Once in Texas [national Park big Band]

There is a place in West Texas where night skies are dark as coal and rivers cut through the limestone canyons, like the temples. Here at the end of the road, hundreds of bird species ukrytsya in a single ridge in the middle of a desert. Resistant cactus blooms under the rays of the rising sun. This magical place is called big bend. ©Colby Ingram

It was at the end of 2014 year, on the eve of Christmas
As we finished the project near the small town of Fort Stockton. And it so happened that the weekend had to be the same
Knowing that I would be in that part of Texas, a little beforehand studied local attractions national Park of big Bend was in mind, and when given that choice, decided to the day off to visit the Park.
The Park is located 130 miles from Fort Stackton, on the border with Mexico. For our work van (Nissan NV200) is more than 2 hours and a full tank, so I had at the gas station to buy a canister for a couple of gallons, so reliable.

Getting up early, we headed to this Park

The sun newly risen and the grass still had the morning dew, and still was a bit chilly

When I came to the closest to the border city, marathon, to the Park and to the nearest gas station, which is on the territory of the Park, there were still 70 miles and half tank of gas. Of course we refueled. Such gas stations I have not found in large cities they were replaced fifteen years ago. But "card" terminal was inside the filling store, and this problems has not delivered. The cost of gasoline when the average for the state was $2.50 per gallon, it was $3.16, but no choice. No other gas stations

A few miles to the South of the town, towards the Park, is located the border control (and the border is still more than 70 miles of desert) — not bothering anyone at the exit, but stop all at the entrance.

Approaching closer to the Park was in a dense fog, but when we moved through the pass, it's gone and the whole day was clear weather.

And here it is – the big Band

When you enter the Park, pay something around $ 17 with machines, instead we get a pass for the week. Ie you can leave the car near the road and go camping in the normal camping: trails and destinations for such tourists abound. Also get a map of the Park with these roads and quality of coverage, trails, and attractions.

Despite the fact that most of the Park is desert, it has a huge number of animals. There are many mammals, reptiles, insects, spiders and birds. From the information from the official website, the Park is home to 75 species of mammals, 450 species of birds, 56 species of reptiles
Especially pleased with the instructions how to behave if you saw a bear or a mountain lion
jpg width=960 height=480 itemprop=contentUrl>Photos took from the Internet Of the animals that I was able to see boars, hares and deer

Just not as pleasant when meeting may be rattlesnakes, spiders and Scorpions. Rattlesnakes that live in Texas with a length of four feet and a diameter of about five centimeters. Locals say they no longer "rattle" its tail before the attack.
Photo from the Internet, for the understanding

By the way, what about my job, rattlesnakes are very common in electrical transformer cabinets near heaters that can cause trouble. Always when I'm in Texas at the substation open the Cabinet, step out and look to see if there what. For protection, a substation equipped with a low metal fence, on which a pulse current is supplied, but you still need to check. and these huge spiders like to build nests in cable channels

The Park has 7 visitor centres, each of which you can get information about the Park and its inhabitants, a post office, one gas station and a small hotel complex.
Vegetation, at first glance, not so much bushes, low trees, cactuses, but, according to the official website, there are more than 1000 species of plants. I, at least, met there no less than five species of cacti.

The southern part of the Park is limited to the Rio Grande. Across the river is the territory of Mexico
Razgadat Mexican Losada

Most "off-road" areas lie along the beds of dried rivers and not feasible for our working van, but somewhere we can afford to leave the asphalt.

Some mountain valleys are not vegetation

And some valleys are covered with dense forests

In the center of the Park is a small two-storeyed hotel, it turns out, several Hiking trails, from 0.5 miles to 12. At the beginning of each trail are warning signs and instructions on how to behave.

The way back was also adventurous, passing through border control, about which I wrote earlier, we of course wrapped. First tested the van, the presence of illegal immigrants, looked for some reason, in a small cooler with ice and water, and then it came to check our documents...
Partner just said that he is a citizen, and questions him over, believe in the word, not even asked to show documents. And I'm still not a citizen, and the documents only to Florida law. Showed them. The guard looked up, then said, "I would Like to see the documents that prove that you are here legally", i.e. a passport with a visa or a green card, and I've got none, but got a picture of your green card on the phone, showed it. He copied the data and went to check in the database, in a minute came out, said everything was fine, but next time when I'm so close to the border carried with him the documents, and said goodbye.
I can't imagine that if I were GAI-schnick house stopped, and I told him the photo rights showed, I would be able to leave without having lost a certain amount of money and heaps of time.

It was dark around, except us, not a single light source, and the black-black sky is incredibly beautiful shining stars...