At 486 sq miles, this massive park is more than 11 times bigger than Texas’ next largest state park (Franklin Mountains in El Paso). Taking up almost all the desert between Lajitas and Presidio, Big Bend Ranch reaches north from the Rio Grande into some of North America’s wildest country. Come for the scenic drive on River Road – you don’t have to pay if you simply drive through – as well as hiking, mountain biking and sweet, sweet solitude.
The most prominent among many notable features is the Solitario, a dome formed in a volcanic explosion 36 million years ago. The resultant caldera measures 8 miles east to west and 9 miles north to south.