye's across the border into Mexico where the Sierra Del Carmen mountain range stands proud as well as numerous other mountain ranges stretching on into the distance.
More directly below us we could trace ranch roads like slender threads snaking across the desert to tiny looking settlements. Cones of long extinct volcanoes thrust up from the desert floor which is intersected here and there by 'dykes' formed by volcanic intrusions. The sky was clear blue from horizon to horizon and a cool breeze kept the sun from becoming uncomfortably hot. We ate our snacks and took photo's of each other perched on the edge of the precipice before scrambling back down to the trail to begin the long hike back to the ranch. By now, our muscles were starting to tighten up but we were spurred on by the thought of the Thanksgiving Dinner which was awaiting us back at the ranch restaurant - and the fear that it might all be eaten before we got there. Our fears were groundless and, despite our enormous appetites, there was more food than any of us could manage to eat - though we tried bravely. It was a superb meal.
The afternoon was still young so we debated upon what to do next. Our spirits were willing but our muscles ached a little. I suggested the hot springs and my suggestion was greeted with enthusiasm. The springs bubble up on the edge of the Rio Grande and in the early nineteen hundreds a stone bath house was built over them for the benefit of people wishing to partake their medicinal qualities. The bath house is long gone but the foundations remain forming a large rectangular stone pool which actually juts out into the river. The water is from a sealed off reservoir which was formed during the time of the dinosaurs. Being deep underground it has become heated and the pressure of the earth bearing down upon it forces it out of a narrow fissure in the rocks. The setting is quite dramatic - below some sheer limestone cliffs. When we arrived it was rather crowded but people were leaving to get their evening meal so we walked along the river for a while and when we returned there were only a couple of people in the water. We soaked in the springs until well after dark when people started to drift back down. It was lovely to sit there with the river rushing past only inches away, looking up at the dark night sky filled with stars whilst the hot spring water soothed the knots out of our muscles..
By the time we got back to the ranch we were exhausted and ready for sleep.
The next day we decided to give our aching joints a break and do some shorter hikes. One place high on our list for a visit was Santa Elena Canyon. The Rio Grande has cut this canyon through limestone to a depth of about 1,500 ft and it emerges from the sheer cliffs into the wider valley in a quite spectacular manner. You can actually hike up the first half mile or so of the canyon - until it becomes too narrow and the river fills its whole width. When the park was laid out an eminent geologist of the times (Ross Maxwell) set out the route of a road which now bears his name. It meanders around the south western part of the park in a way that was designed to take in all the major geological features. It is a lovely drive and there are lots of places you can stop off for a short hike. We enjoyed the drive but continued on the the road which finds its way into the very center of the Chisos Mountains. The high spot on the road is about five thousand feet and it goes through some rugged country. Up in the mountains the vegetation is very different. The mountains attract more rain than the desert floor and the air is cooler so there are some very pleasant woodlands.
We were tempted by the hike up Lost Mine Peak. I don't believe there ever was a mine up Lost Mine Peak but there were rumors that the early Spanish explorers had mined gold there. None has ever been found. Nevertheless, the trail is one of the most rewarding in the whole park. That is partly because it begins at the very highest point on the road - so you have less distance to climb to reach the spectacular stuff. In fact, after a walk of less than a mile up a fairly gentle incline on a well maintained trail you come to the first overlook. The view is over a very pretty but quite rugged wooded valley that cuts deep into the hills. The trail then zigs and zags up the main peak. This part is a more substantial climb but by now our aching joints had settled down so we pressed ahead. At almost every turn in the trail we were treated to superb views back down into the heart of the Chisos Mountains. And at the very top a superb panorama with high cliffs falling off below us. The trail was busy as this is one of the most popular hikes in the park. It was a stark contrast to our previous day's hike where we were out for five hours and only saw one other person - for about thirty seconds. On the Lost Mine trail we were passing people of every nationality all the way up and back down. It certainly did not spoil our hike - everyone was cheerful and friendly - but it does reduce the feeling of isolation which is, to me, an important part of the whole experience.
We enjoyed a glorious sunset on the way down and arrived back at the truck as darkness was closing in upon us. Tonight, we had promised ourselves a visit to La Kiva.
La Kiva is a local nightspot in Stude Butte - just on the western fringe of the national park. Entrance is through a heavy wooden door which opens upwards from the ground. The weight of the door is such that a large counterweight is installed to allow normal humans to lift it and unearth a set of steps descending below ground into a small hallway which turns a corner out of sight. In the corner of the hallway is a large iron cauldron filled with bones which are illuminated from below by an eerie light. The walls appear to be carved out of rock. Following on down the hallway a pair of doors open into a crowded underground room filled with furniture rough hewn from big old trees. The bar is crowded with similarly rough hewn characters and in the far corner a band is setting up its equipment. We find an empty table for four. Beside us sit two biker couples, already tucking into their food. Embedded in the wall behind the table lies an arrangement of bones simulating an ancient fossil. At the bar beside us a bearded man sits on a 'bar stool' fashioned from the base of a tree trunk - complete with roots.
With a pitcher of beer to get the evening going we sit and drink and swap yarns with the bikers. Conversation is friendly and good natured. We are well into our second pitcher of beer before the food arrives. As we eat, the bikers get up to leave and the band - who have spent all this time setting up - finally begin to play.
The food is eaten and the beer is drunk and tiredness is creeping upon us from our busy day of hiking but we sit and listen to a few more songs before we settle our account and head out.
Outside, the sky is inky black with a delicious sprinkling of clear bright stars. The air is fresh and cold. Life has been good to us again today.
Steve Roberts, December 2000. All rights reserved.