Drive from Rio Grande Village to Panther Junction - Big Bend National Park

After exploring the Rio Grande Village area, we drove back our lodging at Chisos Mountains Lodge, passing Panther Junction along the way. The road climbs nearly 2,000 feet in the twenty miles from Rio Grande Village to Panther Junction. There did not seem to be any unique rock formations on this side of the park, just grand vistas of wide open spaces. We noticed clouds gathering over the Chisos Mountains and just got back to the lodge before the thunderstorm hit the area with high winds and a torrential downpour. Sunset photos were not a possibility on this evening. We visited Big Bend National Park in September 2021.

Research Station from Boquillas Canyon Road

The only tunnel in Big Bend is near Dead Mans Curve

A closer look

Storm brewing over the Chisos Mountains

Sierra San Vicente, Coahuila, Mexico

Sierra del Carmen

Fault lines in the Sierra del Carmen

A closer look at the fault lines

An unnamed hill above Tornillo Creek

Clouds continue to gather over the Chisos Mountains

Sunbeams

An entry fee of $30 per vehicle, $25 per motorcycle, or $15 per person is valid for seven consecutive days at Big Bend National Park. Other fee payment options include the America the Beautiful - National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands passes including the Annual Pass ($80), Senior Pass ($80 for a lifetime), Access Pass (free with a documented disability), and Military Annual Pass (free for active-duty personnel). Also available is a Big Bend National Park Annual Park Pass for $55.

The Big Bend National Park website is https://www.nps.gov/bibe/index.htm.