SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2019
BACKPACKER.COM 21SOAK IN STILLNESS.
BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK, TEXAS
Of all the things that river canyons collect, silence is the
most fl eeting. But at the bottom of Santa Elena Canyon,
where the Rio Grande slows almost to a standstill, you’ll
fi nd that elusive prize. Take the Santa Elena Canyon Trail,
following a few switchbacks before dropping gradually to
the fl oor, where riparian fl ora fringes the waterway. Savor
the shade below the canyon’s 1,500-foot limestone walls,
which were formed 135 million years ago when a rising sea brought
fl oods to the area. Rest by the river’s edge before returning the way you
came to complete the 1.7-mile day. CONTACT nps.gov/bibe7
MATTHEW HAHNEL