• Sierra del Carmen

    Big Bend

    National Park Texas

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  • 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.

Hiking the Marufo Vega trail

The Rio Grande as seen from the Marufo Vega Trail

The Rio Grande as seen from the Marufo Vega Trail

NPS/Big Bend National Park

This is a strenuous, but spectacular day hike or overnight backpacking trip. The entire loop is a 14 mile round-trip. Temperatures may exceed 100°F. There IS NO WATER available along this trail—River water is not potable.

Once walked by the trail’s namesake, Gregorio Marufo, who grazed goats along the river, the route is poorly defined and overgrown with desert vegetation. Nevertheless, hikers use the cross country section today to join two ends of the popular desert trail to make a loop.

A hot hike
High daytime temperatures (as high as 110ºF during May!) and the absence of any drinking water or shade along the way make this trail and any desert hike potentially deadly during the late spring and summer. Wear a hat, take along plenty of water and salty snacks, and start early when temperatures are cooler.

The basic online map of the Marufo Vega trail is no longer available as a free download. Due to the difficult nature of this hike and environmental dangers in the low desert, hikers are strongly advised to purchase the detailed topographic map of this trail from the park bookstore before heading out as the trail can be confusing and overgrown.

A high quality topographic map is currently available from the Big Bend Natural History Association bookstore.

Some maps like the Marufo Vega trail are not listed on the online store, but are available to order by phone.

Did You Know?

Horseback rider in Tornillo Creek, 1930s

Tornillo Creek drains the eastern portion of Big Bend National Park. The usually dry creek bed is named for the screwbean (tornillo) mesquite. For brief periods after summer thunderstorms, this desert stream roars. Tornillo Creek joins the Rio Grande at Hot Springs. More...