park highlights. As a general note the park is huge and different people like it for different reasons so I'll summarize a bit and point out what we have enjoyed most.

River - obviously the park is named for the big bend in the rio grande that forms the area. Its cuts a few dramatic canyons through the park. Santa Elana is the one you see in pictures with big sheer walls. Boquillas is at the other end and in the middle and much tougher to access (lots of time on a dirt road) is Mariscal. I have not done Mariscal, but the first two are both beautiful with easy kid friendly hikes. There is also great boating on the river when the flows are high enough, which seems to not be very often lately. If you plan to float, be sure to have a back up plan and talk to the outfitter before your trip about the flows and how much dragging will be required.

There are some hot springs that are pretty cool and not a bad hike.

There is a border crossing where you can go to the Mexican village of Boquillas. Bring a passport and cash. We like to go grab lunch and buy a couple of trinkets. If you are more adventurous, it sits within the Mexican national park and they have caves and hot springs and probably plenty of other stuff to go explore.

Chisos Basin - This is an amazing mountain area in the middle of the park. Beautiful views, great hiking, unique wildlife (bears, lions, a unique sub-species of whitetail), a decent enough restaurant. The tallest spot in the park is here, although it is about a 10 mile hike. Some awesome backpacking sites, but there is no water available so you have to keep the trips short. During crowded times like Christmas or spring break, it will fill up and they will limit traffic heading up the road from the desert below. Be sure to check out the window.

Desert - lots of very unique spots. Some of our favorite hikes have been devils den (near dog canyon, you'll have to look it up as they don't publicize it) and ernst tinaja. Just driving the senic park road in the evenings before heading to Terlingua for dinner is great.

The fossil exhibit is very cool if you like that sort of thing.

A note on the heat - take it seriously. I generally think the desert feels 10-20 degrees hotter than the mercury says and there is generally no shade or water. Head to the Chisos when it's warm. Keep extra water in your vehicle. Temperature swings are also pretty dramatic. A couple weeks ago we had lows in the mid 20's with highs in the low 70s.