Santa Elena Canyon

Santa Elena Canyon is where the Rio Grande cuts through a wall of limestone at the west end of Big Bend National Park. The cliffs rise 1,500 feet straight from the water, Mexico on one side and Texas on the other, and in places the canyon is only 30 feet wide. The river set its course on soft sediments that once filled the basin and then cut down through the hard Lower Cretaceous limestone beneath, leaving the walls that show those ancient layers today.

The canyon is at the end of the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive, past Castolon. An overlook shows the mouth from a distance. The Santa Elena Canyon Trail goes inside: 1.6 miles round trip with 80 feet of climbing, about an hour. First you cross the bed of Terlingua Creek, which may be dry sand, thick mud or running water depending on recent rain, and climb a short steep bank. Concrete steps lead up to a viewpoint, and then the path drops to the river and winds among boulders until it ends where the canyon wall meets the water. Listen for canyon wrens.

Do not try to keep your feet dry by scrambling around the creek on the cliffs; that is not the trail, and it can be extremely dangerous. If the creek is deep and swift, do not cross, and enjoy the view from the near side. The trail can be impassable after summer floods. River trips of two or three days through the whole canyon start at Lajitas, outside the park.