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Big Bend National Park, Texas

The grandeur of the mountains got our attention, but it was the ground critters that amazed us.

Below: The Rio Grande flows through Santa Elena Canyon (Mexico on the left, United States on the right).



Below: The spindly and thorny occatillo (Fouquieria splendens) dominates the landscape.



Below: It was wonderful to see so many varieties of cactus.







Below: Colorful wildflowers were blooming throughout the park.



Below: We saw several large Turkey Vultures. The big ones have six-foot wingspans.



Below: We had never seen a Praying Mantis in the wild before. This insect was way cool!



Below: In one section of the park, there were hundreds of these colorful caterpillars on the move!



Below: This 4-inch-long Tarantula crossed the road in front of us. We had never seen a tarantula this large before.



Below: In the mud flats along the Rio Grande, this critter was cruising along. We have no idea what it is but we will not be camping in this park.



We also saw a pack of peccaries, lots of roadrunners, lizards and other critters but we couldn't get the camera out fast enough. We enjoyed the wildlife most of all. Big Bend National Park was delightful.