Photographer John Dyer Drove 5,500 Miles to Document Texas’ Outer Limits

Photographer John Dyer Drove 5,500 Miles to Document Texas’ Outer Limits

In the spring of 2019, John Dyer set out to see what the edge looked like close up. Dyer is a San Antonio-based commercial photographer who has authored photography books on vaqueros and conjunto music, written two novels, directed several short films, and shot numerous magazine covers including Selena for the May 1995 issue of Texas Monthly. But he’d never taken on a project quite like this.

Big Bend Ranch State Park to Celebrate its 10th Birthday with Fiesta

Big Bend Ranch State Park to Celebrate its 10th Birthday with Fiesta

To see for yourself, head west on Nov. 3 for Fiesta! and events including a barbecue lunch, guided hikes, bike rides, horseback rides, and geology and archeology tours—all free of charge. Camping fees will also be waived.

Going Green in the Desert: Terlingua’s Sustainability Festival Highlights Green Living and Dark Skies

Going Green in the Desert: Terlingua’s Sustainability Festival Highlights Green Living and Dark Skies

Held Oct. 26-27 at Terlingua Ghost Town, the 11th annual Terlingua Green Scene Sustainability Festival will feature a theme of “Save our Stars” and demonstrations on reducing light pollution

Photo: A Snowy Autumn Day in the Chisos Mountain of Big Bend

Photo: A Snowy Autumn Day in the Chisos Mountain of Big Bend

While fall in much of the state brings only slightly cooler temperatures, pockets like the higher elevations of the Chisos Mountains in Big Bend National Park feature a seasonal display of trees dressed in oranges and yellows. Photographer Darren Huski was fortunate to encounter a rare fall-winter combination when, he recalls, he “arrived in the park in
a blizzard and awoke to find the Chisos a mixture of vivid color and fresh snow.”

Gallery: Reader Photos from Texas Highways’ Big Bend Experience

Gallery: Reader Photos from Texas Highways’ Big Bend Experience

To celebrate the 75th Anniversary of Big Bend National Park, Texas Highways partnered with the park and Big Bend Conservancy to host a special experience for 50 readers this weekend on September 20-22. The experience included guided hikes, expert photography tips, a night sky party, welcome dinner, and more.

Fall Really Does Happen in Texas – You Just Have to Know Where to Look

Fall Really Does Happen in Texas – You Just Have to Know Where to Look

Mother Nature’s autumnal coloration of leaves before she applies her cruel winter grip is a visual gift typically associated with areas of the country that actually experience four distinct seasons. In Texas, where for the most part it’s oppressively hot and dry in September and October, green can abruptly give way to brown, without displaying even a hint of the kaleidoscope of oranges, reds, and yellows typical of a postcard New England fall. There are hidden pockets of the state, however, where the trees, beneficiaries of just the right weather conditions, offer one final, dramatic blush. Follow our photographers to these special places for some of the best foliage in the state—from the Nolan River in North Texas and Garner State Park in the Hill Country, to the Canadian River in the Panhandle and Guadalupe Mountains
National Park in West Texas.

Balmorhea State Park to Close Again, This Time for Septic System Repairs

Balmorhea State Park to Close Again, This Time for Septic System Repairs

After a summer of fun for swimmers, the spring-fed pool will close from Sept. 3 to spring 2020. The closure comes on the heels of the pool’s reopening in March after a 10-month closure to repair a crumbling pool wall.

Basecamp Terlingua Adds New Luxury Bubble to Unique Lodging Options

Basecamp Terlingua Adds New Luxury Bubble to Unique Lodging Options

Staying in one of Basecamp Terlingua’s two bubbles is like staying in a deluxe, transparent tent with the amenities of a hotel room—a queen-size bed, Keurig tea/coffee maker, AC/heater, mini fridge, Wi-Fi, and a full bathroom with an indoor shower. There are also two outdoor seating areas, an outdoor shower, and a fire pit.

