Sunday May 26 2024

May 29, 2024

Sunday May 26 2024

Sunday May 26

Set the alarm for 3:30 am. We wanted to drive 2.5 hours south to Big Bend National Park right at the border with Mexico. Our plan was to arrive at sunup and get an early start on a hike. Big Bend is a spectacular park along the Rio Grande in southwestern Texas with a number of peaks approaching 8,000 feet ASL. It is notoriously hot starting at the beginning of May and the rangers strongly suggest hikers to be off the trails by 10:00 am and to bring lots of water. The trail we chose was the Window trail. It descends from a basin nestled in the mountains along a river wash to a pour off over a cliff. The water has eroded a vertical channel in the cliff face where it pours off the mountain creating a window effect. Water only flows there after heavy rain so the pour off area is dry most of the time.

We started our hike just before the sun peaked over the eastern mountains in the park. It was nice to see the peaks around us illuminated while the rest of the canyon was still in shadows. The trail is 4 km one way and descends gradually to the window. The scenery was spectacular and the air temperature was cool, so we had a great hike down to the window. We met a couple of hikers returning but for the most part it was very quiet.

At the window we were rewarded with amazing views of the desert landscape below and the incredible geology all around us. Took lots of photos had some snacks and plenty of water then made our way back up the trail. The return trip is all up hill but really it’s an easy hike if it’s not hot. On our way back up the trail we passed a lot of people making there way down to the window…a lot didn’t look very well prepared (lack of water) plus they were leaving at a time when it would be really hot for the climb back to the trailhead.

When we arrived at the trailhead there was a volunteer ranger there who asked us how we enjoyed the hike and thanked us for getting out and returning early to avoid the heat. He said there are many rescues made on this trail every year for people that don’t heed the warnings.

After the hike we went to the park visitor center, picked up a national park pass and some maps of the park to help us get around. We spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon doing a scenic drive through the park and down to the Rio Grande. Surprisingly, the Rio Grande in this area is more or less dry. There are a few sections of river that have become little lakes, so no flow, and the rest of the riverbed is dry. We could have walked to Mexico.

Just a note on the heat; during the scenic drive which was a 60 mile out and back parkway we stopped along the way at scenic overlooks and other points of interest and it was so hot it was unbearable to be out in the sun for more than a couple of minutes. It was somewhere between 105 and 110 Fahrenheit!

After our scenic drive we were going to take an alternate route back to our campsite through the town of Marfa – but it would have added at least another hour onto a 2.5 hour drive, so we passed and returned the way we came. At least it was daylight and I wasn’t dodging jackrabbits like I was will driving down in the early morning darkness.

Arrived late afternoon at camp and spent the afternoon relaxing and waiting for the cool of the evening to descend.