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Stories & Guides
Travel guides, regional history, stargazing tips, and stories from the edge of the Chihuahuan Desert.
Big Bend is one of the best national parks for families if you plan it right. Hot Springs, fossil exhibits, short kid-friendly hikes, dark-sky stargazing — and air-conditioned downtime when the desert sun gets serious.
No crowds, no cell service, no city noise — just the two of you, the darkest skies in America, a 105°F hot spring on the Rio Grande, and a private cabin deck under the Milky Way. Here's how to plan it.
May 31, 2025
Remote, dry, high-elevation, and 40°F swings between noon and night — Big Bend punishes underpackers. Here's exactly what you need (and what you can leave home).
May 24, 2025
There aren't many restaurants in Terlingua. But the half-dozen worth visiting cover every meal you'll want — from breakfast burritos at sunrise to brisket plates at sunset, with live music in between.
May 17, 2025
Cool, clear, often crowdless — winter is Big Bend's best-kept secret. Days in the 60s, nights below freezing, fewer hikers on every trail, and the year's most reliable dark-sky season. Here's how to plan it.
May 10, 2025
Two years ago Big Bend was effectively off-limits to EVs. Today it's one of the easier remote national parks to reach by electric vehicle — with Superchargers in Alpine and Terlingua, and Level 2 charging at most lodges. Here's how to plan the trip.
May 3, 2025
Twelve and a half miles, 1,700 feet of climbing, and one of the most underrated panoramic views in the American West — the South Rim Loop is the hike everyone in Big Bend talks about. Here's how to do it right.
May 3, 2025
A narrow pour-off in the Chisos Mountains drops 220 feet to the desert below — and frames a perfect rectangle of sky that's been on every Big Bend postcard ever printed. Here's how to hike it.
April 26, 2025
Javelinas snorting in the parking lot, roadrunners darting across the road, mountain lions watching from the rocks — Big Bend's wildlife is some of the most interesting and best-preserved in the lower 48. Here's the field guide.
April 19, 2025Big Bend's Bortle 1 skies are some of the darkest in North America, which means even a modest camera setup can capture a Milky Way photo that looks like a NASA press release. Here's the gear, the technique, and the timing.
April 12, 2025He won the land in a New England poker game, never lived in Texas, and built the largest mercury mine in the United States out of a remote desert ghost town. The story of Howard Everett Perry is the story of how Terlingua exists.
April 5, 2025An hour's drive into the eastern side of the park, a natural spring keeps a stone-walled pool at 105°F year-round — right on the bank of the Rio Grande, with Mexico's canyon walls rising on the opposite side.
April 4, 2025
Less than a mile from FM 170, a narrow slot canyon cuts straight to the Rio Grande through 200-foot limestone walls. It's in Big Bend Ranch State Park, not the national park — and that's why it's empty.
March 29, 2025Two canyon walls rise 1,500 feet on either side of the Rio Grande. One is Texas. One is Mexico. Between them, a 1.7-mile trail walks you into the most photographed view in Big Bend National Park.
March 29, 2025A rowboat takes you across the Rio Grande and a few minutes later you're in a Mexican village of 250 people, accessible only via this single crossing. Bring your passport. It's worth a day.
March 22, 2025Four-and-a-half miles, 1,100 feet of climbing, and one of the best ridge-top views in Texas — Lost Mine is the hike to do if you only have time for one. Here's how to do it right.
March 15, 2025Mercury miners walked away in 1947 and left a town to the desert. Eighty years later, Terlingua is anything but dead — a working ghost town of artists, eccentrics, and the best chili cookoff in the world.
March 8, 2025
On the first Saturday of November, a few thousand people show up to a town of 70 to compete in a chili cookoff that started as a publicity stunt in 1967. Six decades later, it's still going strong.
March 5, 2025A 1930s movie theater for mercury miners, abandoned for decades, roof blown off in a storm, then reborn as the most famous restaurant in West Texas. The Starlight has had more lives than most buildings get.
March 1, 2025Tucked deep in Big Bend National Park, an abandoned mining operation produced a quarter of all US mercury in its peak year. A 1.1-mile hike takes you through the ruins — but watch where you put your hands.
February 22, 2025Before the mercury boom built the Terlingua you can visit today, there was an older village three miles down Terlingua Creek. Its ruins sit at the southern edge of Big Bend National Park, almost unvisited.
February 14, 2025
Everything you need to know before your first (or fifth) visit to one of America's most remote and spectacular national parks — trails, timing, gear, and where to stay.
February 10, 2025
October through April is the sweet spot. Summer is brutal, spring is busy, fall is underrated, and winter is the quiet secret. Here's what to expect in each season — and how to plan around the heat.
February 6, 2025Big Bend sits inside the largest International Dark Sky Reserve in the world — over 9 million acres of protected night sky. Here's what that means for your visit and how to make the most of it.
January 22, 2025Terlingua ghost town, the Rio Grande, Marfa's art scene, hot springs, and more — the Big Bend region has far more to offer than the park alone. Here's your guide.
December 5, 2024