Activities & Attractions in
Big Bend National Park

Big Bend Hiking

Big Bend National Park is full of historical treasures of cultural, paleontological and geologic variety. The many day hikes are a great way to venture to these marvelous gems. Out of Big Bend's over 800,000 acres, only 260 miles of roads exist and most are unpaved. The lack of extensive road systems makes hiking the various 150 miles of trails a very popular way to see the highlights of the park. With 1200 plant species, 75 mammals and over 450 birds, taking a slower pace on foot is an advantage to seeing the diverse biology of Big Bend National Park.

Day hikes can take you anywhere from the Rio Grande to the Chisos Mountains or to the Chihuahuan Desert floor. Waterfalls, natural springs and tinajas, fossil beds and wildlife are among the highlights of Big Bend National Park's day hikes. See the spectacular canyons along the Rio Grande and delight in the history of the wild wild west.

Guided day hikes offer the Big Bend National Park visitor the perfect balance between self-discovery and learning. A guide will help you know where you are going and what you should look for while you are there. Big Bend National Park will not disappoint the avid hiker, on the contrary, it will astonish.

Big Bend Horseback Riding

The historic wild wild west was a rugged unconquered wasteland with sparse springs and oases in the nooks of canyons and valleys. Water was difficult if almost impossible to find for first time pilgrims to the frontier that is now Big Bend National Park. Horses were the preferred mode of transportation and an efficient one strong enough to carry rations and supplies. Today horseback riders can travel to Big Bend National Park with the advantage of maps, marked paths and hired guides to lead them to the most vital resource, water. Water is not the main focus of the guided horseback rides anymore. Now the focus is allowed to move toward the monumental sites and landscapes that Big Bend National Park area is renowned for.

Big Bend National Park area is well suited for exploration on horseback. Guided horseback rides are available to tour several different locations. Explore the quicksilver mines of yore and get a feel for the old west. Ride up to Ocotillo Mesa for sweeping panorama over Big Bend National Park and the Chisos Mountains. Plod through a ghost town and encounter Indian pictographs on the way to an old west movie set. Guided rides are leisurely sightseeing adventures with an educational element as well. Elect to ride for an hour or two, or take three days to have a weekend adventure. Themed overnight horseback rides are scheduled in advance and focus on archeology or geology. All of the guided horseback rides highlight the surprising beauty of the Big Bend National Park area. What better way to learn about and imagine the wild wild west than on the back of a trusty mount?

Big Bend Chisos Mountain

Big Bend National Park is known for it's varied climates of river canyons, desert regions and high mountains. A trip to Big Bend National Park is not complete without a jaunt over to the Chisos Mountains. The Chisos Mountains are a jagged range of cliffs and peaks reaching 7,825 feet at the pinnacle. They sit in the center of Big Bend National Park and are the only mountain range fully encompassed in the bounds of a national park.

The main allure of the Chisos Mountains is the opportunity for hiking and backpacking. The popular Window Trail and the Lost Mine Trail are scenic day hikes that give Big Bend National Park visitors a nice look into the Chisos Mountains and the wildlife of the area.

The hikes along The South Rim and to Emory Peak can be vigorous full-day hikes or can be leisurely overnight adventures. Emory Peak is the culmination of the Chisos Mountains with a 25 foot scramble from the trail to the summit. The South Rim embodies an ecotone where the trees and the grasslands meet. There are various other well-marked trails in the Chisos Mountains as well. The Boot Canyon Trail is the shadiest, greenest and has the most potential for water. Primitive campsites are speckled throughout the Chisos Mountains that include food storage lockers and tent pads.

The Outer Mountain Loop combines the total of the Chisos Mountain trails together to make a 30-mile backpacking trip that is not for the inexperienced. There are also other combinations of hikes to make an overnight backpacking adventure out of this mountainous belt. The gorgeous Chisos Mountains await your exploration.

