Lost Alaskan RV Park, Alpine, Texas

I enjoyed my stay there. There is only one good restaurant in town about 5 min from the campground but they are only open at dinner Can t think of the name Alpine has nothing to offer but we enjoyed the area outside of the town I will say the people at the campground are nice folks, the campground has nothing special to offer, the area outside the campground is questionable, in my opinion but safe I share that only because my upbringing is living in the Bronx Enjoy your trip

That's a long drive to Big Bend. Are you going to do the drive more than once? Big Bend deserves more than one day. Consider staying in the park itself for a better experience.

I would stay north at Davis Mountain State Park Fort Davis Texas
More to do a nice little grocery store
They even have full hookups

My site there from above

Fort Davis is a really nice park, they had cable TV when we stayed there a few years ago.

We've camp hosted at Big Bend - Chisos Basin CG - and Davis Mountains State Park in 2014. (My sig pic is our camp host site in the Chisos Basin)

Spent a lot of time in Alpine.

1. Lost Alaskan looks well maintained and has a good occupancy without a lot of year round residents from our many trips past the park (only hospital south of I-10 and west of Del Rio is located a quarter-mile from Lost Alaskan). I've not heard any bad things about the park.

2. Alpine is a small town of about 5,000 people, but is the biggest town for over 200 miles. Yes there is only one top notch restaurant, but several fast food and Mexican food places. It has the best hardware store between Odessa and El Paso, and one grocery chain has two stores in town. It is the home to Sul Ross University, which has a great museum on the Big Bend region.

3. Fort Davis / Davis Mountains State Park is about 30 miles NORTH of Alpine. The State Park has 28 full-hookup sites in a nice quite valley. You will get no cell phone/ internet service at DMSP due to the mountain between the campground and the only cell antenna in the area. It's a short drive to the mountain top, or about 3 miles into town. Fort Davis National Historical Park and the MacDonald Observatory are very interesting day trips.

4. It is over 100 miles from Alpine/ Lost Alaskan to the Big Bend NP HQ. The park offers three very different regions - a desert ecology, a small mountain range ecology and a river ecology. We spend 117 days at Big Bend, probably 40 days exploring the park, and didn't have time to see everything. Big Bend is a huge national park, and takes at least three full days to see the basic features. It is a 70 mile drive from Santa Elena Canyon in the west to Boquillas Canyon in the east. If you want to hike in the Chisos Mountains, visit the two canyons, see the many exhibits along the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive, drive across the dry desert floor to Grapevine Hills and the balanced rocks, see the giant dagger cactus on the Dagger Flats Auto Trail, walk nature trails, you will do a lot of driving back and forth between Alpine and the park.

5. My recommendation is to spend four or five days in Study Butte/ Terlingua at a FHU park, or at the concessionaire parking lot FHU sites in the park at Rio Grande Village. With two or three days at Lost Alaskan in Alpine or Davis Mountains State Park.

6. The concessionaire parking lot FHU area at Rio Grande Village in the park isn't 'attractive', but folks don't plan to spend a lot of time in an RV park while visiting Big Bend. Convenience and location are its main features (and having your own shower).

The Rio Grande Village NPS campground nearby is 100 dry sites in a semi-shady tree-lined area. It has sites which will hold any rig. $14 per day.

The Chisos Basin CG is only for very small rigs. Also dry camping with no hookups. Not really suitable for anything over a 20-24 foot trailer or 26 foot Class C/A. I had to back my 36' TT up for a few hundred feet uphill to get to the one area where I could turn it through the upper loop.

The Cottonwood CG near Santa Elena Canyon is a small quiet dry CG with no generators allowed.

We will go back to volunteer at Big Bend and Davis Mountain parks in the future. For a week long visit, I'd dry camp two days at Rio Grande Village, dry camp two more days at Cottonwood, and spend three days at Davis Mountains State Park.

Be aware that Big Bend is very popular during spring break for college students, and many families. DMSP is always crowded with families during any school vacation times.

The weather and the blooming cactus should be absolutely fantastic in March.

PawPaw_n_Gram wrote:


For a week long visit, I'd dry camp two days at Rio Grande Village, dry camp two more days at Cottonwood, and spend three days at Davis Mountains State Park.

Excellent advice. We've done all three.

We have stayed at the Lost Alaskan RV Park several times. If we need we will stay there again.

"the area outside the campground is questionable"

That is very true with many long eared jack rabbits and long tailed roadrunners.

SO BEWARE

Oh I forgot about a few friendly deer.

Enjoy your stay.

I have some friends who work camped at Lost Alaskan a few years back. They like the campground. They didn't like Alpine. There is a good Mexican restaurant on the south east side of town. When looking out the window, you can see the campus. I think it is named with a female Hispanic name. Been there twice.

I too vote for Ft. Davis State Park. Really nice campground. Doesn't look or feel like Texas. Ft. Davis is a don't miss historical site.

Many stay in Study Butt at the RV Park/hotel as we have, then move up to Davis Mts SP. You cannot see much in a days time in Big Bend National Park as 2gypsies have said. Need to take time seeing many of sites. We alone have stayed nearly a week traveling around the park. Remember it is time for spring break for many schools in TX during March and other states too.

Sharon

I consider Davis Mtns State Park and Lost Alaskan both too far to really enjoy the Big Bend. Davis Mtns is our favorite Texas state park but it's a separate destination all together.

Consider Maverick Ranch instead. It's not exactly close to the entrance (30 miles) but it has the advantage of being in a quaint little village on the Rio Grande.

On top of that, you are adjacent to Big Bend Ranch State Park and the famous "River Road" that winds along the river between Lajitas and Presidio. If you've never traveled FM-170, you're missing out.

Maverick Ranch is full hookup and big rig friendly.