An Evening with the Stars in Marathon, TX
After a gorgeous day spent in San Antonio, we hit a snag…literally. Since we have experienced multiple tire issues on cross-country road trips, we keep a very close eye on our PSI (and also tools, water, and a tire repair kit in the car). On our way out of town, Phil noticed one of our tires had dropped far below the air pressure of the 3 other tires. It was time to visit a dealership.
We pulled into Red McCombs Toyota (shoutout!) who worked us into the schedule immediately and quickly pointed us to the source of our woes…a nail on the side of the back passenger tire. Due to the nail’s location, it was un-patchable (is that a word?). They directed us to the Discount Tire next door & we were on our way with new tires in no time.
Originally, we had a campsite booked deep into Big Bend National Park on the banks of the Rio Grande. We knew that driving hours into the park at night would be a challenge, particularly with all of the nocturnal animals whose curiosities would be piquing right as we would be driving through. As much as I have begged the desert sun to shine favor upon me and let me see a dang javelina, I both wanted to see that javelina alive and I also had no desire to replace another tire.
We made the decision to switch up our gameplan and book a new campsite in Marathon, TX (read: in the middle of nowhere). Just after night fall, we rolled into the parking lot and attempted to figure out where to camp in the open lot. At one point, Phil stopped just in time to shine our headlights directly into a truck camper, just in time to see a burly bearded man rise up to deal us one very pointed stink eye. After the initial awkwardness of the search wore off, we found a spot & stepped out of our car to settle in for the night.
Remember how I said that Marathon is in the middle of nowhere? We stepped out of the car to a gorgeous dazzling night sky of a magnitude I had never experienced. It took my breath away. Every star in the sky was immediately trailing the next, glittering into eternity. Each constellation was putting on a grand display, so much so that my eyes barely knew where to look next.
It was absolutely incredible.
Big Bend National Park is the largest dark sky designated location in the lower 48 states & many of the surrounding towns (including Marathon) have tight regulations on lighting to protect this certification. The regulations have done their job. There are not enough words to describe the beauty of this remote Texas sky.
If you love stargazing, haul yourself to Marathon, TX. It’s more than worth it. Scout’s honor.