At Viva Big Bend, Enjoy a Bonanza of Texas Bands and (Hopefully) Relatively Cool Texas July Weather

At Viva Big Bend, Enjoy a Bonanza of Texas Bands and (Hopefully) Relatively Cool Texas July Weather

If you’re a fan of live music and West Texas, you should take note that Viva Big Bend is right around the corner. The four-day music festival takes place July 24-28 with shows in Alpine, Marfa, Marathon, Fort Davis, and Terlingua. The eighth annual Viva Big Bend will feature about 50 bands—most of them from around Texas—playing a total of roughly 60 shows in 12 different venues.

1,200-Acre Fire in Big Bend National Park Mostly Contained; Conservancy Raising Funds for Rebuilding

1,200-Acre Fire in Big Bend National Park Mostly Contained; Conservancy Raising Funds for Rebuilding

The Big Bend Conservancy has started a fundraising effort to help reestablish visitor services in the Castolon Historic District of Big Bend National Park after a wildfire last week burned La Harmonia Store and Castolon Visitor Center. The Castolon Fire had burned more than 1,200 acres but was largely contained as of Monday, according to Big Bend National Park.

In Big Bend National Park, Wildfire Burns Visitor Center and La Harmonia Store in Castolon

In Big Bend National Park, Wildfire Burns Visitor Center and La Harmonia Store in Castolon

A wildfire in Mexico jumped the Rio Grande River into Big Bend National Park and burned down a camp store set in a historic U.S. Army barracks in Castolon on Wednesday night, the national park reported. The fire started from unknown causes on Tuesday or Wednesday, sending a plume of smoke into the sky. Wednesday afternoon, when temperatures were over 100 degrees, heavy winds blew burning embers into the riverside mesquite forest in the national park.

Explore A Collapsed Volcanic Dome in Big Bend Ranch State Park

Explore A Collapsed Volcanic Dome in Big Bend Ranch State Park

Thanks to recent trail work, Big Bend Ranch State Park’s signature geological landmark, El Solitario, is in good shape for hikers, mountain bikers, and equestrians who want to explore the 10-mile-wide collapsed volcanic dome.

Gallery: Wildflowers of West Texas

Gallery: Wildflowers of West Texas

For our March 2019 issue, we sent photographer and West Texas resident E. Dan Klepper out to capture spring color in 2018. These are some of our favorite images that we didn’t have room for in the issue.

Photographers Capture Texas’ Spectacular Variety of Wildflowers in Every Region of the State

Photographers Capture Texas’ Spectacular Variety of Wildflowers in Every Region of the State

Awed by the spectacular variety of wildflowers throughout Texas, we sent four photographers on a springtime mission across the state. They combed seven distinct regions of Texas, from the shaded forests of the Piney Woods to the mountains and deserts of the Big Bend, from sandy coastal dunes to rolling hills and the vast plains of the Panhandle. The results are as magnificent and diverse as the lands that nurture our abundant blossoms.

Film Tour Focuses on Texas Wildlife, Adventure, and Conservation

Film Tour Focuses on Texas Wildlife, Adventure, and Conservation

Looking to enjoy the Texas outdoors from the comfort of the indoors? Look no further than the Wild Texas Film Tour, which is again rolling across the Lone Star state following its debut in 2017.

The tour showcases short films about Texas wildlife, adventure, and conservation—including the reintroduction of desert bighorn sheep to West Texas, following their elimination from the region more than half a century ago; and a journey on the Rio Grande, the state’s only federally designated wild and scenic river.

Photographer Sean Fitzgerald on the Secrets of Capturing Big Bend’s Majesty

Photo: The Window in the Chisos Basin

Big Bend National Park boasts several distinctive and must-visit geological features, and the Window in the Chisos Basin is among the most iconic. The natural break in the rim serves as a picturesque frame for the distant desert landscape below. The Window can be seen from various parts of the basin, including the Chisos Mountain Lodge’s restaurant patio. However, a moderately difficult descent of less than 1,000 feet over a couple of miles of Oak Creek Canyon along the Window Trail provides the most spectacular view.

What the Heck is Ranch Water?

What the Heck is Ranch Water?

You can belly up to any bar in West Texas, whether it’s a dark dive or a glamorous hotel, and, without even glancing at a menu, order a ranch water. Heck, these days, you can do that at pretty much any bar in Texas. The simple cocktail has developed quite the fan base, and it’s led to contested origin stories and bubbling debate about the proper ingredients.

