Big Bend National Park

Persimmon Gap

The northern gateway to the park, this low pass between the Santiago Mountains has carried travelers for centuries. Many visitors pass through it on their way in. The Persimmon Gap Visitor Center offers orientation, exhibits, a bookstore and restrooms, and a picnic area sits nearby. Along the road from Panther Junction, roadside exhibits include the Fossil Discovery Exhibit, an open-air museum. The 14-mile Dagger Flat Road is a dirt route that needs a high clearance vehicle and ends in a forest of Giant Dagger Yuccas. Day hikes reach Dog Canyon and Devil's Den, and a primitive trail climbs Persimmon Gap Draw. The scenic 28-mile road to Panther Junction descends a long, gentle slope to Tornillo Creek, with the Rosillos Mountains to the west and the Dead Horse Mountains to the east.

Chisos Mountains

The Chisos Basin sits near 5,400 feet, ringed by rugged peaks, where cooler air and forests of oak, juniper, and Mexican pine stand in contrast to the desert below. The six-mile Chisos Basin Road, built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s, winds up more than 2,000 feet and rewards drivers with views of the peaks and the eroded basin. Day hikes start in the basin and range from the short, paved Window View Trail to longer routes toward the peaks. The Chisos Mountains Lodge provides rooms, cottages, and a dining room within the basin. Black bears, mountain lions, gray foxes, and white-tailed deer are common here, and their tracks show up on the trails. Backpacking and backcountry camping are also possible, using designated campsites listed in a backcountry guide.

Castolon

A former cavalry camp from the early twentieth century, this historic district later served as headquarters for the La Harmonia Company, and its adobe buildings now house exhibits on the region's complex past. The Castolon Visitor Center sits just behind the Magdalena House Exhibits, and the small Castolon Store is close by. Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive, a thirty-mile road, runs through historic and geologic terrain to reach the district and Santa Elena Canyon, one of the park's best-known landmarks, where a short trail leads into the canyon walls. Cottonwood Campground lies nearby along the river and offers a quiet place to camp, and picnic tables are set out at the store, the campground, and the canyon trailhead.

Rio Grande Village

Cottonwoods and mesquite line the Rio Grande here, forming a green riparian corridor that draws birds. More than 300 species have been recorded here, and birdwatchers can search the campground, the cottonwoods behind the store, and Daniels Ranch Picnic Area. The Nature Trail is a 0.75 mile loop that begins at the campground. Its first stretch is a wheelchair-accessible boardwalk over a spring-fed wetland, then it climbs a limestone hill with river views. Nearby, the Hot Springs Historic District offers a soak in warm water and the remains of the park's first resort. A border crossing lets visitors reach the Mexican town of Boquillas del Carmen. The campground sits among cottonwoods and acacia trees, and a camp store with showers is nearby. The visitor center has exhibits on the river and its wildlife.

Panther Junction

The visitor center here is the best place to begin a visit, and it sits next to park headquarters. Backcountry and river use permits are issued at the visitor center. Exhibits cover geology, natural history and cultural history, and a theater shows an orientation movie on request. The complex also holds the Big Bend Natural History Association bookstore and a post office. Panther Path is an easy, wheelchair accessible loop of 50 yards through a desert garden, where numbered stops identify Chihuahuan Desert cacti and plants. From headquarters, the northwest view is wide, and on clear days peaks more than 80 miles away come into sight. A 23-mile desert drive from the Maverick Entrance Station ends here, and a strenuous 35-mile paved bike ride runs to Castolon via the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive.