July 30, 2021
Chris and Heather visit with Park Interpreter Amber Harrison for a deep dive into the biggest state park in Texas, Big Bend Ranch State Park!
← View all episodes of the Heart of the Big Bend Podcast
Transcript for “Big Bend Ranch State Park”:
Intro
Welcome to the heart of the Big Bend. It’s time to kick back, put your feet up, grab your favorite beverage or snack as we discuss, declare, proclaim, publicize, and articulate about the wonders, magic, beauty, music, and happenings here in the area known as the Big Bend of Texas.
Chris Ruggia
Hello, welcome and thank you for joining us again with Heart of the Big Bend, a podcast and radio show every other week about visiting the beautiful Big Bend of Texas. Specifically, we’ll cover what’s happening in Alpine, an incredibly friendly small town nestled in a desert mountain valley at the heart of the Big Bend region. With easy day trips from Alpine, you can take in everything this amazing region has to offer. And today I’m joined again by Heather Yadon from our Alpine visitor center. Hey, Heather.
Heather Yadon
Hello. Welcome, everyone.
Chris R
And we’re really excited to also be joined by Amber Harrison from Big Bend Ranch State Park. Hey, Amber.
Amber Harrison
Hey, how are you guys?
Chris R
Great, how are you doing?
Amber H
Pretty good.
Chris R
Wonderful. Well, when we first started talking about day trips around the region – and of course, no one day trip can take in either Big Bend Ranch or Big Bend National Park in its entirety or even scratching the surface at best. We realize this, but we had a conversation about day trips and then realized we needed to have a dedicated episode for each of these large flagship parks, as far as we’re concerned, down in South Brewster County. And so, thank you for joining us to talk about Big Bend Ranch. And what do you do over there, Amber?
Amber H
Well, I am currently a park interpreter, park ranger/interpreter. I originally started here about eight years ago as a trails ranger, so I was hired to take care of the trails. And then maybe five or six years ago, I transitioned into the interpreter position. So, my primary goal is to provide visitor services at the Barton Warnock Center, and I also do our public outreach and education program.
Chris R
All right, so Big Bend Ranch State Park is unusual, to say the least. Among the state parks of Texas, it’s the largest by far, I understand. Is that right?
Amber H
That is correct. The rumor is, and I’ve never put this to actual paper, but you can fit all of the other, I believe, 90-something Texas state parks into Big Bend Ranch with room to spare. So that’s a map we’ve been talking about putting together for a long time, but I believe that to be true, for sure.
Chris R
Wow. And just recently, Big Bend Ranch State Park has seen just an explosion in new visitation this last year, is that right?
Amber H
That is correct. Well, not just the last year. This has been a trend that we’ve been seeing pretty much exponentially for the last three or four years. So, yeah, we’ve definitely been discovered. There’s no hiding that anymore.
Heather Y
Well, and you talked about it a little bit, but the great start of the park is the Barton Warnock Visitor Center. Can you tell us what people will find if they come and see you?
Amber H
So, we are located sort of in the eastern or southeastern portion of the park right by Lajitas. When you get here, we have a really interesting facility. We’ve got a gift shop as well as an interpretive exhibit, a really well-done interpretive exhibit, that highlights the natural and cultural history of the area. We do have what a lot of people will see in print or in park descriptions as a desert garden. It’s a two-and-a-half-acre area designated to highlight the floor of the Big Bend area of the park specifically. That has definitely seen better days. It’s still there. We’re working on plans to renovate that hopefully sometime in the next few years. But it’s still a really nice walk and it still has a lot of the representative plants. If you don’t have time to go all the way into the park here. You can get your permits for everything that there is to do in the park that’s day use: permits, river permits, which is the same thing as a day use. You can get maps, general information about the area and about the park and camping and all of that stuff.
Chris R
Right. So, the Warnock Center is what you kind of encounter first as you’re coming from the national park side. From Terlingua, you’re headed towards Presidio on 170. And what is extraordinary to me about that state park, is that many, many people go through it every day and might not even realize they’re driving through a state park: because that incredibly beautiful state highway runs right along the river through the length of, I guess the southern edge of the state park. But when you’re coming from Presidio, the first thing you encounter then is Fort Leaton.
Amber H
Yes. Fort Leaton is actually a state historic site, but it is part of the Big Bend Ranch State Park complex. So, yeah, there you can do all of the same things that you can do at any of the visitor centers: you can get your permits, your maps, your park information, camping, all of that stuff. But the fort is an old renovated, fortified fort that has a long history, of course, a prehistoric occupation, but also was a fortified trading post for quite a while in the 1840s, 1850s. But there they have a self-guided tour right now that you can take through the facility. So, they have all of the rooms of the fort that you can walk in, and they’ve kind of got some period furniture and that kind of stuff. They’ve got a brochure that tells you about what the rooms are and what you’re looking at on the interior space. They also have a nice interpretive exhibit that kind of goes deeper into prehistory and talks about the history of the area. You can walk through both of those things at your leisure. And like I said, they also have a gift shop you can buy souvenirs and all of that stuff there as well.
Heather Y
Last time I was there, it looked like they were doing a lot of work behind it. Is something new coming or what’s going on?
Amber H
I’m unsure. They are, I believe, going to be doing some facility modifications. I don’t know too much about that. They may have been doing some adobe work. So that is an old historic adobe. It’s one of the largest existing adobes in the state.
Chris R
That was going to be my guess, because I don’t think I’ve seen one as big as that. It’s really a striking structure. And the rooms, as you walk through them, it’s an experience to see them.
Amber H
Yeah, it’s pretty neat. So they have pretty much ongoing adobe restoration and stabilization that they’re doing. So maybe you saw that. Something like that. But I’m not sure of anything major that’s underway over there.
Chris R
Yeah. And then joining these two facilities, fort Leaton and the Warnock Center, you have the River Road, which is renowned, I think, for motorcyclists. It’s considered one of the best, if not the best road in the state.
Heather Y
Designated by National Geographic as the most scenic route in Texas for a very good reason, because it’s absolutely beautiful and people can do hikes along there and get river access. You see lots of boats launching along River Road. But it’s also just a really good scenic drive, like Chris said, for motorcyclists and for people who maybe don’t want to do a lot of hiking, they can still see some really nice things along that road driving in their car. There are the scenic outlooks. There’s a very unique picnic spot, right?
Amber H
I think maybe you’re talking about what’s labeled on most maps as the tipis. Very kind of interesting selection of design, I guess. But that’s actually administered by TXDoT. So that entire highway corridor is administered by TXDoT. So, there’s no permit required to do just the scenic drive. It’s a public highway. Unlike, for example, if you go over to the National Park, you end up having to stop at a booth and pay to just drive through. That’s because the National Park Service administers those roads. Where this is very different, where you can just drive through and those roads and the right aways are administered by TXDoT. So the tipis picnic area is a TXDoT facility that I believe was inspired by Ladybird Johnson and the beautification project.
Chris R
Oh, really? Yeah. The other thing that one thinks of with the River Road is films. There’s the Contrabando movie set, what’s left of it. I think it seems like it’s weathered over the years, but there’s also what they call the “Dom Rock” from the Fandango film which is sort of a hidden away spot.
Amber H
Yeah, it’s kind of tucked away. So that’s on what we refer to and you’ll see labeled on the maps as the Big Hill. So that’s a 15% grade hill, as far as I understand it’s the steepest paved hill in the state. So, you get to the top of that and there’s a pull off and there’s some social trails up there. There’s nothing really in terms of hiking to do, but there’s some social trails. And you can wander around to the back of that prominence and find the Dom Rock.
Chris R
Yeah. And there’s a stunning, stunning view. Very iconic, I would say, view of the Rio Grande from that spot. It’s really beautiful.
Amber H
Yeah, it’s pretty spectacular.
Chris R
And so, of all of this talking we’ve been done, we’ve kind of scraped the very bottom edge of Big Bend Ranch State Park. And so tell us a little bit about, I mean, the Solitario, the formation, I think, of most about what I’d call the interior of the park. But give us kind of the bird’s eye view of the rest of the park.
Amber H
Yeah. So the whole rest of the park is unpaved and very underdeveloped. So, the only way to get in is to come almost all the way to Presidio from the Barton Warnock Center or from the fort. The two roads that lead into the interior are called Bofecillos Road or Casa Piedra Road. They both meet up with what we call the main park road, which is about a 27-mile stretch of unpaved road that will take you to the Sauceda Ranger Station. So up in the interior we also have a visitor center, the Sauceda Ranger Station. You also hear it referred to as the headquarters. And much like Barton Warnock and Fort Leaton, you can get your permits and you can get all of those things there. But for most, like river permits and day use permits for hiking along the southern boundary of the park, you wouldn’t go into there because it’s a really long drive down a long, bumpy dirt road. So, it’s kind of got a little different sort of – visitors use that in a little different way.
It also gives you access, though, to the rest of the road. So if you pass Sauceda and you keep going east, if you follow the main park road, you will terminate over at a geological landform called the Solitario, which is just a collapsed dome. It’s a huge land form. It’s a significant geological feature. If you look at the aerial views of Big Bend Ranch, there’s a big on the far eastern, sort of middle eastern area, you’ll see something that looks like a crater. And it’s not a crater, it’s a collapsed dome. So volcanic hot magma came up, it punctured, it dropped back down, it eroded. And this happened over millions of years. So, there’s some really interesting erosion and some really cool geological things that happened over there that created this big feature. One of the things that a lot of people think is they want to come to the Solitario and they just want to see it. It looks like a crater, but it’s roughly 10 miles across, so it’s not a crater and it’s not something that you can just drive up to and know what you’re looking for.
Chris R
Right.
Amber H
So, my best advice is along the southern sort of the western and southern flanks of it are what are called the Flatirons, and those are some really interesting uplifted areas, big triangular formations, and they’re spectacular. And those are really best viewed from Fresno Canyon or one of the trails, there’s a west Fresno Rim Overlook that gives you just incredible views of the Flatirons. So, one thing that people should be aware of is that it’s not really like a crater or something you just drive in to.
Chris R
Yeah. You get a striking view from space.
Amber H
Yes. Yeah. The aerial view. I have not been up in a plane, but I’ve seen the images and my recommendation is if you can get up into a plane, that’s one of the best ways to see the Solitario.
Heather Y
One of the things you said a couple of times is talking about the roads and the fact that they’re unpaved. So, people who have never been in the park, that sounds a little intimidating. What’s the best way for them to know where it’s safe for them to go? Does it have to be a four-wheel drive and high clearance vehicle or are the roads clearly marked to tell people that so they don’t get someplace and need your all help?
Amber H
Right. One of the best things that people can do is go to the visitor center nearest them, whatever’s more convenient, whether it be Fort Leaton or the Barton Warnock Center. Before you go into the center of the park, before you leave pavement is to get your maps. We have a series of maps that are very well outlined, they’ve got great legends. That will tell you the expected quality of the road. So, whether or not it’s graded or high clearance four by four. So that’s a good start. The other absolutely important thing that people ought to do is stop in and just talk to a ranger. Those road conditions change, especially like during the monsoon season, they can literally change overnight. A two-wheel drive graded road can turn into a high clearance four by four or completely impassable in a matter of hours. So, the most critical thing is people call, you can call any of these ranger stations if you’re far away, or stop in and get your maps and get oriented.
Heather Y
Well, and getting the maps is so important because people sometimes forget they’re not going to have their cell phone service to save them when they’re out there.
Amber H
That’s a really excellent point. Pretty much once you leave our visitor centers, expect to not have any communications and that’s cell phone, anything like that, you’re just not going to have it. So, our best advice also is to let somebody know where you’re going and when to expect you.
Heather Y
Especially right now in this heat.
Amber H
Especially now in the heat. We’ve had already a pretty brutal summer with heat injuries. Last year we saw more heat injuries than we’ve ever seen during the summer. We’re getting higher visitation in the summer than we’ve ever seen before.
Heather Y
Yes, I’ve noticed that at the Visitor Center.
Chris R
Let’s then go ahead and hit our top tips for when you’re visiting the Big Bend. And if you’re in Alpine and Fort Davis, these are high elevation mountains. It can get hot, but nothing like down by the river. And so, you’re looking at bringing tons of water. Bring three times the water that you think you’re going to need and maybe think about getting a very early start.
Amber H
Definitely. So, if you’re planning on doing any hiking this time of year, summer, just plan to be off of the trails by 11:00, a.m. Noon at the very latest. We have some really nice spells, but even during those cooler spells when it’s just hovering at 100, it’s still really dang hot. If you’re driving, have extra water and extra food and provisions in your vehicle. If you’re hiking, take more than you would ever need. Basically, the general rule of thumb is to take enough to spend the night.
Chris R
Right.
Heather Y
And gas up on either side.
Amber H
Gas up on either side, exactly. One of the things that a lot of people come here and they go to Big Bend National park and they go up into the basin where it’s a couple of thousand feet higher in elevation. It’s cooler, there’s trees, there’s shade. And then they come down here and they think, oh well, we want to do something like we did yesterday up in the basin. And there’s no shade. It’s much, much hotter. It’s not cooler. So, I would say if anybody’s going to come here no matter what time of year, do some research, call us, ask us questions, even if you think they’re silly, just prepare.
Chris R
You bet. Yeah. The interior of the park, it’s an investment of time and research and care to a degree that you won’t encounter. One thing I want to just throw in there when you’re thinking about hiking, Closed Canyon is probably the lowest investment, pay off hike probably in the area, I think, because this is one that if you don’t feel like, if everything we just described just really intimidates you, then start with Closed Canyon, which is right on River Road. Yeah, it’s right off the road and you’re in the canyon almost right away. And so tell us a little about that. It’s a pretty short hike.
Amber H
Yeah, so it’s a very short hike. The trail leading up to it is very well defined, so there’s very low probability that you’re going to get lost on that part. Once you’re in the canyon, you certainly can’t get lost. The biggest mistake, and I think we’ve resolved this by putting up some signage, the biggest mistake is that it does not go all the way to the river as it appears on a map. It does end in a series of pour offs that become more and more difficult, terminating at a pretty deep drop off that if you get yourself down, you’re probably going to be injured and there’s no way you’re getting yourself back. We have had several incidents with people doing that and so we’ve ended up putting up a sign at a point where we think is probably a wise spot to turn around.
Chris R
So, here’s your tip. Believe the sign.
Amber H
Yes, please. The other thing is that that is one of only two dog friendly trails. It is still, in my opinion, it’s still kind of a dangerous dog trail. There’s lots of little dips and pour offs and things. Remarkably, we don’t have a lot of problems with that. But we have we’ve had people let themselves let their dogs off leash and then the dog goes further and then we have a dog stuck. So, all in all, we don’t see very many problems. But that and the Hoodoos are the only two dog friendly trails. So not a lot of options. So overall, my general opinion with regard to that is to leave your pets at home. Especially in the summer.
Chris R
Then hiking, of course, there’s a major trailhead that goes up into the interior. And I guess you can park fairly near the river road and start hiking right away. Though, of course, it’s a huge park. Don’t expect to get all that far in one go.
