The border crossing requires a stop in the office at the port of entry in Big Bend National Park/David and Kay Scott.

The two of us recently returned to Big Bend National Park for the first time in four years. The half-dozen previous trips were always two-night stands for the purpose of gathering information at Chisos Mountains Lodge while updating our national park lodging guide. We had visited the park's other activity areas '“ Rio Grande Village, Panther Junction, and Castolon '“ but most of our time in the park was spent in the Basin area where the lodge is located and summer temperatures are more tolerable.

While a portion of the recent trip was devoted to exploring lodging facilities, a longer visit that included three nights inside the park and two nights in the neighboring village of Terlingua allowed time to engage in other activities, including an interesting trip across the border to Mexico and a guided tour of some of Big Bend's less-traveled roads. This is a look at our unique border crossing experience.

Reopening of the Border Crossing

The park's port of entry with Mexico reopened on April 10, 2013, following federal closure for more than a decade. We had learned of the reopening around the time it occurred, but didn't think much more about it until our recent trip to the park. The crossing into Mexico turned out to be one of the trip highlights.

As a regular reader of this site, you probably travel quite a bit and may well have encountered numerous border crossings. If so, you likely waited behind a line of fellow travelers or vehicles that inched slowly forward as questions were asked and passports were checked and stamped. The experience in Big Bend National Park's Boquillas Crossing Port of Entry is much different, and a unique experience unmatched at any of our previous border crossings.

A quick row across the Rio Grande gets you to Mexico...and then back to the United States/David and Kay Scott.

Big Bend'™s Unique Experience

The port of entry is about 25 miles southeast of the Panther Junction park headquarters, and a short distance beyond Rio Grande Village. The adobe-style U.S. Port of Entry building belies the retro experience that is about to unfold.

After walking inside the Port of Entry building we had the pleasure of meeting up with NPS Ranger Brittney Mitchell. Brittney, who previously worked at Grand Canyon's South Rim, Mojave National Preserve, and Glacier National Park, gave us some pointers on the border town we would be visiting. She told us 45 individuals had crossed on the previous day, which was a Wednesday. The record number of crossings in one day since the reopening is 184.

The air-conditioned port of entry building has a side door that opens onto a small patio where public restrooms are located. From there a path leads down to a gravel riverbank where visitors await transport that will carry them across the Rio Grande River. The transport is a rowboat, which in our case was powered by the two arms of constantly smiling Carmello, a resident of Boquillas.

A quick passport check on the Mexican side of the border and it's off to explore the village of Boquillas/David and Kay Scott

Rowing into Mexico

While waiting for the boat to come across to the U.S. side of the river, we spotted several individuals on the opposite riverbank, including a few children, a dog or two, a small corral with several horses and burros, a couple of older vehicles, and a table behind which a man was singing very loudly in Spanish. A young man, in this case, Carmello, walked down the opposite riverbank to a small boat and rowed across the river to pick us up and transport us across to Mexico. The trip across the relatively slow flowing river took several minutes.

After crossing the river, the singer quickly transformed himself into a ticket seller and collected $5 per person (roundtrip) for the river crossing, and another $5 to transport us to and from the town of Boquillas. The town is about a mile distant from the river. While collecting the fare, the ticket seller mentioned several times that tips for his singing could be deposited in the prominently-displayed empty milk carton that sits on the table in front of him. A hand-made sign attached to the milk carton mentioned that tips were accepted.

After paying, each visitor must choose a mode of transport into town; a burro, a horse, or the back seat of an old truck. Under the circumstances, the burro mode seemed most appropriate. Regardless of the choice, someone will tag along to guide the burros or horses and serve as a guide while visitors are in town. Our guide, Gabriel, offered background on the town, provided information about individual buildings, and talked with locals he met along the way. No specific fee is attached to the guide service, although a tip is implied. Walking through the village with a guide substantially enhances the experience.

One of two restaurants in Boquillas/David and Kay Scott

The Village of Boquillas

After climbing off the burro or horse, it was time to enter the Mexican port of entry and have our passports stamped. A relatively new trailer serves as the port of entry and the Mexican official who stamped our passports was wearing a handsome white uniform. He was also a very pleasant fellow who seemed pleased that we were visiting his country.

Boquillas has two restaurants, two gift shops, and a motel that wasn't open during our own visit. The town of about 200 individuals and 40 families includes modest homes, dilapidated buildings, an impressive solar farm that supplies the small community with electricity, and quite a lot of portable toilets scattered about. Numerous individuals had set up small tables covered with hand-made items that are peddled, but not aggressively, by small children. The whole experience is kind of like a dream from a nonviolent Clint Eastwood movie.

After a couple of hours, during which included a stop at one of the restaurants for some enchiladas and beer, we decided to head back to the river. Before departing Mexico, however, we first stopped at the trailer to have our passports stamped by the friendly official. Then it was time to ride the burros back to the river, climb in the rowboat, and have Carmello row us back to the good old USA, where we strolled up to the port of entry and presented our passports. There, our new friend Brittany inserted the passports into a machine that that looks like an ATM. Ten or 15 seconds later the attached telephone rang and a customs agent from El Paso asked a few questions, including whether we returned with any merchandise. Then, we were on our way. What a great way to spend part of a day.

What you Need to Know

The Boquillas Port of Entry is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Don't forget to pack your passport, which is required to enter Mexico and return to the United States. American dollars work fine, and most adult residents you will encounter speak English. Children, who failed to mingle with Americans during the years the border was closed, speak only Spanish. The prices for food and craft items aren't particularly cheap, but you may want to pick up a little something to take home. The cost of a plate with four enchiladas, a beer, and a bottled Coke was $10.25. Several people told us the Coke was superior to Coke in the U.S.

David and Kay Scott (above), authors of The Complete Guide to the National Park Lodges and Traveler's lodging experts  have traveled the national parks for some four decades. Many of those treks were in a series of four VW campers, including a 1967, a 1971, a 1978, and a 1987 edition.