Big Bend Trip Day 4: Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive

We spent the morning and early afternoon driving from the Chisos Basin some 50 miles to where the Rio Grande cuts through the Santa Elena Canyon.

Leaving the Chisos

Most of the route is designated the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive and it certainly merits the name. The road takes you through beautiful desert terrain covered with cactus, yucca, Century and other plants.

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Century Plant

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At other points it winds through hills covered with volcanic ash and basalt, and past strangely-shaped rocky outcrops.

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A few miles along the drive is the abandoned Sam Nail ranch, an absolute must for birders.

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At first sight, the ranch doesn't appear very impressive: a patch of trees and bushes with two windmills,only one of which is still working.

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Dee walking down to the ranch

Sam Nail Ranch

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However, the working windmill feeds a tiny pool which attracts numerous birds because it is the only open water source for many miles.

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The pool

We sat quietly a couple of yards away from the 3' by 4' pool and were enthralled by the constant succession of birds that came to drink or bathe in the water. I don't think I've ever before been able to watch so many birds at such close range.

The most common visitors were White-crowned Sparrows and Hermit Thrushes; the pool sometimes attracted five or six Thrushes at once.

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One of many Hermit Thrushes

Other birds that came to drink were Verdin, Pyrrhuloxia, Northern Cardinals and White-winged Doves.

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White-winged Dove

Every few minutes Northern Mockingbirds would swoop noisily down to the pool, scattering all the other species.

The trees near the pool had Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Spotted Towheee, Common Raven, Loggerhead Shrike and Ash-throated Flycatcher, while our walk back to the car turned up a Phainopepla and a Greater Roadrunner.

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Ladder-backed Woodpecker

Back in the car again, we drove through more spectacular scenery, stopping to buy snacks at a small store.

Outside the store at Castolon

Sections of the road were covered with mud from recent flooding but when we reached the Rio Grande river, we were surprised to find that the water level was comparatively low.

The Rio Grande

We had a snack lunch at the Santa Elena Canyon Overlook, where the Rio Grande has carved a narrow channel through the 1500' high rock escarpment.

On the way back to Chisos, we stopped off at the Cottonwood Campground in the hope of seeing more birds. Unfortunately, as at Rio Grande Village, the campground here was largely closed because of the recent flooding and the only birds we saw were Yelllow-rumped Warblers.

Cottonwood Campground

Big Bend Trip Day 5: Chisos & Rio Grande Village

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The day's forecast predicted a major change in the weather with daytime temperatures falling to 36F in the mountains and 63F on lower ground. So we decided to spend most of the day at Daniels Ranch near Rio Grande Village. According to park rangers, the ranch should have most of the birds that we had missed seeing because of the closure of the RGV campground.

However, as the morning started off warm in Chisos, we began by birding the Window Trail again.

The very first bird that I spotted was a Rock Wren, a new species for the trip. We were then treated to a noisy display of antics by a group of Mexican Jays. Not to be outdone, several Cactus Wrens sang and posed for photos on trailside bushes.

This Cactus Wren seemed happy to pose ...

but then seemed to have second thoughts.

We also saw Black-crested Titmouse, Acorn Woodpeckers, Pyrrhuloxia, Phainopepla, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Northern Mockingbirds, American Robins and Dark-eyed Juncos.

A White-tailed Deer gave us a good look at its head ...

... and then its rump.

We then drove down to the Valley - where the weather turned out to be bitterly cold and very windy. So much for weather forecasts!

We braved the elements to do an hour's walk around Daniels Ranch and managed to turn up a few good birds. The first to greet us was a Golden-fronted Woodpecker working its way through the cottonwood trees.

Daniels Ranch

The bushes and reeds on the river bank had Black Phoebes, a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, a Verdin and a Ladder-backed Woodpecker. We also spotted several Yellow-rumped Warblers and a Pyrrhuloxia.

Pyrrhuloxia

As it seemed to be getting colder by the minute, we decided to drive back to Chisos, doing some from-the-warmth-of-the-car sightseeing along the way.

We drove out to Boquillas Canyon, where an aerial tram used to ferry mineral ore across the river from Mexico.

Later we stopped at Dugout Wells, but the biting wind soon forced us back into the car. The stop was worthwhile, however, because we spotted a flock of Lesser Goldfinch, the only ones we saw on our trip.

We did another brief stop at a water plant on the K-Bar road. There were no birds but we admired several varieties of cactus.





(One of the things that we loved about Big Bend was that there was always plenty to look at. Even if birds were absent, there were often Javelinas, deer, squirrels or chipmunks to admire. Every section of the park offered different landscapes and geological features, plus a huge variety of plant life. Also, the fact that the sky constantly changed meant that the same rocks and mountains also changed their appearance constantly.)

We then drove back up to Chisos, where the weather totally contradicted the forecast by being sunny and warm.




After another good lunch at the Chisos Lodge, I strolled along the Window Trail, accompanied by a flock of Western Bluebirds. Cactus Wrens again posed for photos, as did a Canyon Towhee.

Canyon Towhee

Back at our room, I had an excellent view of a Northern Harrier, which flew down the ravine and passed by only 20' away from and slightly below our deck. I think it's the first time I've ever seen a Harrier from above.

As the sun started setting, several Javelinas and White-tailed Deer wandered past the deck, a nice end to our final day in Big Bend.

Big Bend Trip Day 6: Sam Nail & Marathon

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Our final day in Big Bend started off cloudy and gray ...

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but the sun soon made an appearance.

I hurried down to watch the light over the Window change as the day began.




Sunrise brought with it Western Bluebirds, a Northern Flicker and this Acorn Woodpecker.


Reluctant to leave the park, we decided to make a last visit to Sam Nail Ranch before returning for lunch at the Chisos Lodge and then setting off for our last night in Marathon.

Leaving Chisos Basin

Looking back to the Chisos

The pool at Sam Nail Ranch was as busy with Hermit Thrushes and other birds as before.


This time a Spotted Towhee emerged just long enough for me to grab a quick photo.

This Ladder-backed Woodpecker was more obliging.

Back at Chisos Lodge, we stopped to admire the vegetation (and a secretive Javelina) ...


... and had a good view of some Mexican Jays.

On our way out of the park, I was just complaining to Dee that we hadn't seen any hawks when what should appear overhead but a Red-tailed Hawk, soon followed by a Northern Harrier and then another Red-tailed. They must have been listening.

Red-tailed Hawk

A couple of miles from the park exit, I was complaining again. This time I was bemoaning the comparative absence of sparrows and the total absence of buntings. Naturally, a flock of several hundred sparrow-like birds appeared by the roadside.

A few of the birds were Vesper and White-crowned Sparrows but most were Lark Buntings, a new species for both of us. What a great note on which to end our visit to Big Bend!

Lark Bunting

Back at the Marathon Motel, the night was extremely cold but the sunset was as beautiful as ever.