Big Bend
Big Bend National Park is a vast desert and mountain landscape along the Rio Grande in far southwest Texas. Known for remote wilderness, diverse ecosystems, and Chisos Mountains, it offers days of multi-day hikes, scenic drives, and stellar stargazing.
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Geography
| Continent | North America |
|---|---|
| Region | Southwestern United States |
| Subregion | Southwest U.S. and northern Mexico |
| Country | United States |
| State | Texas |
| Timezone | AmericaChicago |
| Latitude | 29.25 |
| Longitude | -103.25 |
| Maps |
1:57 PM LOCAL TIMEBig Bend National Park spans over 32,000 square kilometers of dramatic desert, rugged mountain peaks, and the wide Rio Grande. Dominant features include the central Chisos Basin—an alpine pocket amid desert—to the south, and expansive deltas and canyon walls along the border with Mexico. Visitors come for multiday hikes like the outer-park Outer Loop, scenic drives such as the Ross Maxwell Toll Road, and river activities — kayaking and rafting along the Rio Grande. The park's climate is hot and arid by day but can be unexpectedly cold at night, especially in the mountains. Prepare for variable conditions; routes range from short interpretive walks to remote backcountry crossings. Wildlife is highly varied—look for ocelots, collared peccaries, and desert-tunedbirds—and the night skies are among the clearest in the U.S. to view stars and planets without light pollution.
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