Brinkley should re-read his Reagan Diaries. More than any other American, Reagan understood that government is not the solution to the problem – in many cases, it is the problem. The Christmas Mountains are no exception. The Land Office has neither the authority nor the funding to restore the land to its natural state. by Jerry Patterson    more »

During a regularly scheduled meeting of the Big Bend Ranch Advisory Committee in Lajitas on August 7, Poindexter outlined his proposal whereby he would buy land from Lajitas Resort in Brewster County that may be of interest to Texas Parks and Wildlife. That land would be appraised, then offered as a swap to TPWD in exchange for land of equal value for part of BBRSP land near Cienega Creek that adjoins Poindexter’s Cibolo Creek Ranch in Presidio County. by John Waters    more »

While I sat in the shade, I dug a lechuguilla thorn from my leg and tried to judge how long the ladder had stood below the beehive, protected from the rain and sun by the shadow of a bend in the canyon wall. It couldn’t be prehistoric since it was tied with wire, but it may have stood there since there were ranchers in the area and the wagon traffic on the nearby Ore Road was flourishing in the early 1900’s. by John Forsythe    more »

Confrontation is not our style, nor is it the right thing to do, but neither is poaching cactus from the desert. I’d been ovulating for 2 days and I would like to believe natural instincts were kicking in. Just like a mama bear protecting her young, I had a maternal feeling to protect what I love – in this case, the desert. Off we went chasing the poachers down the road. by Kym Flippo    more »

“It’s the true believers who want to do this,” says Mindy Hamlett, one of the handful of volunteers who make recycling work for the Big Bend’s residents and visitors. “We want to see recycling work in this area, but sometimes when you show up on a Saturday to make sure everything is sorted properly for delivery to the recycling center in the National Park and you discover that people have just left all their garbage in bags by our trailer, well, you’d like to strangle somebody.” by Andy Byrnes    more »

We expect intense thunder and lightning and monsoon rains in July, August, and September. But May? by Marlys Hersey    more »

It seemed like a good idea at the time. The largest flying reptile ever unearthed came from the Big Bend. The scientific name is Quetzalcoatlus northropi and it is a species of Pterosaur, or flying reptile. Pterosaur literally means “flying lizard.” But don’t ever call it a dinosaur. I made that mistake. by Larry Francell    more »

The women’s efforts evolved from those humble beginnings, however, and they were soon a familiar sight, running in groups along Routes 118 and 170 and in the national park itself. Marcy, Pam and Martha were joined by Kassi Williams, Carin Taylor and Jennifer Peña, who would eventually participate in the Austin race, and Dede Granado, Bobbie Jones, Ellen Quigg, Debbie Willoford, Nicole Killingsworth and Noemi Aviles, who would run their race in the park in support of their fellow ‘Turtles.' by Andy Byrnes    more »

A public service announcement...   more »

Big Bend High School students competed at District University Insterscholastic League (UIL) Academic Meet.   more »

The National Parks Centennial Initiative, as the plan is called, aims to raise the money over the next decade by the 100th anniversary of the NPS in 2016. Ideally, $100 million per year in new funding will come from the “President’s Centennial Commitment,” and an additional $100 million per year from the “President’s Centennial Challenge,” which urges individuals, foundations, and corporations to contribute as well. by John Waters    more »

"Operation Wrangler" is a coordinated interagency law enforcement surge effort intended to prevent and disrupt all crime and illegal international drug and human trafficking. Operation Wrangler will involve federal, state and local ground, air and water-borne assets, including more than 6,800 personnel, 2,200 vehicles, 48 helicopters, 33 fixed wing aircraft and 35 patrol ships.   more »

It's been an unusually cold & wet & SNOWY winter in the Big Bend. Here are some glimpses from the beginning of the season....   more »

Rarely does a wildlife species reestablish a population without human intervention. Yet the black bears from the Maderas del Carmen did this themselves. It is a wildlife success story that we can’t take credit for, a remarkable occurrence, and from a species that was extirpated from many states in Mexico about the same time they were extirpated from Texas. by Bonnie McKinney    more »

There is still time to be part of the great success story of how women of Boquillas, Coahuila, Mexico with help from women of Terlingua and Alpine, Texas raised $15,000 by selling quilts. by Dallas Baxter    more »

Throughout the summer, numerous hikers to Boot Canyon in the Chisos Mountains have have seen a mother bear with two cubs. More recently, bears have been sighted near Cattail Falls, the Oak Springs trail, and the popular Window trail, prompting officials to temporarily close those trails to the public. by John Waters    more »

Then I’d go to bed, listen for the wind and the sounds of birds settling in for the night, bands of javelina roaming through my camp, and I’d smell the occasional skunk or fox. Many nights I would wake up – sometime around 2 am – and watch the stars and the moon, pick out the constellations that I know, and very often see shooting stars streak across the night sky. I wondered why parents don’t teach their children to live like this for a while. by Dori Ramsay    more »

How is it possible to dedicate megabucks to making the border’s biological situation worse instead of to cleaning up shared binational water sheds, airsheds, and landscapes to improve the habitat for humans and other living things? by Talli Nauman    more »

Black Gap Wildlife Management Area (James Evans)
Senator Elliott Shapleigh (D-El Paso) has demanded the Texas General Land Office cease land swaps in the Black Gap Wildlife Management Area, and elsewhere in the state. Shapleigh, who introduced legislation in 1997 to allow swaps from the GLO to Parks and Wildlife, told The Gazette, “We put a section in the bill that mandates the GLO to provide preference to Texas State Parks on adjoining land. Our intent was to increase beautiful Texas State Parks for the people of Texas, not take it away from them." by John Waters    more »