Parking
Start at Chisos Basin Trailhead and use the Basin parking area. The loop returns to the same Basin access; trail-specific parking capacity and fees were not confirmed.
Overview
About Entire Rim Loop
Why go
- One circuit links both rims with Boot Canyon.
- Wide South Rim views stretch over the desert toward Mexico.
Heads up
- A strenuous full day with sustained climbing.
- No dependable water on either rim.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Big Bend map
Full mapElevation5,384–7,441 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Best time to go
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 Entire Rim Loop, 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 Entire Rim Loop
The full Chisos rim circuitEntire Rim Loop is a 13.
Entire Rim Loop is a 13.6-mile circuit from Chisos Basin that reaches the South Rim and East Rim, crosses Boot Canyon, and returns to the Basin by a different approach. It strings together the high country’s broad desert views and its shadier canyon in one strenuous day. Plan at least eight hours; nine is a more comfortable allowance with time at the overlooks. The short Basin access is shared at the start and finish. This route does not include the separate Emory Peak spur.
Climb the gentler side firstStart on Laguna Meadow in the morning, continue to the South Rim, circle the East Rim, then…
Start on Laguna Meadow in the morning, continue to the South Rim, circle the East Rim, then return through Boot Canyon and descend by Pinnacles. The park recommends that direction for its rim loop: Laguna Meadow climbs more gradually, while Pinnacles is steeper and more direct. Laguna Meadow gains about 1,600 feet in 3.5 miles and is open to the afternoon sun, so an early start helps. Pay attention at junctions; the Emory Peak spur is a separate hike.
From the Basin into the high countryThe lower trail passes through dry oak forest with juniper, piñon pine, oaks, and maples before…
The lower trail passes through dry oak forest with juniper, piñon pine, oaks, and maples before the landscape opens around Laguna Meadow. The South Rim is a high volcanic mesa where the trees meet grassland. Its long edge looks out over the lower desert and mountains in Mexico. Leave enough time to stop and take in the scale rather than treating the rim as a quick turnaround.
East Rim and Boot CanyonThe East Rim loops from the South Rim around to the middle of Boot Canyon.
The East Rim loops from the South Rim around to the middle of Boot Canyon. From the rim, the views open south, southeast, and southwest. For a South Rim photo, include some of the nearby rim or flowering plants against the long desert horizon; that foreground shows how high the overlook sits.
Boot Canyon changes the feel of the route. The trail runs along a slickrock canyon edge, and pools or flowing water may appear after rain, but they are not dependable. The canyon is the lushest part of the Chisos; Arizona cypress grows here and nowhere else in Big Bend, and it is a good place to listen for Colima Warblers.
If a full day is too muchThe two-mile Chisos Basin Loop is a shorter moderate walk if the distance is the obstacle.
The two-mile Chisos Basin Loop is a shorter moderate walk if the distance is the obstacle. It gives you a mountain walk without committing to the rims or the long return.
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.
