• Sierra del Carmen

    Big Bend

    National Park Texas

There are park alerts in effect.
show Alerts »

  • PANTHER JUNCTION VISITOR CENTER TEMPORARY CLOSURE

    The Panther Junction Visitor Center will be closed Tuesday May 28 and Wednesday May 29 for needed maintenance. Information, backcountry permits, and entrance fee payments can be taken care of at the Chisos Basin Visitor Center.

Monsoon Rainstorms and Road Conditions

Subscribe RSS Icon | What is RSS
Date: June 22, 2009

Monsoon rains started two months early at Big Bend this year. Floods typically do not affect the paved roads, with the exception of the road from Castolon to Santa Elena Canyon. This road will close when flash floods deposit debris and standing water on the roadway. The dirt roads in the park suffer periodic washouts, making them passable only to four-wheel drive vehicles or even totally closed until repairs can be made.

Please see the Daily Report for up to date closures and special vehicle requirements for the park's many dirt roads. Some have been temporarily closed, others require four wheel drive and high clearance.

As the Park Service makes repairs, road conditions and vehicle requirements can change on a daily basis.

Mid-to-late September is generally the end of the monsoon season at Big Bend.

Did You Know?

Aerial vie of flooding in Terlingua Creek and the Rio Grande blocking the trail

The trail into Big Bend's Santa Elena Canyon crosses Terlingua Creek. Most of the year a dry creek bed, after rainstorms flash flooding of the creek can make the canyon inaccessible and close the nature trail. More...