Parking
Start at the Chisos Basin Trailhead and follow Pinnacles Trail uphill toward Boot Canyon.
Overview
About Boot Canyon Trail
Why go
- A rare Arizona cypress habitat and a distinctive boot-shaped rock spire.
Heads up
- A strenuous climb repeated on the return to the Basin.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Big Bend map
Full mapElevation5,400–6,988 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
2 active Big Bend alerts
- ClosureWeather-related road closuresDo not use these closed roads; NPS lists the closures as in effect until further notice.Official details
- InfoBoquillas Crossing schedule changeBoquillas Crossing is open Friday through Monday, 9:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.; NPS says it will not change to winter hours at this time. Check current park conditions before planning a crossing.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Big Bend Tour Guide
Your drive to Boot Canyon Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Big Bend National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Big Bend audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Chisos Basin and Window View0:00 / 0:33
“You're coming up on Chisos Basin, a mountain-ringed bowl with a gap called the Window opening toward the desert.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Big Bend Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Chisos Basin Campground and Amphitheater
- Lost Mine Trail
- Tree Zone Exhibit
- How Corners Become Curves
- 110 audio storiesacross Big Bend’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Black Bear, Collared Peccary, White-tailed Deer, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 45 trails, 64 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Boot Canyon Trail
A full day in Boot CanyonBoot Canyon Trail is a 9-mile round-trip out-and-back from the Chisos Basin Trailhead to Boot…
Boot Canyon Trail is a 9-mile round-trip out-and-back from the Chisos Basin Trailhead to Boot Spring, then back the same way. The hike pairs a long climb through the Pinnacles with a greener, more sheltered canyon. It is strenuous; allow about seven hours for the ascent, return, and a good stop in the canyon. This itinerary turns around at Boot Spring. The trail continues beyond the spring toward the South Rim, making a longer through-hike.
Climbing the PinnaclesThe first 3.5 miles climb from the Basin to Toll Mountain Pass at about 7,000 feet.
The first 3.5 miles climb from the Basin to Toll Mountain Pass at about 7,000 feet. From there, continue about a mile along Boot Canyon to Boot Spring. Turn around there for the 9-mile outing; the return retraces the route, including the climb back over the pass. The approach is a sustained mountain hike, not a short canyon walk.
The canyon and the BootBoot Canyon is the lushest environment in the Chisos.
Boot Canyon is the lushest environment in the Chisos. Arizona cypress grows here and nowhere else in Big Bend. Near the canyon’s midpoint, a tall, boot-shaped rock spire gives the canyon its name. It is also a good place to watch for Colima Warblers. The spire is the signature view; include the wooded canyon around it to show its scale.
Carry your waterBoot Spring is usually dry.
Boot Spring is usually dry. Rain-fed pools may appear along the canyon floor, but they can be stagnant. Carry all the water you need for the full hike and treat any surface water you collect. Dogs are not allowed on park trails.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Big Bend
377 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
329 sightingsCollared PeccaryMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
500 sightingsWhite-tailed DeerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
985 sightingsRoadrunnerMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
228 sightingsRavenMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
264 sightingsTurkey VultureMost seen around noonSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Big Bend. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