La Kiva Restaurant Helps Heal the Terlingua Community

La Kiva Restaurant Helps Heal the Terlingua Community

On the banks of Terlingua Creek, a ramp leads down into La Kiva, one of the most famous bar/restaurants in the Big Bend area. In Hopi culture, a kiva is an underground chamber used for religious and political meetings. But this kiva is a meeting place for the dreamers, lost souls, river guides, and tourists who are drawn to the old mining town and surrounding desert.

How to Make Chile Macho

How to Make Chile Macho

A longside traditional barbecue sauces and fixins, an unusual accoutrement kicks things up a notch at Come and Take It BBQ in Alpine. A salsa with origins in Northern Mexico known as chile macho graces the eatery’s
tables, as it does many across West Texas. Owner Scott Turner uses a chile macho recipe he learned from his childhood best friend’s mother, Terlingua resident Dominga Acosta.

Where to Find 4 Hidden Gems off Big Bend’s Beaten Path

Where to Find 4 Hidden Gems off Big Bend’s Beaten Path

Jaw-dropping hikes like the Window Trail and South Rim draw visitors back to Big Bend National Park year after year. But with 1,252 square miles to roam, the park also teems with trails less traveled. Many visitors stick to five or six popular trails, but for hikers who want to go farther, go wilder, and get off the beaten path, park officials recommend these four secluded options.

Epic Photos Reveal Big Bend’s Splendor in Black and White

Epic Photos Reveal Big Bend’s Splendor in Black and White

Rob Decker and his wife, marceia decker, arrived in Big Bend National Park in April 2017 with the goal to capture a single iconic photograph he could use as the centerpiece of a poster he was designing. Decker found plenty of options: He says he was taken aback by the craggy peaks of the Chisos Mountains and the remoteness of the desert. “While most national parks are somewhat out of the way, I was surprised at just how far Big Bend is from most anything, how vast it is, and the different opportunities for recreation it offers,” he says.
The couple explored Big Bend from Rio Grande Village and Panther Junction, to the Chisos Basin and Santa Elena Canyon, where Decker hiked to the banks of the Rio Grande. He then took off his shoes and waded into the river. “Even though it was spring, it was a hot day, and the cool water was a welcome relief,” he recalls. “As I sat on the rocks overlooking the Rio Grande, I thought about the Native Americans, ranchers, miners, and pioneers who at one time or another had called this place their home.”
Decker calls Longmont, Colorado, home. He was just 19 years old when he studied under legendary photographer Ansel Adams at Yosemite National Park, an experience that shapes his work to this day.
Decker is on a journey to visit, photograph, and create a poster for every national park in the United States. His endeavor, fittingly enough, is called The National Park Poster Project, with stylings that hark to the popular New Deal-era national park posters of the late 1930s and early 1940s. With each poster, he hopes to raise awareness of both the grandeur and the continued need to protect America’s natural treasures—and with 43 parks down, he only has 17 to go.
After four days in Big Bend, he left with a trove of images, including an epic shot of Santa Elena Canyon. It fit perfectly on his poster.

Treat Yourself With a Desert Cure That Smells Like a West Texas Rainstorm

Treat Yourself With a Desert Cure That Smells Like a West Texas Rainstorm

Deep in the heart of a ranch sprawling across the foothills of the Chinati Mountains, a stand of dark-green creosote bushes contrasts with the rocky landscape. The August weather is hot and dry, but these plants have some secret source of water. Candace Covington discovered them several years ago while helping with one of several archaeological digs on the ranch.

A Q&A With Big Bend National Park’s New Superintendent Bob Krumenaker

A Q&A With Big Bend National Park’s New Superintendent Bob Krumenaker

Big Bend National Park got a new superintendent last fall
with the arrival of Bob Krumenaker, a 36-year veteran of the National Park Service who spent the past 16 years as superintendent of Apostle Islands National Lakeshore in Wisconsin. A native of New York, Krumenaker has worked in 14 national parks, including two years in the early 1980s at Big Thicket National Preserve in East Texas. Krumenaker sat down with Texas Highways in November, seven weeks into the job.

