Texas Highways

Chisos Mountains

These are Big Bend National Park's Chisos Mountains as captured from Park Road 12. The Chisos are the only mountain range contained completely within the boundaries of a single American national park. But at over 800,000 acres (more than 1,200 square miles), Big Bend has plenty of room.

Home Is Where You Park It

Lajitas Golf Resort's Maverick Ranch RV Park, which is near Big Bend Ranch State Park, the Rio Grande and the Mexican border. – Lajitas, Texas

Big Bend National Park

Big Bend is one of America’s most remote national parks, not to mention one of its best-kept secrets. Many Texans are only vaguely aware of all this geological treasure has to offer. The topography is volcanic and exceedingly harsh, but with a stark beauty that's unsurpassed. I shot this otherworldly landscape with a drone flying at the FAA-limited ceiling of 400 feet. Please note: The use of UAVs is strictly prohibited in national parks; in making this photo, I flew completely outside the boundaries of Big Bend. [image captured with a DJI Mavic 2 Pro drone]

Airstream Dog

Rescue pup Fox Mulder making himself comfortable alongside his then-new home on wheels at the Marfa Yacht Club – Marfa, Texas

Padre Island

At 113 miles from tip to tip, Padre Island is the world’s longest barrier island. It’s home to the Padre Island National Seashore – the longest stretch of undeveloped barrier island in the world. Here, you can drive onto the beach and take a swim in the clear waters of the Gulf of Mexico. That's the city of South Padre Island on the horizon in the background. [image captured with a DJI Mavic 2 Pro drone]

Monahans Sandhills State Park

Airstream parked for the evening at one of the RV camping spots at Monahans Sandhills State Park – Monahans, Texas

Paisano Crater

Many of us don't think of Texas as being volcanic, but there are examples of volcanism throughout the Trans-Pecos, including the Davis Mountains and Big Bend National Park. Between Alpine and Marfa lie the remnants of the Paisano Volcano. U.S Highway 90 follows Paisano Pass through the blown-out caldera resulting from the volcano’s violent pyroclastic eruption. The conical mountain in the photo is Paisano Peak, the thousand-foot-tall syenite neck (a.k.a. feeder pipe) of a later volcano within the crater. [image captured with a DJI Mavic 2 Pro drone]

Bright Eyes

Rescue pup Fox Mulder takes ownership of his home away from home (a 22-foot Airstream travel trailer) at Marfa Yacht Club – Marfa, Texas

Road to Boquillas

Big Bend's Park Road 12 winds its way through dramatic terrain on the way from the Visitor Center at Panther Junction to Boquillas Canyon and Rio Grande Village

Home Fires

Fire pit flames reflected in an Airstream's aluminum skin during a chilly Marfa sunrise

Sand Flea

Rescue pup Fox Mulder on the dunes at Monahans Sandhills State Park – Monahans, Texas

Pinto Canyon Road

After the first 32 paved miles of Pinto Canyon Road out of Marfa, wheels hit gravel and things get interesting. The 20-odd-mile stretch of unpaved road is often high-centered and always ROUGH – as in, shatter-your-incisors rough. If you want to drive PCR, you'll need a vehicle with considerable ground clearance; all-wheel-drive couldn't hurt. Those afraid of heights will also want to keep in mind that Pinto Canyon Road is flanked by precipitous drop-offs in several places. When I drove this road solo in 2020, I didn't see another vehicle or even another soul from the time I left Marfa until I reached Chinati Hot Springs two and a half hours later. I had zero mobile phone service for practically the entire trip. It's pretty inhospitable country, so if you want to try it but you're afraid of breaking down and being stranded, you might want to buy or at least rent some sort of satellite-based communication device. All that said, the intensity of the desolation and the magnitude of the geology make the drive worth it. Pinto Canyon is dominated by the dome-topped hulk of Chinati Peak – you can see it just right of center in the background of this drone photo. Oh, and that rutted dirt track weaving its way through the terrain on the left and also the far right? That's Pinto Canyon Road. [image captured with a DJI Mavic 2 Pro drone]

Drive-Through Window

The old tunnel on Park Drive 12 on the way from Panther Junction to Boquillas Canyon and Rio Grande Village in Big Bend National Park.

River Road

Texas FM 170 runs from Candelaria to Study Butte. River Road, as it's known, hugs the banks of the Rio Grande and the Mexican border as it winds its way through the monumental geology of Big Bend Ranch State Park. This stretch of blacktop is often mentioned in lists of the most scenic roads in Texas ... and even in the United States.

Whistle Stop

Airstream at its last overnight stop in Abilene at the end of a weeks-long trip.