By Brandt Mannchen

Recently, I visited my family in the “Big Bend Region” (BBR) of Texas.  This region is in Presidio, Brewster, and Jeff Davis Counties, some of the largest counties in Texas.

The town I stayed in, Alpine, has about 6,000 people and is the largest town in the BBR.  I drove about 600 miles to reach Alpine from Houston.  During my approach to Alpine I saw some of the wildlife that make this far western part of Texas unique including Mule Deer, Pronghorn Antelope, Harris’s Hawk, and the exotic species Aoudad Sheep.

A feature of the BBR that I particularly like is the Chihuahuan Desert Nature Center (CDNC).  This 507-acre nature center used to be called the Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute.  But a change in focus has pointed this important center to education as well as research and protection of the Chihuahuan Desert.  The native plant botanical garden and cactus museum are great places to get introduced to the variety that exists in the Chihuahuan Desert. 

I hiked several trails at the CDNC and enjoyed the view which included prairies, woody flats, hills, and mountains, scores of miles away.  In addition, seeing blooming plants and geological formations connected me to how old and enduring this desert region is.  Along the way to the CDNC, I saw wild turkeys, American Kestrel, and ancient cottonwoods in riparian woodlands along intermittent streams.

I drove to and hiked in the Davis Mountains Preserve that The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has in conjunction with private landowners.  On the way to the Madera Canyon Trail in the Preserve I saw Javelina (Collared Peccary) feeding along the state highway that leads to the McDonald Observatory, a world-famous pathway to the stars with telescopes and research.

I hiked 2.4 miles on the Madera Canyon Trail. Several birds that I saw there made me happy.  Say’s Phoebes greeted me at the beginning of the trail and were collecting vegetation for their nests.  Later in my climb up to the overlook, I flushed a Montezuma Quail, which resulted in both of us being startled.  This is an uncommon quail which is found on grassy slopes with scattered oaks and yuccas at high elevations.

On the way back where I was staying, I saw several ground squirrels skitter and scurry across the road to avoid certain mortality from speeding vehicles.  What a way to get from your home to a choice dinner location!

I visited the Fort Davis National Historic Site in Fort Davis, Texas.  I hiked the 2-mile trail in the rocky hills above the restored fort and parade ground. I enjoyed seeing Turkey Vultures, Chipping Sparrows, White-winged Doves, Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cooper’s Hawks, and beautiful flowers including Bouvardia, with its’ red flowers that attract hummingbirds.  I enjoyed seeing a Canyon Lizard as it posed for a picture that I couldn’t resist taking.  

My next trip was to see part of Davis Mountains State Park.  The Skyline Drive had great views of the surrounding desert and mountains.

I particularly liked viewing birds at two blinds. They were set up so that as birds visited feeders you could view and identify them.  There were many Chipping Sparrow, Black-chinned Hummingbird, House Finch, White-winged Dove, Mockingbird, Barn Swallow, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Acorn Woodpecker, Scott’s Oriole, and Yellow-rumped Warbler.  A plethora of birds that delighted and awed me.

A local, the Southwestern Fence Lizard, put in an appearance and rested his blue throat on the blind as I studied his indifference to my presence. 

The place I really wanted to see was Big Bend National Park (BBNP).  This over 800,000-acre national park has the best representation of the Chihuahuan Desert in the United States.  It has an entire mountain range, the Chisos Mountains, within its boundaries and has been a national park for about 85 years.  Pretty impressive.

I hadn’t been to the park in about 7 or 8 years and decided I would visit a place I hadn’t visited in 40 years – Dagger Flats. This place has a huge population of Spanish Dagger Yucca.  These plants tower over the desert and are 8-15 feet tall.  They are magnificent!

However, the road to Dagger Flats was much less than magnificent.  My memory may have faded in 40 years, but I don’t remember the road being as rough as it is today.  This is probably due to the lack of funding that the National Park Service has received from the U.S. Congress and the Trump Administration.

Regardless, with my high ground-clearance SUV I slowly crunched over golf-ball sized gravel and hard stone rock in eroded washes, flats, and rocky promenades.  It was tight going in places, but I made it.  Unfortunately, most of the yuccas hadn’t bloomed yet.  But those that had, owned Dagger Flats and made me glad I had taken the time and effort to relive a part of my early environmental education.

BBNP was the first landscape that I began to study and learn after I graduated from college 51 years ago.  It has a special place in my heart, and I was glad to see this landscape, like an old friend who had gone much too long before a visit.

I also enjoyed the clumps of cactus that were scattered across the landscape.  I visited a really neat fossil exhibit before stopping at the Panther Junction Visitor Center for a pitstop and some needed rain which fell after I walked out to continue my visit.

I then went to Dugout Wells and marveled that there was a wetland oasis in the middle of the Chihuahuan Desert.  Nature knows what’s best.  The Strawberry Cactus was blooming here and Cassin’s Kingbird said hello to me.

I visited the Sotol Vista and Mule Ears drive-ins and drove the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive.  Unfortunately, due to rain (which was fortunate for plants and the Big Bend Landscape) the road to Santa Elena Canyon was closed.  A disappointment, but with all the vistas and views that I saw I wasn’t disappointed for long.

It was heartwarming to see scattered throughout the BBR signs that stated “No Border Wall” for Big Bend.  People in this area love the wild and natural country that Big Bend National Park, Rio Grande Wild and Scenic River, Big Bend Ranch State Park, and Black Gap Wildlife Management Area provide along with private lands that are protected by their landowners.

If you haven’t contacted your Texas U.S. Representative and two U.S. Senators to let them know that a border wall isn’t needed or wanted in this wild, rugged, country, do so today.  We need to protect what we have and share this with others, like the natural world shares itself and supports us.

Finally, when I left the BBR early in the morning for a 10-hour drive to Houston, I had a last surprise. Just before sunrise, I avoided two Mule Deer crossing the highway, and just after sunrise, I saw four Elk that crossed the road I drove.  They were sending me off with a warm goodbye.  I’ll be back soon and continue my journey of knowledge and love in the BBR.  For sure!