With Shutdown Over, Big Bend and Other National Parks Reopen

With Shutdown Over, Big Bend and Other National Parks Reopen

After the federal shutdown ended Friday night with an agreement to reopen the government for three weeks, Big Bend started rolling out the reopening of its campgrounds, visitor centers, and other facilities on Sunday. The process was complete by Wednesday when public access to the international Boquillas Crossing Port of Entry was also restored.

“We’re overjoyed to be back,” said Tom VandenBerg, the park’s chief of interpretation. “It took a few days to get everybody’s mind back in the game. It’s been a little bit stressful and weird, but we’re easing into things, and visitors are showing up.”

Big Bend and other federal properties had been closed, or operating with significantly reduced services, for more than a month during the 35-day government shutdown. The majority of Big Bend’s staff furloughed during the shutdown, while the park’s law enforcement officers were kept on duty without pay throughout.

Ditch the Survival Skills With These 3 Easy Ways to Explore Big Bend National Park

Ditch the Survival Skills With These 3 Easy Ways to Explore Big Bend National Park

BIG BEND National Park can be intimidating. Countless photographs behold the region’s undeniable grandeur, its spectacular amalgam of desert, mountain, river, and sky. But the images also convey vast emptiness—16th-century Spanish explorers dubbed this territory el despoblado, “the uninhabited.” And those scenic photos often overlook the granular details, where scorpions, thorns, snakes, sunburns, and blisters reside. So it’s understandable when the uninitiated knit their brows at the thought of Big Bend, weighing a vacation experience against fears of a survival exercise in the Chihuahuan Desert borderlands.

A New Texan Finds Beauty and Solitude Amongst the Living and the Dead in Terlingua

A New Texan Finds Beauty and Solitude Amongst the Living and the Dead in Terlingua

I live 4,900 miles away from England, where I was born, on any day of the week. But on that day, home was getting farther away still. It’s not just the eight-hour drive with my family from Austin, where we now live, to Terlingua. It’s something else, something farther than the distance … everything is left behind en route.

A 1930s Photograph Shows CCC’s Role in Building Big Bend National Park

A 1930s Photograph Shows CCC’s Role in Building Big Bend National Park

Big Bend National Park was little more than a hopeful idea when about 200 young men arrived in the Chisos Mountains in 1934 on deployment with the Civilian Conservation Corps. Hungry for work amid the hardship of the Great Depression, the workers, ages 18 to 25 and mostly Hispanic, toiled in isolated, harsh conditions to construct infrastructure for what was then Big Bend State Park. The CCC established a camp in the shadow of Casa Grande peak—still the location of the Chisos Basin campground—and blasted 10,000 truckloads of rock to build Green Gulch Road from the desert floor into the basin. A second CCC crew stationed in Big Bend from 1940 to 1942 built the popular Lost Mine Trail, a store, and four cottages that have been used for lodging since the national park opened in 1944.

Fossils Tell a Story of Vanished Worlds in Big Bend National Park

Fossils Tell a Story of Vanished Worlds in Big Bend National Park

The northbound road through Big Bend National Park winds between scab-colored volcanic hills and the baking white flats of the Chihuahuan Desert. During the day, little moves out here but the wind; the heat presses down heavy and hard on the rock shelves. The landscape feels frozen, dry, and dead. In a word, timeless.

The Daytripper’s Top 5 in Comstock

The Daytripper’s Top 5 in Comstock

There are places in the far reaches of Texas where few dare to travel, which is exactly what attracted me to western Val Verde County. It’s a rugged land where the jackrabbits far outnumber the people. A place where the tales are tall, the canyons are deep, and the mysteries are even deeper. If you find yourself trippin’ to the edge of Texas, don’t miss these stops.

The Inspiring Story Behind Big Bend National Park’s Founding 6 Days After D-Day

The Inspiring Story Behind Big Bend National Park’s Founding 6 Days After D-Day

Seventy-five years ago this summer, the country was gripped by news of the Allied invasion of Nazi-
occupied Europe. But even at the height of the conflict, the commander-in-chief could not resist turning his attention, at least for a few minutes, to West Texas. On June 6, 1944, President Roosevelt met with a Texas delegation to discuss the future of what would become Big Bend National Park. Six days later, he signed legislation establishing it, capping a decades-long effort to preserve a state and national treasure.