Big Bend Jeep and ATV Tours

Big Bend National Park encompasses 800,000 acres of mysterious and rugged terrain. A mere 260 miles of roads in this vast park are the only roads that bring the Big Bend National Park visitor to the earthly highlights in the distance. 160 miles of these roads are primitive dirt roads and mostly require a four-wheel drive vehicle to navigate them. Many park visitors decide to drive their own vehicles at their own risk. Guided jeep tours allow you to venture to the middle of nowhere in the safety and comfort of a 4x4 vehicle. Having a guide will prove to be a true asset. Guides are well-versed in the history and geology of the Big Bend National Park area.

Backroad tours are a great way to see the land and learn about the culture and history. Listen to historic tales of the old west while viewing 80 million year old fossils, rare cacti and Native American remnants. Reserve a guided backroad tour along the Rio Grande and through the amazing dirt roads that lead to fossil graveyards and sweeping canyons. Explore in the shadows of the Chisos Mountains and gaze over the amazing Santa Elena Canyon. Time to trek around and photograph highlighted areas are planned into the itinerary. Stretch your legs while investigating a narrow canyon or natural well called a tinaja. Imagine what it must have been like 100 years ago, or a 1000 or even a million. Your guide will be the glue that holds the curiosities and the answers all together.

A guided ATV tour is another great way to see Big Bend National Park. This is a more hands on way of exploring Big Bend National Park, though a guide will be leading the way.

Big Bend Biking

Big Bend National Park is said to contain an entire geology textbook in it's unique formations and geologic oddities. The rolling Chihuahuan Desert floor is riddled with biodiversity. Approximately 60 cacti species out of 1,200 plant species in the park as well as the most reptile species in any national park make the desert floor a great place to get up close and personal. What better way to experience the virtues of the Chihuahuan Desert and Big Bend National Park than on a mountain bike. The terrain is very well suited to mountain biking with it's dry creek beds and rugged jeep trails. 160 miles of primitive backcountry roads and 100 or more miles of paved roads set the scene for a mountain biking adventure.

Spend an afternoon biking or plan a multi-day mountain biking adventure. Guided mountain biking trips are a great way to bike in style while learning the inside information about Big Bend National Park. Bike across the high desert and camp within a volcanic caldera. Trek to a fresh flowing spring at the base of the Chisos Mountains. Drive the River Road along the Rio Grande and get a look into the majestic canyons. Cruise past the many geologic features or stop and check them out on foot. Voyage along the Dead Horse Mountains and traverse across a high alluvial plain near Daggar Flats and navigate along Tornillo Creek.

Big Bend National Park is noted for so many outstanding characteristics such as geology, archeology of Native Americans and earlier people, paleontology, western culture, biodiversity of plants and animals and its rugged beauty. All of these characteristics can be appreciated from the seat of a mountain bike. Big Bend National Park has various terrain to tantalize everyone from the faint of heart to the bold. Learn more about bike rentals and tour details for both guided and unguided adventures.

Big Bend Ranger Talks and Tours

There is so much to learn about Big Bend National Park that a pamphlet cannot begin to rival. Rangers in Big Bend National Park have regular talks in varying areas of the park that touch on the deeper information about the unique aspects of the park. These programs are free of charge but invaluable. Rangers are the teachers of the park's past, present and future. The programs range from recent history of candellila wax production facilities and ranching and mining booms to the dinosaurs who roamed the area 248 million years ago. Rangers give talks about the impressive and diverse geology that has been changed and re-created over the same millions of years since the before the dinosaurs. The earth at big bend has had a lot of climactic phases and has the most preserved view into a prehistoric ecosystem on earth.

Another interesting facet of Big Bend National Park is the long story of human occupation and presence over the last 12,000 years. This is also a topic that the ranger programs delve into as well as how the park protects the archeology sites in the park. Another program talks about what it was like in Big Bend National Park area 15,000 years ago.

Big Bend National Park rangers talk a lot about the changes that the park has undergone such as the vegetation over the past century. Discover medicinal plants or the various roadside geology stops in the park. The animals in the park are an extensive theme in ranger led programs. Learn about the elusive mountain lion or the mysterious predators that remain relatively unseen. There are many species that thrive in the Chihuahuan Desert such as the vulture, a.k.a. “roadkill cleanup crew.”

