Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Big Bend National Park: South Rim Loop

Noelle and I packed up camp, ate breakfast and headed up into the Chisos Basin. The lost Mine Trail was still closed due to mountain lion activity and so we abandoned our original plan to climb Casa Grande Peak and opted to instead hike a 12.4 mile loop up to the South Rim via the Laguna Meadows, Southeast Rim, Boot Canyon, Boot Spring, and Pinnacles Trails. The weather was beautiful and the ascent up Laguna meadows was pleasant and gentle.
Noelle Hiking the Chisos
We didn't see many people on the trail, just a few trail crew members. We got lots of great views to the Window and Emory Peak
Emory Peak from Laguna Meadows
and a nice overlook of the Chisos Basin.
Eric in Chisos

Once past the overlook the trail featured rolling terrain and lots of views. We stopped at a conveniently placed restroom
Toilet
and admired some of the great views from the Rim.
Overlooking Cerro Castolon
 Noelle at South Rim
Looking Down from South Rim
parts of the Rim are closed this time of the year due to Peregrine falcon nesting.
Peregrine Closure Sign
Still, there were plenty of nice views!
Mexican Juniper
After admiring some of them we headed into Boot Canyon.
In Boot Canyon
The small canyon was surprisingly interesting and we enjoyed walking through it with its little pools of water. next we found ourselves at a nice overlook of the aptly named Boot Rock.
Boot Rock
Then we started our descent on the Pinnacles Trail. The trail was very well maintained!
Nice Trailwork
We got some really nice views of the Window again, along with Casa Grande Peak.
Casa Grande Peak
It was a wonderful end to our short visit to the amazing Big Bend National Park!

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