• Sierra del Carmen

    Big Bend

    National Park Texas

Splendid Isolation, The Big Bend...

There is a place in Far West Texas where night skies are dark as coal and rivers carve temple-like canyons in ancient limestone. Here, at the end of the road, hundreds of bird species take refuge in a solitary mountain range surrounded by weather-beaten desert. Tenacious cactus bloom in sublime southwestern sun, and diversity of species is the best in the country. This magical place is Big Bend.

Did You Know?

Persimmon Gap, viewed from the south

In 1935, Conrad Wirth, later the director of the National Park Service, said this of Persimmon Gap in Big Bend National Park, “There will probably always be a road from Marathon through . . . Persimmon Gap, which is a very fine and natural gateway to the Park.” More...