For those who want a more customized education about Big Bend National Park, rangers can be hired for private interpretive talks. Big Bend National Park rangers are there to help visitors see deeper than face value into the special character of Big Bend National Park.

Big Bend Rio Grande

Big Bend National Park is home to 244 miles of the Rio Grande. 191 of the Rio Grande is designated as a Wild and Scenic River Corridor. 69 of the 191 miles of the Wild and Scenic River designation are in Big Bend National Park. Only rivers that “possess outstandingly remarkable scenic, recreational, geologic, fish and wildlife, historic, cultural or other similar values” can be designated as Wild and Scenic Rivers. (Wild and Scenic Rivers Act 1968)

From Mariscal Canyon, this designation begins. The Rio Grande encompasses all of the values listed in the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. Aside from the gorgeous scenery, Big Bend National Park is said to embody an entire geology text. Fossils from sea beds millions of years old and flying dinosaurs are other highlights of the values represented in the Wild and Scenic designation. The river carves into extreme jagged canyons through integral wildlife habitat. Archeological ruins, historic land disputes and fame and fortune of the wild wild west are all qualities of the Rio Grande and Big Bend National Park. Upstream of the designation embodies the same characteristics, but Wild and Scenic River status is difficult to achieve due to private land holdings, water rights and other political issues.

Floating down the Rio Grande river is a unique experience with so many qualities to enjoy and several subjects to learn. There are Rio Grande float trips for every schedule. The Rio Grande river has plenty of rapids rated from class I to IV. Trips can be leisurely scenic floats, whitewater extravaganzas or a combination of both. Half day trips are available, but multi-day floats are the most popular. Trips begin from various areas highlighting the distinct canyons along the Rio Grande. Exploring side canyons and swimming are planned into the itinerary. For those ready for a long term exciting adventure, there are trips lasting as many as 21 days. The Lower Canyons float is very popular 7-10 day float. It is mostly contained in the Wild and Scenic portion of the Rio Grande and remains a favorite float of the river guides.

Rio Grande 245 miles recreational use, tours or privates(permit) raft, canoe, kayak and must have proper identification.
(all river trips are considered trips where one leaves and re-enters the country: 9US passport, US passport card, EDL Enhanced DL, Trusted Traveler Progran Cards)

Big Bend Backpacking

Big Bend National Park's Chisos Mountains and surrounding Chihuahuan Desert are perfect for the inquisitive voyager looking for an overnight backpacking adventure. The diversity of Big Bend National Park's regions are like being in three different parks. The Rio Grande's stunning river canyons, the Chihuahuan Desert Floor and the Chisos Mountains combine to create a unique combination of opportunities.

Overnight backpacking trips can be customized to fit your interests and ability level. The biggest choice remains of what your priorities are for your exciting adventure. The Outer Mountain Loop is a vigorous five day trek up into the Chisos Mountains and summiting Emory Peak at a looming 7825 feet. These heights are followed by descending into the Chihuahuan Desert below the Chisos' South Rim. Evening destinations are chosen for water availability in oases or creeks. See landmarks such as Mule Ears, the Chimneys, Santa Elena Canyon and even look far into Mexico on the subsequent day followed by a return to the forest on the final day.

The Marufa Vega is a moderate alternative to The Outer Mountain Loop. Climb a neighboring peak and travel past old mining encampments down into Juniper and Pine Canyons. There is a hot spring soak worked into this 14 mile, four-day adventure. Voyage into the Dead Horse Mountains and walk along the Boquillas Canyon almost 1000 feet above the Rio Grande. Camp out near the mighty Rio Grande. In the morning, walk along the Rio Grande then ascend up a narrow canyon with unique geology formations.

Big Bend National Park is situated in a unique area encompassing three distinct climate zones of river canyons, desert and mountains. The prehistory of the dinosaurs and complicated geologic development combined with the history of the wild wild west will supplement the contrasting scenery in a way you wont soon forget.

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