Day 8 – Big Bend Part Dos and FM 170 River Road

We actually had clear skies this morning for the first time in Texas. Cooled off quite a bit too. We packed up camp and ran through Big Bend again. The helmet cam shots are mostly from yesterday.

We finally left through the western gate of Big Bend and headed west through Study Butte and Terlingua. Terlingua is famous as an old ghost town. Touristy too with a lot of lodging/camping options. I’m glad we stayed in Marathon (Alpine is supposed to be good too). Terlingua was incredibly barren, dusty, and hot. Actually pretty much the rest of our day was spent in the upper 90’s. It’s just about impossible to stay adequately hydrated on a bike in that heat. Once you pass through the town of Lajitas, you begin The River Road portion of 170. And it is stunning!

The road runs along the Rio Grande. All the green in these pictures is the river bottom. A lot of the spectacular scenery is actually Mexico. The road undulates up and down. Earlier someone told us the road was an absolute rollercoaster. It really does have some of the steepest long hills, and especially the drops, of any road I’ve ridden. Parts made me a little nervous which rarely happens. But it is a great road and heavily traveled by sightseers so speeds tend to be slow. It is a must do if you ever make it to the area. I just wouldn’t try it in a motorhome.

We followed 170 to Presidio and then turned north. The Fort Davis area looked intriguing and reminded me of the Black Hills. That would be worth a visit too. Anyway, the land soon flattened out and we hit the oil fields along I-20. After the last few days, the ugliness made me a little nauseated (suppose it could have been heat and dehydration too). We are in Odessa Texas tonight and I can’t wait to get out!