Guadalupe Mountains

We arrived at Guadalupe Mountains National Park after a crazy day at Big Bend and started by hiking the McKittrick Canyon Trail which was a nice trail through a canyon that led to an old prospector’s cottage. Afterward we drove into the heart of the park alongside the towering mountains and stopped at the visitor’s center. We decided to take the long route out of the park and then back in on the western side to the Salt Basin Dunes—a field of expansive white gypsum salt dunes. We were completely alone here, (like there was literally no one else at the trailhead or on the dunes), and it was awesome to explore them. The huge mountains served as an impressive backdrop as the sun sunk further down into the sky. It got pretty hot as we spent some time there that afternoon, but it was well worth it to traipse over the dunes, even though we almost got lost as we were making our way out. We capped off our visit with sunset views parked along the road sitting right before El Capitan, which is one of the most impressive peaks in Texas’ tallest mountain range.

Quick Facts:

  • Visited: 2017

  • National Park founded: 1972

  • Location: Texas

  • Size: 86,367 acres

Learn More:

Highlights & Hikes:

Hikes:

  • McKittrick Canyon Trail

Highlights:

  • Salt Basin Dunes

  • El Capitan