SANTA ELENA CANYON

We recommend taking the Ross Maxwell Drive, a very scenic road. The road offers sumptuous landscapes, giving a taste of what the Chihuahua desert is like, with breathtaking panoramic views. On this road, you can read signs indicating ranches. Taking a look at it will take you back into the Big Bend's past. You'll see the canyon coming towards you little by little, like a natural wall coming towards you. At the end of Ross Maxwell Drive is a parking lot, and a sign will direct you to the small, open road to Santa Elena Canyon. The canyon can also be accessed from Old Maverick Road, if you are coming from Study Butte. You will first arrive at the banks of the Rio Grande, which here is a rather narrow and shallow river. The opposite bank is therefore Mexican. If the river allows, you can go straight to the canyon, otherwise you have to take a path that goes around the water to reach the trail. Santa Elena, with its silence, its vertical walls, the colors that are projected on it, is one of the most majestic points of the reserve. You can go up the stone steps to play with the echo. Huge walls surround you, in the shade of the beating sun. The water is rather red, and you will surely see visitors in canoes gliding peacefully along the water. The hike ends with a small beach blocked by a rock wall. The canyon is very visited. We recommend going early in the morning.