The crusted peaks of the Christmas Mountains have stood for about 42 million years, the Terlingua Ranch Lodge for about 50. You’ll find them both at the end of a winding sixteen-mile road that cuts through some of the 190,000 acres of the Terlingua Ranch, with its hundreds of cinder block houses, rustic adobes, shacks, sheds, tents, and trailers. This is where the desert rats live, escaping civilization. The lodge, which offers 32 guest rooms across eight cabins, boasts the only pool for miles around—a sparkling blue rectangle surrounded by ocotillo, yucca, boulders, and mountains. After a swim in the cool water, lie on a plastic deck chair and stare at the surrounding slopes and crags as they turn bright orange in the setting sun and then slowly darken. Swifts swoop in for a drink of water, and mockingbirds serenade the languid and the active alike. Stay there long enough and you’ll be lost beneath the stars blinking impossibly bright.
This article originally appeared in the September 2024 issue of Texas Monthly with the headline “Dive Into the Desert.” Subscribe today.
