Big Bend National Park
Desert, river and mountain in one park, wrapped by a long bend in the Rio Grande.
- 102named trails
- 190trail miles mapped
- Texaslocation
Popular hikes in Big Bend
- Hot Springs Historic Trail · about 1 mi · Easy
- Boquillas Canyon · about 1.4 mi · Easy
- Santa Elena Canyon · about 1.7 mi · Easy
- Chisos Basin Loop · about 1.8 mi · Easy
- Grapevine Hills (Balanced Rock) · about 2.2 mi · Moderate
- Mule Ears Spring · about 3.8 mi · Moderate
- Lost Mine Trail · about 4.8 mi · Moderate
- Window Trail · about 5.6 mi · Moderate
- Emory Peak · about 10.5 mi · Strenuous
- South Rim · about 12.6 mi · Strenuous
Best months to visit
- January: West Texas winter is ideal: warm afternoons on the desert floor, crisp nights in the Chisos, and the Rio Grande canyons comfortable to explore. Big Bend has some of the darkest skies in the Lower 48.
- February: Temperatures are close to perfect for the long trails: Emory Peak and the South Rim are comfortable, and the desert floor rarely tops the 70s.
- March: Texas bluebonnets and cactus blooms paint the lower desert, and the Rio Grande canyons are still comfortable before May's heat.
- November: Heat is gone, crowds haven't arrived for the holidays, and the desert is often green after late-summer rains.
Permits and reservations
No reservation is needed to enter the park.
- Campgrounds: All park campgrounds require reservations. The busy season is October through April, when sites are often fully booked.
- Backcountry & roadside campsites: A backcountry permit ($10 per night) is required for all backcountry camping, and you choose your sites when it is issued. Many Chisos and roadside sites can be reserved online on Recreation.gov up to about 6 months ahead.
Entrance fees
- Private Vehicle: $30
- Per Person: $15
- Commercial Entrance - Motor Coach: $200
- Non-commercial Groups: $30
Official park site: nps.gov
All 102 trails in Big Bend
- Alvino House · 0.24 mi round trip · Easy
- Amphitheater · 0.42 mi round trip · Easy
- Amphitheater Trail · 0.72 mi round trip · Easy
- Balanced Rock Trail · 1.98 mi round trip · Easy
- Basin Loop · 1.8 mi loop · Easy
- Basin Loop-Pinnacles · 0.94 mi round trip · Easy
- Blue Creek · 11.7 mi round trip · Very strenuous
- Blue Creek Campsite Spur BL1 · 0.08 mi round trip · Easy
- Boot Canyon · 5.12 mi round trip · Moderate
- Boot Canyon Campsite Spur BC1 · 0.56 mi round trip · Easy
- Boquillas Canyon · 1.32 mi round trip · Easy
- Boquillas Port of Entry Trail · 0.22 mi round trip · Easy
- Boulder Meadows Campsite Spur · 0.24 mi round trip · Easy
- Boulder Meadows Campsite Spur BM2 · 0.06 mi round trip · Easy
- Boulder Meadows Campsite Spur BM3 · 0.06 mi round trip · Easy
- Boulder Meadows Campsite Spur BM4 · 0.14 mi round trip · Easy
- Burro Spring · 2.4 mi round trip · Easy
- Cattail Falls Trail · 1.96 mi round trip · Easy
- Chihuahuan Desert Nature Trail · 0.45 mi loop · Easy
- Chimneys · 15.1 mi round trip · Strenuous
- Colima · 1.76 mi round trip · Easy
- Colima Campsite Spur CO1 · 0.1 mi round trip · Easy
- Colima Campsite Spur CO2 · 0.1 mi round trip · Easy
- Colima Campsite Spur CO3 · 0.08 mi round trip · Easy
- Cross Canyon · 14.1 mi round trip · Strenuous
- Devil's Den Trail · 3.84 mi round trip · Moderate
- Devil's Den Trail / Nine Point Draw · 1.02 mi round trip · Easy
- Dodson · 23 mi round trip · Very strenuous
- Dog Canyon · 4.56 mi round trip · Easy
- Dominguez Spring · 13.6 mi round trip · Strenuous
- Dorgan Sublett · 0.86 mi round trip · Easy
- East Rim · 4.82 mi round trip · Moderate
- East Rim Campsite Spur NE1 · 0.14 mi round trip · Easy
- East Rim Campsite Spur NE2 · 0.06 mi round trip · Easy
