Fodor's Travel Talk Forums

Fodor's Travel Talk Forums (https://www.fodors.com/community/)
-   United States (https://www.fodors.com/community/united-states/)
-   -   Big Bend National Park in June? (https://www.fodors.com/community/united-states/big-bend-national-park-in-june-919977/)

buddd Jan 16th, 2012 01:41 PM

Big Bend National Park in June?
 
Would you go to Big Bend National Park in June? My fear is that it would be too hot then.

BigRuss Jan 16th, 2012 01:56 PM

It's Texas, it could hit 90 in February (and has), so there's always a chance of it. Better odds of clement weather in April or May.

WhereAreWe Jan 16th, 2012 03:04 PM

Yes, and I have visited in June.

Actually not a bad time to visit, the park doesn't see a lot of visitors in summer so you will have plenty of solitude. There is such a variation in temps between the river, desert and mountains that you should be ok. I don't know that I would want to spend mid-day out in the desert, but that is the perfect time to hit the mountains. Save the lower elevations for morning/evening.

Late June/early July is the start of the rainy season - when I went they hadn't had significant rain in several months but then it rained every single day I was there. However, the park is so huge that you can avoid the rain - storms generally only cover parts of the park so you can head to a different section if it's raining. And the rain lends a whole new aspect to the experience, it will cool off the air and flood some areas which most people don't ever see.

spirobulldog Jan 16th, 2012 03:15 PM

It was hot last year in March/Spring Break when we were there. Cool at night, but we wore shorts during the day. Most of the hikes there offer very little shade as there really aren't any trees there. I would think it could even near 100 in July. The Chisos Mountain area would be the coolest and it really has the best hikes anyway.

Maybe consider going to Guadalupe/Carlsbad Caverns. You could do Guadalupe and then in the middle of the day do the Caverns as the caves are cool. The wild cave tours there are incredible. Guadalupe and Big Bend are pretty similar. Of course, Guadalupe doesn't have the Rio Grande River though. The bats at the cave are awesome, but their nubmers were very few last year because of the drought in the area. I assume they will return in full force this year, but I am not certain of how much rainfall that area has received lately.

WhereAreWe Jan 16th, 2012 03:36 PM

Average high at the visitor center in June is 94, July is 92. Add 5-10 degrees for lower elevations near the river, subtract 5-10 degrees for higher elevations in the mountains. So yes, it'll be pretty hot but like I said, do the lower elevations in the morning and then head for the mountains. Santa Elena Canyon is awesome in the morning.

buddd Jan 18th, 2012 07:09 AM

Thank you for the replies. We think we're going to skip at this time.

spirobulldog Jan 18th, 2012 09:01 AM

consider it for Maybe March next year, but get your lodging reservations there. BB is a good place for backpacking too. It is busy in March. Well the lodge may be busy, but the park is so big and so few people that even during busy times, it wasn't that busy.


All times are GMT -8. The time now is 11:54 AM.