Big Bend: The Story Behind the Scenery by Carol E. Sperling


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Books from this "Discover America's National Parks" are so much fun to buy at the Visitor Center, read while you are on vacation, and re-read to help put your own snapshots into context.

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Chisos Basin Loop Trail and Thunderstorm in Distance

Chisos Basin Loop Trail is the most efficient way(1.9 mile) for us to experience the beauty of the Chisos Mountains.
Chisos Basin Loop Trail and Thunderstorm in Distance

Window View Trail, Big Bend NP, 14 Apr 2010

Window View Trail is a paved, 0.3-mile trail.
Window View Trail, Big Bend NP, 14 Apr 2010

Window and Oak spring Trail, Big Bend, 14 Apr 2010

"The Window Trail offers one of the most beautiful treks in the park. It descends from the cool mountains across flat, open scrubland and arrives at a shady creekbed with rugged cliffs towering overhead. The trail ends at a slick pour-off, forming the base of the V in the Window that was formed by creekwater slicing through the canyon over eons. The View is incredible....The agony comes on the return trip. Every step back is at an incline."
--Gary Clark, Enjoying Big Bend National Park.
Window and Oak spring Trail, Big Bend, 14 Apr 2010

Headed to Chisos Mtn area, Big Bend NP, 14 Apr 2010

Thunderstorms were forecast for the afternoon and evening. We wanted to be done hiking before that weather started.
Headed to Chisos Mtn area, Big Bend NP, 14 Apr 2010

Dagger Flat Auto Trail 12 Apr 2010

Dagger Flat Auto Trail is a seven-mile, gravel road. Near the beginning of the road, we picked up the trail guide for the price of $1. Two-hours is the suggested time required for this trip through the Chihuahuan desert to a forest of Giant Dagger Yuccas. Markers on the right side of the road corespond with information in the guide. Dagger Flat Auto Trail 12 Apr 2010

On the Road from Rio Grand Village to Panther Junction to Persimmon Gap

We are impressed with the wideness of some of the wash areas that have still had flooding sufficient to wipe out the prior bridges. Dugout Well was a pleasant picnic area with the Chihuahuan Nature Trail nearby. Dog Canyon was the area where the Army experimented with the use of camels in 1859. The experiment was discontinued by the Civil War. On the Road from Rio Grand Village to Panther Junction to Persimmon Gap

Hot Springs Trail, 12 Apr 2010

Hot Springs Trail, 12 Apr 2010

Rio Grande Nature Trail 12 Apr 2010

There is a detour on the Rio Grande Nature Trail while a new birding area is being built. More birds pass through Big Bend National Park than any other national park. This trail took us through marshy area to desert. Rio Grande Nature Trail 12 Apr 2010

Boquillas Canyon Overlook and Trail 12 Apr 2010

Today we traveled to the far eastern edge of Big Bend National Park to do the hike we most wanted to do in the earliest part of the day. Boquillas Canyon Overlook and Trail 12 Apr 2010

Tuff Canyon, Mt, Emory

Merriam-Webster's defines tuff as a rock composed of the finer kinds of volcanic detritus usually found fused together by heat. I like Carol Sperling's description: volcanic bombs carried into the ash bed by explosions, or pebbles washed there by flood waters. I wish my pictures could convey the depths of this canyon. Tuff Canyon, Mt, Emory

Sotol Vista, Burro Mesa Pouroff, Mule Ears

Husband stands at the bottom of Burro Mesa Pouroff. The places in this album are also along the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive. Sotol Vista shows recovery from a desert fire which burned 680 acres. In the second photo, the gap in the blue rocks that looks like a goal post--that is our first look at Santa Elena Canyon. My viewpoint is 14 air-miles away and those canyon walls are 1500 feet high.
Burro Mesa Pouroff trail takes us across the desert, crossing a dry wash twice and back to the pouroff. A pouroff is a dry fall.
Mule Ears were landmarks for travelers before they were a source of fun for me when I take this picture of Don. Sotol Vista, Burro Mesa Pouroff, Mule Ears

Ward Spring Trail, BBNP, 11 Apr 2010

The trail is 3.6 miles round trip.Ward Spring Trail, BBNP, 11 Apr 2010

Big Bend National Park and Sam Nail Ranch

Sunday began with a 40 mile drive to the entrance of the park. We were headed for the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive. Ross Maxwell was the first superintendent of the park and he was a geologist who planned this road to show off the geology of the park.
The Sam Nail ranch loop trail is noisy, due to all the birdsongs. Many birders were sitting along the trail, with hopes to spot certain birds whenever they might fly out of the thickets.
Big Bend National Park and Sam Nail Ranch

Hiking Big Bend National Park, 2nd by Laurence Parent


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Yes, it gets 5 stars because I will recommend it to others and I'm likely to use it again for hikes on future vacations. This book has been on the recommended reading list in most other books for Big Bend National Park.

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Enjoying Big Bend National Park: A Friendly Guide to Adventures for Everyone by Gary Clark


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book does what is says it will do, guide you to friendly adventures for everyone. It will be especially useful for families who want to introduce their children to the park while they are planning the trip. Middle-readers may be able to read this for themselves, with the help of parents for the place names.
This book provides a chapter for activities for those physically fit and for those with disabilities.
This book has a good index for those who look for specific information; but, I recommend it be read in its entirety.
Eleven books are mentioned in its recommended reading for those who want more information than this short book provides.

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