Big Bend Park Boquillas Story

Snowman9000 wrote:
The brief overview is that there is now a legal border crossing at the east end of the NP, over to the little Mexican village. You cross by foot or boat or animal. There are customs stations on each side, with full passport formalities etc.

Unless they built a bridge, the only way to get to Boquillas is by boat. It's across the Rio Grande River.

We went there years ago before 9/11. We were asked to visit by a employee of Big Bend Nat'l Park who lived there and with whom we became friends - within a few days :). We crossed by leaky boat, took a battered vehicle from the river through town where instant entertainment was performed for us in the dusty street by fancy riders on beautiful horses. We were then taken to the employee's B&B for a very pleasant afternoon visit complete with a luscious lunch, guitar playing and singing and an outhouse with a window giving us a fantastic view of the surrounding mountains. It was a day we'll never forget.

The people we saw along our way were so friendly and gracious. They had a good support system with the national park employees at that time across the river as that was the closest place they could get groceries at the small park store and fill their cans with gas. It was truly a hardship when the border closed. We are so glad to hear it is now open - beautiful people!

DW an I took this adventure last week, It is a very interesting little border crossing.
Park in the gravel parking lot and enter a building with a very pleasent park service employee that will explain all that is needed and how it is done, previous post explained the passport process.
Walk out of the building onto a trail that heads to the river and along the shore for about 2-3 block distance. Then you will see and hear a Singing Mexican (This is what he calls himself) and someone with a flat bottom row boat from the Mexican side will come to the US side and pick you up and row the boat to the other side again.
The small quaint town is about a mile from shore so you have a choice of riding donkeys, horses or ride in a pickup truck or to the village of Boquillas, Mexico.
There are 2 Cantinas and 1 bar in the village. We had lunch. Walked through one of the churches and one of the schools. Everyone was very friendly and happy to see us. We were in the village about 3 hours.
Cost's per person = $5.00 for the row boat round trip - pay for the ticket on the Mexican side from the singing Mexican. $5.00 for either form of transportation round trip per person.
They try to sell you walking sticks, bracelets etc to make a few bucks, however they will leave you alone when you say no, but can you really leave without buying something.
We ate at the Cantina on the left as we entered town and the food and beer was great and very reasonable.

If you want a guide they will furnish that also, another $5.00. We had an 11 year old that spoke very good English and stayed with us during the entire trip and the Donkeys that we rode were his also.
Our donkeys were named Pecos Pete and Tequila.

Very interesting and would do it again in a heart beat.

Monkey44,

Bend has national significance as the largest protected area of Chihuahuan Desert topography and ecology in the United States, which includes more than 1,200 species of plants, more than 450 species of birds, 56 species of reptiles, and 75 species of mammals.[3]

The park covers 801,163 acres (1,252 sq mi; 3,242 km2).[1] It is larger than the state of Rhode Island. Few other parks exceed this park's value for the protection and study of geologic and paleontologic resources. A variety of Cretaceous and Tertiary fossil organisms exist in abundance. Archaeologists have discovered artifacts estimated to be 9,000 years old, and historic buildings and landscapes offer graphic illustration of life along the international border in the 19th century.

For more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km), the Rio Grande/Río Bravo forms the international boundary between Mexico and the United States, and Big Bend National Park administers approximately 244 miles (393 km) along that boundary. The park was named after the area, which is bounded by a large bend in the Texas-Mexico border (see map at right below).

Because the Rio Grande serves as an international boundary, the park faces unusual constraints while administering and enforcing park rules, regulations, and policies. In accordance with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the park's territory extends only to the center of the deepest river channel as the river flowed in 1848. The rest of the land south of that channel, and the river, lies within Mexican territory.

I saw that on the news last night. I went there in 1979. It was one of the single most exciting things I have ever done. My girlfriend and I parked the car in a gravel lot where the guidebook said the crossing was. There was nothing there at all. We were disappointed and walked back to the car, just as an old man and a boy came out of nowhere across the river and pulled a boat out of the brush. We nervously negotiated a crossing in my bad Spanish. We got in the boat and crossed the river, wondering if it was legit. The boy led two mules over to us. We got on them, he slapped the lead one on the butt, and we headed off down a trail with no idea where we were headed. Mind you, nobody was with us. Just my girlfriend, me, and the two mules on an unknown trail in Mexico. We were young and stupid, AND it was a gentler time. Anyway, after a while, the trail curved to the left and headed up a steep hill. Suddenly, we were in a tiny little mountain town. Not much there but a cantina with warm beer. Kids walked along beside us selling rocks, which we bought just as a courtesy. After a while, we got back on our mules and headed back to the crossing. It doesn't sound near as adventurous now, but I still can't wait to go back!

Snowman9000 wrote:
The brief overview is that there is now a legal border crossing at the east end of the NP, over to the little Mexican village. You cross by foot or boat or animal. There are customs stations on each side, with full passport formalities etc.

Yep! That's it in a nut shell.

The Boquillas Crossing Port of Entry in Big Bend National Park, allowing entry into the U.S. from Boquillas, Coahuila, Mexico is now opened. The crossing will be open Wednesday-Sunday 9 am to 6 pm. No vehicles will be allowed to cross. Those using the crossing must have a valid passport or passport card.

It will be an automative facility, arriving visitors will have access to two kiosks to transmit travel document and identification information to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Visitors will then be interviewed by a CBP officer via a remote link. CBP official will be in El Paso.

Security for the port and the surrounding area will be provided by U.S. National Park Service rangers and U.S. Border Patrol agents. National Park Service personnel will be on hand in the interagency facility during all hours of port operation.

The brief overview is that there is now a legal border crossing at the east end of the NP, over to the little Mexican village. You cross by foot or boat or animal. There are customs stations on each side, with full passport formalities etc.

Can someone 'write a brief overview' I can't get my LT to load this story and am interested in it. We've been to Big Bend several times ... and like it.

We're out in the boonies now, and can't get good download speed.

Thanks Doug,
Been there many times and was disappointed the last several times we were there and could not cross. Hopefully the cartel does not ruin it for all.

Thank you for sharing that!

Doug,

Thanks for posting-I'm from Ca. and havn't heard of it before.