Need suggestions for 3 day itinerary for 1st timer.

[Cyde]

Hello,
     I be camping in BIBE in the Chisos Basin over Halloween Weekend.  This will be my first time at the park and I won't have direct access to a car, (I'll be riding with someone).  I'm in great physical shape and my primary interest is photography.  Is there any "must sees" that I can access on foot from the basin?  Should I try to book a river trip with a guide?  I'll be at a group campsite in the Basin and will want to get a decent picture of the night sky.  How safe is it to wonder away from the camp grounds at night?

Thanks for your help!
Cyde.

[Al]

Hello,
     I be camping in BIBE in the Chisos Basin over Halloween Weekend.  This will be my first time at the park and I won't have direct access to a car, (I'll be riding with someone).  I'm in great physical shape and my primary interest is photography.  Is there any "must sees" that I can access on foot from the basin?  Should I try to book a river trip with a guide?  I'll be at a group campsite in the Basin and will want to get a decent picture of the night sky.  How safe is it to wonder away from the camp grounds at night?

Thanks for your help!
Cyde.

Cyde, you will be in a photographic wonderland and yes it is "safe" assuming you have common sense and a sense of the outdoors.  There is a wealth of information under "Hiking the Mountains" on this website.  Browse it and the ask more questions.  Being stuck in the Basin is a good thing.  I would also go to the NPS Big Bend Site and browse it too.  The Basin Campground will be closed until the 29th due to repaving. 

http://www.nps.gov/bibe/

Good luck,
Al

[RichardM]

The Window View Trail in the Basin is good for night sky viewing, but you have to find a spot where the lights from the parking lot and lodge area aren't in view. Easy enough, and it's just up the hill from the group campground.

The High Chisos trail system starts at the Basin, so you might consider an all-day South Rim hike or maybe just up Emory Peak. The Window Trail is a great diversion for a couple of hours. Be sure and take the Oak Springs Trail Cut-off up to where you have a view of the desert and into Mexico. The Lost Mine trail is a great hike, although you'll get a little extra exercise hiking over to the trailhead from the Basin. Hitchhiking would be a good way to meet new Big Bend friends. If you're like me you'll get to the Basin and wonder "can I climb Casa Grande?" The answer is yes. See http://www.bigbendchat.com/portal/forum/el-saloacuten/hike-casa-grande!/

[jim2]

if you do the window,you should, take the oak spring cutoff. you'll be rewarded with a great view of the western side of the park. it is a great place to watch the sunset. do the lost mine in the morning and the window in the afternoon. the south rim is a long day hike,and well worth the effort.

[SHANEA]

Just go.

[Cyde]

Thanks for all the great advice!!
I have a map of BIBE.  I'm wondering how long would it take to get to the hot springs from the Basin by car?

[jeffblaylock]

Depends on how often you stop, but at least 45 minutes if you do not stop at all. Personally, I do not see their appeal.

 If you go on one drive in the park, definitely make it the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive all the way to the mouth of Santa Elena Canyon.

[jeffblaylock]

Also, since your interest is in photography, I'd do the Lost Mine Trail early one morning to catch the low morning sun over the desert and off the northeast rim.

[Al]

Depends on how often you stop, but at least 45 minutes if you do not stop at all. Personally, I do not see their appeal.

 If you go on one drive in the park, definitely make it the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive all the way to the mouth of Santa Elena Canyon.

Jeff, have you ever sat in the hot springs during a freezing cold winter night and the sky is gloriously clear as the Rio Grande flows by just inches from where you are warmed by the clear water of the springs?  It's a rare experience.

Al

P.S.  This assumes a Boy Scout troop is not also present . . .

[jeffblaylock]

Al, no, I have not. There are magical places everywhere out there, and it's a matter of individual experience. I've been to the hot springs 4 times, and none of those ever qualified as magical.

My comment on the springs aside, I definitely recommend spending my one car drive on the RMSD rather than going to the springs, to RGV, to Boquillas Canyon or anywhere else in the national park.

[jim2]

driving the r.m. scenic drive to the santa elana canyon is what me fall in love with big bend. all the great hikes that can done off that road, the window view, ward spring, c.t.falls, upper burro mesa pouroff, chimneys, the dodson, the red rocks in blue creek late in the day. some of the best days of my life have been spent along the r.m.s.drive. it's a big bend must do.

[Al]

Cyde, it's alright.  We hang together on this website quite a bit.  As long as we're this far off your inquiry, I'm with Jeff and Jim2 on Ross Maxwell being perhaps the most scenic drive although the drive up and into the Basin is pretty neat but much shorter and less varied.  The drive to RGV is very cool in its own way too as you realize the closeness of the del Carmens towering over you and the options of going down either River or Old Ore roads.  You haven't begun to see the park unless you do all three and then you HAVE just begun.

So now that the Basin campground will be closed over Halloween are y'all still going?

Al

[Cyde]

Once again THANK YOU for all the GREAT advice!!!!  I'm really looking forward to this trip.

As far as the Basin Campgrounds being closed.  I'm going there with a group and we're camping in the Chisos Basin Group sites, that we already have reserved.  I've called the National Park Service twice and they've assured me the sites will be open and I'll be able to access them.  They said even if the Basin road is being repaved, work stops at 4pm and they re-open the road, but work on the road should be completed two days before my arrival.  But just to make sure, I'll call them again right before I leave. 

I think I'll skip the hot springs and follow everyone's advice about the RSM.  Thanks again!!
Now I have to think about clothes. 

[Al]

Cyde, never say never.  In the evening, after dinner, and someone gets the urge to check it out, perhaps with a little encouragement, I wouldn't hesitate to grab a flashlight, bathing suit and towel and jump into the car for the hot springs.  It's big country and an hour drive to get somewhere is no big deal. 

Anyway the hot springs are best experienced after dark (when the sun goes down it tends to get cold) in my opinion.  It also depends on whether you are the only ones there but that's not something you can control.  Best luck on your trip, please take some pictures and share with us the high points when you return.

Thanks in advance,
Al

[MilesOfTexas]

I second, third, and fourth all of the above, especially Maxwell Scenic Drive, and most especially the Lost Mine Trail in early dawn.  My next visit I will hit the Lost Mine Trail about an hour before sunrise to catch the sun coming up and lighting up Juniper Canyon.  The one time I took the trail I started way too late to take photos during optimal lighting.  Here is a couple examples of Juniper Canyon from the Lost Mine Trail, which if I recall correctly is about halfway up the trail.  These were taken around noon, so they don't do justice to how breathtaking it is.





The reason why I would only go to the Juniper Canyon overlook before sunrise is because the rest of the hike is more difficult and I would prefer greater visibility.