Big Bend National Park
$25–$50Hike desert, mountain and river canyon trails where the Rio Grande bends along the Mexican border.

Photo: Surfsupusa, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.
Hike, bike, paddle the Rio Grande or drive rough desert roads in Texas' largest state park, an old ranch on the Mexican border next to Big Bend.
Barton Warnock Visitor Center, 21800 FM 170, Terlingua, TX 79852 · Terlingua, TX
Big Bend Ranch is the largest state park in Texas, about 311,000 acres of Chihuahuan Desert mountains and canyons along the Rio Grande. The state bought the working ranch in 1988, and the old ranch headquarters at Sauceda is now a ranger station with a bunkhouse. There are 238 miles of trails for hiking, biking and horses, 70 miles of high-clearance dirt roads, and river access along the scenic FM 170 drive. It is an International Dark Sky Park. Entry is $5 a day for ages 13 and up; pick up permits at Barton Warnock near Lajitas or Fort Leaton near Presidio.
The closest stops to Big Bend Ranch State Park, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.
Hike desert, mountain and river canyon trails where the Rio Grande bends along the Mexican border.
33 mi awayMore like this
Walk the thick adobe walls and restored rooms of an 1800s border trading fort on the Rio Grande road, the western gateway to Big Bend Ranch.
39 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing