The short hike into Santa Elena Canyon we did the other day was gorgeous but we wanted to go further. To access the Rio Grande in Big Bend National Park is different than in Big Bend Ranch State Park. In the state park we were able to just walk down and launch, no permit other than our Texas Park Pass. For the National Park we had to go to Panther Junction Visitor Center and get a free permit. The ranger there went over a double sided list of rules and regulations and then filled out our permit. Just an FYI, you are required to have an EXTRA life vest and an EXTRA paddle to enter the river.
We started our paddle from the trailhead for the Santa Elena Canyon Trail. Blowing up our boards is fairly quick, but we drew a crowd of interested people. We’re going to be in at least 30 peoples vacation pictures! On the water, we paddled past the terminus of the hiking trail and kept going further up the canyon. It was a pleasant morning at 68 degrees and the water was fairly calm. The canyon is very dramatic, much like we’d experienced further up the river in the state park. The water was deep enough to only have to portage in one shallow section where my large fin started dragging. I can’t overstate how awesome this experience was and how incredible the canyon is. Maybe pictures will do it a tenth of the justice it deserves. Two thumbs up.
We paddled for a couple hours, stopping for pictures and to chat with a group of kayakers coming down. Once turned around we were treated to a fast ride on the current and were back soon. Onlookers seemed disappointed we hadn’t fallen in. HAHA
Santa Elena canyon is awesome to say the least