- East Rim Campsite Spur NE3 · 0.12 mi round trip · Easy
- East Rim Campsite Spur NE4 · 0.28 mi round trip · Easy
- East Rim Campsite Spur NE5 · 0.06 mi round trip · Easy
- East Rim Campsite Spur SE1 · 0.06 mi round trip · Easy
- East Rim Campsite Spur SE3 · 0.08 mi round trip · Easy
- East Rim Campsite Spur SE4 · 0.08 mi round trip · Easy
- Elephant Tusk Trail · 5.72 mi round trip · Strenuous
- Emory Peak · 10.5 mi round trip · Strenuous
- Entrance Camp · 5.94 mi round trip · Strenuous
- Ernst Tinaja · 1.18 mi round trip · Easy
- Fossil Discovery Exhibit Trail · 0.16 mi round trip · Easy
- Grapevine Hills · 2 mi round trip · Easy
- Hot Springs · 5.76 mi round trip · Moderate
- Hot Springs Loop · 1.32 mi round trip · Easy
- Juniper Canyon · 13.44 mi round trip · Very strenuous
- Juniper Flat Campsite Spur JF1 · 0.08 mi round trip · Easy
- Juniper Flat Campsite Spur JF2 · 0.06 mi round trip · Easy
- Juniper Flat Campsite Spur JF3 · 0.06 mi round trip · Easy
- Laguna Meadows · 9.04 mi round trip · Strenuous
- Laguna Meadows Campsite Spur LM2 · 0.06 mi round trip · Easy
- Laguna Meadows Campsite Spur LM3 · 0.08 mi round trip · Easy
- Laguna Meadows Campsite Spur LM4 · 0.1 mi round trip · Easy
- Laguna Meadows LW1 Campsite Spur · 0.1 mi round trip · Easy
- Laguna Meadows Spur · 1.02 mi round trip · Easy
- Lone Mountain (northeast section) · 0.52 mi round trip · Easy
- Lone Mountain (southwest section) · 5.6 mi round trip · Easy
- Lost Mine · 4.8 mi round trip · Strenuous
- Lower Burro Mesa · 1.04 mi round trip · Easy
- Mariscal Mine Trail · 0.42 mi round trip · Easy
- Mariscal Rim · 12.42 mi round trip · Very strenuous
- Marufo Vega · 17.28 mi round trip · Very strenuous
- Marufo Vega River Spur · 0.78 mi round trip · Easy
- Mesa De Anguila · 21.84 mi round trip · Very strenuous
- Mule Ears · 7.4 mi round trip · Moderate
- Nature Trail · 0.94 mi round trip · Easy
- Nature Trail Overlook · 0.14 mi round trip · Easy
- Nature Trail River Spur · 0.54 mi round trip · Easy
- Oak Spring · 2.94 mi round trip · Moderate
- Ore Terminal · 7.02 mi round trip · Strenuous
- Ore Terminal - Strawhouse - Marufo Vega · 1.76 mi round trip · Easy
- Panther Path · 0.22 mi round trip · Easy
- Pine Canyon · 4.08 mi round trip · Moderate
- Pinnacles · 5.4 mi round trip · Strenuous
- Pinnacles Campsite Spur PI1 · 0.12 mi round trip · Easy
- Pinnacles Campsite Spur PI2 · 0.12 mi round trip · Easy
- RGV Amphitheater Trail · 0.18 mi round trip · Easy
- River Trail · 0.22 mi round trip · Easy
- Sam Nail Ranch · 0.54 mi round trip · Easy
- Santa Elena Canyon · 1.6 mi round trip · Easy
- Smoky Creek · 17.58 mi round trip · Very strenuous
- South Rim · 12.6 mi round trip · Strenuous
- South Rim Campsite Spur SW2 · 0.1 mi round trip · Easy
- South Rim Campsite Spur SW3 · 0.1 mi round trip · Easy
- South Rim Campsite Spur SW4 · 0.1 mi round trip · Easy
- Store to Trailhead · 0.24 mi round trip · Easy
- Strawhouse · 27.72 mi round trip · Very strenuous
- Strawhouse - Marufo Vega · 1.28 mi round trip · Easy
- Telephone Canyon · 33.62 mi round trip · Very strenuous
- Toll Mountain Campsite Spur TM1 · 0.1 mi round trip · Easy
- Tuff Canyon · 1.02 mi round trip · Easy
- Tuff Canyon East Overlook · 0.12 mi round trip · Easy
- Tuff Canyon Loop · 0.64 mi round trip · Easy
- Upper Burro Mesa · 3.82 mi round trip · Moderate
- Ward Spring · 2.68 mi round trip · Easy
- Window · 4.74 mi round trip · Moderate
- Window - Campground · 0.52 mi round trip · Easy
- Window - Group Camp · 0.74 mi round trip · Easy
- Window View · 0.54 mi round trip · Easy
Trailbound shows every one of these on an interactive map with live weather, park alerts and elevation profiles. It's free to browse.