Santa Elena Canyon is one of the most iconic spots in Big Bend National Park. Unfortunately, this means that Santa Elena Canyon Trail is also one of t

Santa Elena Canyon Trail - Big Bend National Park

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2020-06-12 12:10:15

Santa Elena Canyon is one of the most iconic spots in Big Bend National Park. Unfortunately, this means that Santa Elena Canyon Trail is also one of the busiest trails in the entire park.

If you want to hike this trail when there isn’t a crowd of people around, my recommendation is to get to the trailhead at daybreak. Sometimes there will be one or two photographers there hoping to catch a great sunrise from the mouth of the canyon, but generally it’s pretty quiet.

If you get there when the kids are up and bouncing around, expect quite a bit of noise and some teeth rattling echoes along the trail.

To get to the trailhead for Santa Elena Canyon Trail (29.167380, -103.610258), take a left out of Park Headquarters at Panther Junction and drive approximately 13 miles to take a left hand turn onto Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive toward Castolon. From there, you’re going to drive the entire length of Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive (about 32 miles) to the trailhead (don’t turn into the Santa Elena Camping Area or Overlook, but keep going until you see a sign for the trail, past the righthand turn to Maverick Road).

Once you get to the parking area for the trailhead, there are plenty of picnic tables and a public restroom if you need it. From there, the trail begins on the South side of the parking area.