A little Big Bend, a lot of Big Ben Ranch SP

Sunday, May 7^th 2017

One of several Border Patrol inspection stations we had to go through.

Getting up and out early is beginning to be our norm. Not a bad thing.  Today’s drive was approximately 230 miles and took about 5 hours of driving through hundreds of miles of flat land littered with scrub brush, dotted with US Customs Agents patrolling the nearby Mexican border.  Destination: Big Bend National Park, in a very remote part of westernTexas where gas stations and water sources are few and far between.  Cell service is very unreliable, and some roads are only navigable by 4 wheel drive.
 

After speaking with some locals regarding road conditions, we opted to take the scenic route through the national park seldom driven by RV’s.  This route allowed us to stop at the Visitor’s Center, watch the movie, and get a feel for the park. 

 Oh Lord, it was 99 degrees, and we were told that at our campground, Maverick Ranch RV Park in Lajitas the temps were 103 degrees, with a heat index of 118.  Oh, fun!  We were glad there will be 50 amp electrical service because we will certainly be giving our air conditioners a work out!

Maverick Ranch RV Park was gorgeous, and almost empty! Awesome!

When we arrived at this RV “resort” in the middle of nowhere, we saw one of several couples we met the night before who were also from Florida.

We picked a site in the nearly deserted part of the campground ( orienting the motorhome so the awning would shade us ) unhooked the car and set up as we staggered from the heat.

11:00 PM and still 98 degrees? OMG!

 People say dry heat is so much better, but I’m sorry.  Aren’t you uncomfortable when you open your oven?  I can’t say I have ever experienced such a wind that was so very hot.  Dust devils circled around, tossing camp chairs in its “mini tornados” path. Needless to say we didn’t risk damaging the awning by putting it out.

That evening we hid inside from the heat and wind thinking of all the poor people out there in tents!

Monday, May 8^th 2017

Early in morning, and already hot.  This trail was lovely, but had to turn around a few miles in due to the treacherous terrain.

After several days of non-stop driving, we could not muster even the thought of spending more hours in the car touring Big Bend National Park’s scenic auto road.  We drove through the heart of it yesterday in the RV, and the views from our tall motorhome would far surpass that seen from a car.  Hiking in this heat was out of the question, so we decided to check out nearby Big Bend Ranch State Park where Norm read there was a shaded hike into a slot canyon.

 Arriving at the Visitor’s Center as soon as they opened at 8am, we got some info and maps plus the mandatory $6 parking pass and headed out.

This picture doesn't really capture the steepness of these roads.  Awesome!

As we admired the incredible scenery we experimented with our new GoPro camera, comparing it with our smart phone cameras.

The views of rugged mountains and steep canyons in this high desert surrounded us as we went up and down 15% grades!  Yikes, that is steep!  We practiced making some videos, hiked along the canyon, and enjoyed the morning.

We met a 71 year old woman from Denmark at a scenic turnout and talked with her for about an hour.  She shared how she travels alone, tent camping ( she was one of those who could not sleep last night because of heat and wind ) and just goes where her mood takes her!  It was interesting to listen to her views of US politics, how they almost exactly mimic Norm’s and mine. 



Norm found this lovely slot canyon to avoid the sun and 100 plus temps.

 

Some spots were more physically challenging.  We love trails like this!

 We checked out the Maverick Ranch’s  golf course just for hoots.  It was so weird to see lush green grass amongst the scrub land, which is why they charge the “bargain” price of $125 for hotel guests.  Others pay $175.  To pay that for golf in temperatures nearing 100 degrees, was not going to happen. Even Norm wouldn’t consider it!


Late afternoon ( aka Happy Hour ) was spent with the German couple from Florida I mentioned earlier.  We hope to get together with them again when we return.  Because of the incredible heat we decided to cut our stay here short and head north, adding an additional night to Albuquerque, New Mexico.