Amber H
Exactly. With regard to expectations and hiking trails in this park, a lot of people come here with expectations from the National Park Service where their signage is very good. They have trail crews that maintain them. They’re very usually fairly easy to find. We don’t have all of that. And so, a lot of our trails, especially ones that aren’t used as much, are much harder to find. The signage is maybe not as clear. So, it’s really important that if you do anything off of the beaten path beyond like Closed Canyon and the Hoodoos, that you get a proper map and you know exactly what you’re getting into. So again, going back to that, always talking to making connection with a ranger before you head out.
Chris R
And walk through that plan, whatever you have planned for the day, walk through it with them.
Amber H
Exactly. We’re happy to do that. And, we’ve talked a lot about hiking, but all of these things also go for mountain biking.
Chris R
That’s where I was headed.
Amber H
Sorry, I jumped.
Chris R
No, not at all. The park is renowned, I would say, for mountain biking.
Amber H
Yeah, definitely.
Chris R
Tell us a little bit about that experience.
Amber H
Yeah, so we have far fewer trails that are going to be mountain bikeable. You can sure give it a shot, but it’s probably not going to be very fun. So, we have a big corridor down sort of accessible mostly from the eastern southeastern part of the park. So out of the Barton Warnock or the West Contrabando Trailhead, we have up to about 30 plus miles of easily accessible trails that come out of there. You can certainly mountain bike from the interior and there are some really good trails up there as well. But what we refer to as the Contrabando Multi-Use Trail System, is the really popular stuff. That’s really great. You’re talking about day trips. That’s what people come do to a mountain bike just through a day trip or for a day trip. So they’re largely, I would say, solidly intermediate. There’s some easier stuff. There is an old decommissioned historic road that’s fairly easy and you can get some miles on that and then anywhere from intermediate to advanced throughout that entire trail system. So, we have some areas, a lot of people walk and a lot of people, some are very skilled and can get through it all.
But you have a lot there. You also have a lot of cultural and natural resources. Obviously, the landscape is beautiful, but we have some old mining ruins that you can bike to. We have a couple of interpretive waysides and some things describing the cultural landscape. So that’s always fun as well. You’re not just riding, you can get out there and learn a little bit about the history and the landscape as well.
Chris R
You bet. Another primary activity, I mean, the river is right there. And so, tell us a little bit about boating access and one’s approach. If you want to get on the river, what’s the first thing you ought to be thinking about?
Amber H
First thing you ought to be thinking about is the water level because that’s going to dictate where you put in and where you take out and what you’re going to do for the day. So, our river fluctuates, we fluctuate from 40 CFS all the way up to CFS into the thousands. And that can change on a dime depending upon the weather and some other factors. So, first things first, I would either reach out to one of the local outfitters if you want to do a guided trip, then reach out to them and they’ll get you set up with a fun guided adventure. If you have your own gear or you want to rent gear, you can also reach out to some of them. They’ll rent you the gear, they’ll give you the best advice that anybody can give you around here.
But yeah, I think it just depends on what adventure you want. We have a big stretch called Colorado Canyon. Part of it is also referred to as Dark Canyon, which is an absolutely beautiful stretch. That’s one of the most popular when water conditions are favorable. It’s a fairly long stretch, so you want to make sure there’s enough flow to get you through in the course of a day. It’s absolutely beautiful. It’ll take you through the canyon that you overlook in part when you’re at the top of the big hill. So all of our camp sites, we have three group campgrounds along that river corridor. Arenosa, Grassy Banks, and the Madera sites. All of those have river put in. So that’s really great because you can go as far as Arenosa or as close as Grassy Banks. Depending upon the water conditions, of course you can put in even further up in Redford. But that’s a whole different kind of trip. But for your day use, those are going to be the most popular spots.
Chris R
Now, if you’re interested in camping, what are we thinking? Like compared to, say, the Davis Mountains State Park you’re driving in, you throw your tent on the ground from your car. What’s the difference, when we come to Big Bend Ranch and we’re thinking about camping for the night?
