scottyb
Well-known member
I told my friends in Nor Cal that I am going to be camping in my RV at 5400' elevation and they say "In Texas?". The Chisos Basin is the only other that I know of and you can't take large RV's up there. It had been well over 40 years since I last visited the park. This was our final stop on our Big Bend coutry tour and was about 140 mi north of Lajitas. They have expanded it a lot since I was there in the late 60's. They have a limited number of sites with full hookups and that will accommodate any size rig. They are half circle pull-through sites. Most are on steep slopes end to end but pretty level side to side. My front landing gear was extended all the way with a 2 x 8 to get the rig level F-B. Each site has a concrete pad, picnic table and shelter. Although it was extremely dry and the grass was brown, it doesn't have a typical west texas appearance. The Scenic drive was very nice and afforded the opportun ity to take some photos from above. I got scolded by a rangerette, after the fact for driving my Mule, along with my wife and dogs, up and back down the road to the scenic overlook. It would be a great place to be when everything is green and we will definitely go there again. I have to say it is one of the nicest state parks we have even been.
You can see the McDonalds Observatory in the 3rd Photo. We went to the Stargazer show on Fri night. It was downright cold and they had lots of hooded sweatshirts for sale in their gift shop. The show was well worth the $12 fee, with opportunities to look through 1/2 dozen or so telepscopes pointed at different galactic objects. Jupiter was the rockstar for the night. It was narrated and attended by the professors and graduates that work at the observatory and their knowledge is nothing short of amazing. In the 4th photo, you can see the Indian Lodge, built by the Civillian Conservation Corps. The last photo is just a ranch house with a pretty nice back yard.
You can see the McDonalds Observatory in the 3rd Photo. We went to the Stargazer show on Fri night. It was downright cold and they had lots of hooded sweatshirts for sale in their gift shop. The show was well worth the $12 fee, with opportunities to look through 1/2 dozen or so telepscopes pointed at different galactic objects. Jupiter was the rockstar for the night. It was narrated and attended by the professors and graduates that work at the observatory and their knowledge is nothing short of amazing. In the 4th photo, you can see the Indian Lodge, built by the Civillian Conservation Corps. The last photo is just a ranch house with a pretty nice back yard.
