Big Bend National Park: Crossing the Border - Boquillas del Carmen, Mexico
2 miles - 1/16/22
My slightly facetious Facebook post for January 16, 2022: "Charlotte friends, we know you're dealing with snow and ice today. Well, here in Big Bend, Texas, there's ice in the margaritas."
Our merry band got a late start this morning, on the road by 8:45am. With all the drive time in our plans, we get either a relaxed morning or a relaxed evening, not both. Pour me another cup of coffee.
Jim took a turn driving, giving Zach a chance to enjoy the scenery. We headed east on Highway 90 to Marathon, then south on Highway 385 to the Persimmon Gap entrance to Big Bend NP.
the eastern edge of the Park
Today’s big adventure was visiting the tiny border village of Boquillas del Carmen, Mexico. Founded as a mining town in the 19th century, Boquillas residents’ present-day economy relies on tourism. Read more here about its history and attempts to create an international U.S.-Mexican peace park here.
I was super curious and a little bit anxious about how crossing the border works at the Boquillas Port of Entry. It’s actually low-key process with two primary rules: have your passport to re-enter the U.S. and don’t bring back any “souvenirs” like rocks, minerals, dirt, tobacco, alcohol, raw food products or products made from animals or parts of animals. [If you have to think about it, don’t bring it back.]
Lots more information for a visit on this great website.
photo op after you pass through
We walked a quarter mile to the Rio Grande River, flowing lazily towards the Gulf of Mexico, knee deep and underwhelmingly narrow – of course, that’s why this is a crossing point. A man with a rowboat ferried people across, $5 per person, room for 4 passengers at a time. The ride back to the U.S. is free. (Wading across the river is allowed, but it is considered supportive of the local economy to use the ferry.)
The photo below focuses on the rowboat ferry at the shore, but look closer at the mountain range on the horizon: the Sierra del Carmen range in Mexico. The highest peak in the escarpment, on the far left, is called Cerro Pico Cerda (7,022 feet) or El Pico.
We opted to walk the .75 miles to the village, although locals at the riverside offer transportationvia donkeys and horses or pickup trucks
As we approached the first houses, children ran towards us with cardboard placards holding woven bracelets/souvenirs. This happened every time we approached a building or if we stood still and looked around (often the same children). Many homes had souvenir displays, embroidered towels, beaded figurines and ceramics.
There are two restaurants in Boquillas, situated across the street from each other, both waving us in to be seated. We chose the one on the right – Boquillas Restaurant – because we could see the covered outdoor seating with customers eating.
(and peeing on backpacks!)
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We ordered goat tacos, cheese enchiladas, and chicken empanadas to share. Laura and Zach went straight for the margaritas while Jim and I had Cokes in old-fashioned bottles. The food was delicious and we consumed every crumb.
We wandered further along the main street through the village. Some homes had souvenir shops on their front stoops and beckoned us to look over their wares. I bought a set of small ceramic cups for drinking shots of tequila, mezcal, and our new discovery – sotol! (We didn’t take photos of people and tried to be discreet in photographing buildings.)
A childcare center
solely on solar power
The walk to the last building took only a few minutes. We turned around and headed to Boquillas’ second eatery, Jose Falcon’s Restaurant-Bar & Souvenir Shop. Its patio boasts an amazing view Boquillas Canyon.
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We strolled back to the Rio Grande crossing for our free 3-minute rowboat ride back to the U.S. The re-entry procedure consisted of facing a camera and putting my passport in a scanner, and a border patrol officer in another location spoke to me by phone to verify my identity.
Jim went first and they could not find him in the system. He had to answer lots of questions, get another agent on the call, wait around and bite his nails for 15 minutes. When they got to me, they only asked if I was a U.S. citizen…yes…welcome back to the United States.
[If you’re considering visiting this part of Big Bend NP but don’t want to visit Boquillas, there are other things to do. We skipped Rio Grande Village and the Hot Springs – next time!]
At Boquillas Canyon Overlook, we stood at the edge of the earth and squinted to make out the mouth of the longest and deepest canyon in Big Bend, where the Rio Grande has cut a 1,300 foot deep chasm through the Sierra del Carmen Mountains (near my left shoulder in the photo below).
We built in time on the drive back to visit the Fossil Discovery Exhibit, an open-air display of information boards describing the history of dinosaur life in Big Bend, discoveries of fossils, and replicas of fossils. The massive bulk of these creatures fits with the magnitude of the landscape. The exhibit is open 24/7 and should be one of the first things on your Big Bend list. It gave me a new perspective on everything I saw in the Park and that night I dreamed about dinosaurs roaming around.
Driving to home base, on Highway 90 between Marathon and Alpine, we were gifted with a magnificent sunset. When we pulled over to get a better look, we realized that the moon was rising behind us as we faced the sunset. The four of us ran back and forth across the road, madly shooting from different angles, until we gave up and just watched.
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