Best of the Rest: Big Bend for Everyone Photo Gallery

Best of the Rest: Big Bend for Everyone Photo Gallery

In our February 2019 issue, Senior Editor Matt Joyce shared 3 ways anyone can easily enjoy Big Bend National Park, even visitors who aren’t experienced outdoorsmen. These are some of our favorite photos from photographer Sean Fitzgerald that we didn’t have room for in the issue.

A Big Bend Backup

A Big Bend Backup

A few weeks ago, my husband, Alex, and I were preparing to backpack the Outer Mountain Loop in Big Bend National Park—a rugged 30-mile trail that crosses the Chisos Mountains and dips into the Chihuahuan Desert—when, only three days before our departure to West Texas, the federal government shut down, meaning no backcountry permits were unavailable. We were forced to come up with a new plan for our Christmas break.

Planning a Family Get-Together? Rent a Historic Home for the Holidays

Planning a Family Get-Together? Rent a Historic Home for the Holidays

When grandma wakes up on a deflated air mattress and half the cousins are banished to the kids’ table, Christmas might be too crowded. Enter the home rental, where extended family can gather under one roof, everyone has a bed, and the dining table is big enough for all. For something even more special, look for houses that pack history in locations featuring plenty of festivities and activities, helping to create lasting memories—the perfect gift for the
entire family.

Hebert’s Caboose Ice Cream Shop

Hebert’s Caboose Ice Cream Shop

Hebert’s Caboose Ice Cream Shop has been dishing out scoops of Blue Bell since owners Lonnie & Deanna Hebert bought, refreshed and reopened the shop in 2013. Lonnie & Deanna bought a nearby antique shop and the caboose was included in the deal after it had closed 3 years prior.

Scale Five Peaks in One Week on This Epic West Texas Road Trip

Scale Five Peaks in One Week on This Epic West Texas Road Trip

A mile or two into my hike to the top of Mount Livermore in the Davis Mountains, I stepped to the side of the trail as two speedsters overtook me on the uphill slope. “I guess that’s where we’re headed,” I said, nodding to a rocky outcrop on the horizon far above. “Nope,” one of them responded. “Baldy Peak is beyond that—you can’t see it yet.”

Century Bar & Grill

Century Bar & Grill

The Century Bar & Grill is located on the ground floor of the beautifully remodeled 1928 Holland Hotel. The long bar in the restaurant’s front room overlooks the busy sidewalk via an expanse of windows, and the whole place hums with warm energy. Vintage Western paintings and an iron chandelier boasting antique electrical insulators add to the eclectic ambiance. Seated in a booth facing the open kitchen, we enjoyed an appetizer of grilled quail in sour cherry sauce before digging into a salad adorned with pepitas, crumbled goat cheese, and Texas ruby-red grapefruit sections.

Dogs at Cow Dog and Coffee at Plaine

Dogs at Cow Dog and Coffee at Plaine

At Cow Dog, local foodie and multimedia artist Alan Vannoy mans the window and stove himself, taking orders and turning out a wonderfully wicked assortment of griddle-seared, gourmet hot dogs. Alan soon handed us paper plates piled high with a lunch we’re still talking about months later. Mine, the “Artisan” dog, sat beneath a smear of apple-apricot chutney and melted Tillamook sharp cheddar atop a bun spread with white-wine mustard. Marshall sighed happily over his “German,” which was adorned with sauerkraut, a slice of bacon, a sprinkling of caraway seeds, and a hint of spicy mustard.

33 Roadside Restaurants for Your Next Texas Road Trip

33 Roadside Restaurants for Your Next Texas Road Trip

Texas is vast, and the decisions are wide open when hunger strikes on those long hauls across the state. Sure, you could pull up to the nearest drive-thru window (again), but there’s nothing boldest or grandest about a bag of fast food—especially when exceptional mom-and-pop restaurants are dishing up affordable comfort a little farther down the line. Whether you’re hankering for a taste of home or the meal less traveled, sometimes you just need to get out of the car and into a diner booth.

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