Amber H
Right. You have options. Like I said, we’ve got three group campgrounds along the river, so those are going to be easily accessible with any vehicle. They’re, of course, dirt once you pull in, but you don’t need any special equipment. Those have anywhere from 6 to 17 sites that you come in, you pay for it, we’ll give you your permit, you pick the site that you want and you’re there. It’s easy. Up in the interior, if you look at one of our maps, you’ll see these little tent symbols all over the place. We have some group sites, some equestrian sites, but for the most part they’re what I refer to as “single occupancy sites.” So that’s going to be you and up to eight people in your group, and you’re going to be the only ones out there. So those range from two-wheel drive accessible all the way up to high clearance four by four. So again, it’s best to consult your maps.
Chris R
But even the closest one is going to be a slow and careful unpaved drive to get there.
Amber H
That’s right. Exactly. And then in the cooler months, a lot of those lately, those have just been full. So you have that. We also have a handful of equestrian sites, so we do get people who bring out their horses. And we have sites that have some corrals. Some of them have water. We can arrange to bring water if that’s needed. So always check on the water if you do want to bring your animals.
Chris R
And there’s some outfitters in the area, too, that can help you get on horseback in the park.
Amber H
That’s kind of what the camping looks like in the park. We also have a backcountry option, which means that you’re backpacking and self-supporting. Let me back up real quick. One of the important things about those single occupancy sites is that they don’t have bathrooms. So, you have to pack in your own waste management system. Yeah, we sell those in the gift shop.
Chris R
Let’s underscore this for a moment. This park is not one where there’s a janitorial staff that is available to follow behind you. So, if you’re going to go to a place like this, we really mean it when we say pack it out. Everything you bring, prepare to take back out with you. And we do mean everything.
Amber H
Thank you. Yes, that’s critical. There are again, if you consult the map, you can see the symbology on the map. There are some composting toilets out there so you’re not completely abandoned. And the Sauceda ranger station is there with an actual 24-hour bathroom. But yeah, Chris, that’s a really important point. Especially over the last year, we’ve had more and more problems with litter and human waste and graffiti and people driving off trails, and I’m not really sure what’s driving it, but I understand this to be sort of a national phenomenon on public lands right now.
Heather Y
Less experienced people coming out to hike, I think, as more and more people come.
Amber H
I think that’s my sort of theory, I guess. But I don’t know. I don’t know what’s going on. After talking to colleagues in the national park and then reading, there have been a lot of articles put out lately by people looking at these problems and just public lands across the nation have really gotten hammered with high visitation as well as just inappropriate behavior in the landscape.
Chris R
Yeah. Before we finish up the show, let’s just stress to anybody thinking about especially these remote places, it may seem like, “oh, it doesn’t matter what happens out here”, or “oh, it’s just this wilderness.” But no, it’s pretty fragile. Don’t go making marks on it because those marks are not going to go away. That orange peel you throw is not going to biodegrade in any kind of short period of time. So, follow the rules, please, and leave it the way you would want to see it when you get there.
Amber H
Exactly. And report to us any issues that you do see. If you find vandalism or it looks like somebody’s poached some plants or driven off the road, let us know so we can get out there and repair it. If those things go unrepaired, then it just kind of snowballs and people think that’s the okay thing to do. We don’t have a huge staff, and we have a very large park, so it’s just really important for people to know those things.
Chris R
All right. Well, hey, Amber, thanks so much for taking the time to talk with us today and share a little more info about this amazing resource that we have in South Brewster County. And so, folks, thanks for joining us again for Heart of the Big Bend. We’ll be back with you in two weeks, and you can get more information on the show at visitalpinetx.com/podcast, or you can search for Heart of the Big Bend on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and most other podcast apps. Thanks, everybody. Come out and see us in the Big Bend area and in Alpine, and I’m sure Heather is looking forward to saying hello when you get to town.
Heather Y
Yes, come see me at the visitor center.
Amber H
Thanks. Thank you.
Outro
You’ve been listening to the heart of the Big Bend. Hope you liked what you heard and that you’ll find the time to experience all that the Big Bend has to offer. See you soon, partner.