4 jeep camp locations, 8 points of interest, 2 restaurants, 1 bar in the amazing BBNP!

Overland Exploring Big Bend National Park, Part 1 4K

I was able to book McKinney springs online and went straight to this camp for my first night. I should have gone to the ranger station to pick up my pass before doing this so that was a mistake but no harm no foul. I had a great night with a great sunset at this spot but I did accidently camp in the wrong spot up the hill from McKinney Springs, oops.

After a great lunch in mexico I had some time to kill because my next camp site was so close and found a trail to some awesome hot springs nearby. The water in hot spring was the perfect heat and i met some great people there as well. 

After I cached my water I hoped on to the famous Black Gap road which is the most technical trail in thepark that I know of. If you have a 4WD high clearance vehichle i highly recomend this road. I only saw 1 or 2 vehichles the entire day on river road and black gap. 

To this day my BBNP trip is one of my favorite adventures i've done in the jeep, It is so expansive and secluded that it is easy to get away from the crowds. First off this is a big park and there is a lot of driving involved just getting from place to place so be prepared for that. 

Once in chisos basin i spoke with the ranger to secure 1 more back country permit for me and the jeep and 2 back country tent permits on the outer mountain loop. They do asked detailed questions about your plan for the hike to make sure you are ready to tackle such a grueling hike. You must talk to the rangers befor attemting this multi day hike. After securing the permits I bought supplies i need for the hike and had a beer and sandwich at the lodge. It was good food with a great view of the chisos mountains. 

The last stop before entering big bend is going to be the city of Marathon. I would highly recommend stopping here if you are in need of supplies. I stocked up at the french Company Grocer and they had everything i needed. The town itself while small is worth exploring with restraunts and even a brewery. If you need gas fill up here as well the last bit of drive into BBNP is deceptively long. There are gas stations in the park just FYI. 

The next morning I decided to drive the off road trail Old Ore road to the southern part of the park. I realy enjoyed this route and whitnessed a lot of wildlife and got to streatch the jeeps suspension a bit. Recommended!

After cpompleting old ore road I quickly stopped by one of the park headquarters to secure a couple river road back country permits which you can only do in person 24 hrs in advance. I would recomend calling BBNP before yor visit to check on trending availability of these camp sites. 

Luckily i had my passport with me and I was able to cross the border for some tacos and cervesa. There is a 5$ boat ride across the rio or you can just walk across and get your feet wet. I chose to support the locals and spent the 5$. Once you cross you can get a burro ride or walk the mile to the town. I chose to walk so I could be alone and take pics. Once in the town there are vendors all over the place and at least 2 restraunts and 1 bar that was open when I went. I had goat tacos at the restraunt on the right and tequilla shots at the bar! It was all good!

For night 2 I selected gravel pit for a camp site becasue it was at the very begining of the river road which i planned on driving the next day. It worked out perfect logisticaly and it was just a great campsite in general with wild horses walking around and great proximity to the river. 

After some breakfast i started my way down river road east towards juniper canyon road and juniper canyon trail head. I needed to cache a gallon of water at a bear box at the trail head for my upcoming thru hike of the outer mountain loop. This is a 3 day / 2 night hike (at minimum) that you need to store water in 2 locations because there is no/little natural water on the trail. If you are interested see my other thatch board and/or youtube video of the hike. Of note the road began to get a little more rough on juniper canyon road but i think something like a suburu could handle it.

For night 3 I had a very secluded camp in the most remote part of the national park. The gauging station is out there and if you want peace and quiet it is your spot. I loved the rocky cliffs next to camp that made for great star photography. The river is right next to camp and that was fun to explore as well. 

The next morning i finished off the river road headed to the west side of the park. I went to western ranger station to secure another back country permit but they were not able to do reservations there and directed me to chisos basin ranger station. This was not a problem because I needed to head that way anyway but it is a long drive. On my way to chisos basin I stopped at homer wison ranch to cache another gallon of water for the upcoming outer mountain loop thru hike.

 The next morning I packed up camp and head out to start my outer mountain thru hike. This ended the overland portion of my Big Bend journey and i cant explain how much i loved this trip. If you want to know more about the hike check out the outer mount loop board and you tube video! 

For night 4 I chose a spot as close to the chisos trail head that was available so i could get to trail head quickly the next day to start my hike. At first the rice tank spot seemed lack luster but as the sun fell and the animals came out this camp spot did not fail to impress. Great sunset and tons of wild life.

Thanks for your support! I hope to make more of these and make them even better in the future!