Today, after moving back to the dry camping campground for our final full day in Big Bend, our first stop was the Boquillas Canyon Trail; we had driven to the Boquillas viewpoint earlier on our trip, but the trail actually brings us at water’s edge. It was a nice easy walk, but not as spectacular as Santa Elena Canyon.
We also drove a short unpaved road to Dugout Wells, which has a working windmill driven well water pump. It was interesting to see how it works, without necessitating any electricity. Due to the underground presence of water near the surface, Dugout Wells is really an oasis, and the vegetation grows much denser together than it does in the rest of the park.
From that site, we took the short Chihuahuan Desert Nature Trail which has several interpretive signs that help us better appreciate the flora that is present in this desert climate. As they point out, when there isn’t enough water, people and animals can move, but plants cannot. They have survival skills adapted to the environment they are in, which in this case includes the ability to survive up to 9 months without any rainfall.