This Christmas 2014 RideDualSport did not host a full-on Big Ultimate Terlingua Tour (BUTT) primarily because Big Bend Ranch State Park had to suspend serving meals at the bunkhouse. Unfortunately for the Park, they could not recover the cost of two full time staff it took, and were losing money on the meals. Due to other priorites, the Park had to reallocate its staffing resources to meet more pressing needs. However, this also made a large dent in bunk house attendance.
Good news is that the Park has a great cook on contract, that is involved in restaurants locally. So, BBRSP can bring in a cook to host events. In addition, visitors can make use of the kitchen, which we did.
So, this Spring RDS had a very informal, "mini-BUTT" with a crew of five. We purchased groceries and cooked our own breakfast and dinner, which was very resonable in cost and easy to do in the fantastic BBRSP kitchen.
This Spring the Park has had tons of rain.....in fact at one point a while back the Park road was only accessible by 4X4. Our ride this year had cool weather, overcast skies and a bit of sun that would poke through time to time. Really, perfect riding weather as it was cool and the bikes were very happy. We were treated to FANTASTIC WILD FLOWERS in the Park, as I have never seen before.
Webnel put together some great video clips! Mini BUTT March, 2015
Four of us camped in South Leyva, and one stayed in the bunk house. Several in the group were continuing on to Uncle's.
Webnel and I shared the ride down in my truck, staying in Ft. Stockton friday night. Webnel is a very gifted rider and good company to have on dual sport trip!
I noted a few new things about BBRSP:
- The bunk house was pretty empty even though this was Spring Break time.
- That said, the Park Super mentioned this was the most busy Spring Break ever....the HQ was always full!
- Families with smaller children are camping in South Leyva....good to see!
- A large group of college kids camped noisily in South Leyva for one night, then vacated quickly.
While the Park is for sure seeing more use, overall its good, and the experiance you want is still there.
Big Bend Ranch State Park continues to be very dual sport friendly and we look forward to going back soon!
The crew
UlyBrad shows up with tons of fire wood, food, extra gear and lots of great stories! Check out Brad's IXL dirt bike school, the techniques he teaches will vastly improve your dual sport riding.
Night in our camp, two sites shared btw four riders - worked out to just $25 each for 3 nights!
Never seen blue bonnets so big!
Botella Rd, the East side, was highlight of the trip.* Challenging, fun, and beautiful.The West side is impassable (we know, we tried...) but the East side is a hoot!
Other great rides in BBRSP!
UlyBrad in perfect form and unstoppable!
Big Bend Ranch State Park always makes you want to come again, and do it all over! Each time is a real treat, and its always a bit different in the Park.
Weather can always throw you for a loop, but the gamble can really pay off with fantastic riding.
Clarifying note: While still marked as a "trail" in fact Botella is very rough dual track road open to street legal vehicles. BBRSP was nice enough to open this road to vehicles, in particular so dual sport riders could have another option for reaching Cinega without having to ride 169 the whole way. Otherwise, riding on TRAILS (hiking, horses, mountain bikes) is prohibited. Thanks!
Good news is that the Park has a great cook on contract, that is involved in restaurants locally. So, BBRSP can bring in a cook to host events. In addition, visitors can make use of the kitchen, which we did.
So, this Spring RDS had a very informal, "mini-BUTT" with a crew of five. We purchased groceries and cooked our own breakfast and dinner, which was very resonable in cost and easy to do in the fantastic BBRSP kitchen.
This Spring the Park has had tons of rain.....in fact at one point a while back the Park road was only accessible by 4X4. Our ride this year had cool weather, overcast skies and a bit of sun that would poke through time to time. Really, perfect riding weather as it was cool and the bikes were very happy. We were treated to FANTASTIC WILD FLOWERS in the Park, as I have never seen before.
Webnel put together some great video clips! Mini BUTT March, 2015
Four of us camped in South Leyva, and one stayed in the bunk house. Several in the group were continuing on to Uncle's.
Webnel and I shared the ride down in my truck, staying in Ft. Stockton friday night. Webnel is a very gifted rider and good company to have on dual sport trip!
I noted a few new things about BBRSP:
- The bunk house was pretty empty even though this was Spring Break time.
- That said, the Park Super mentioned this was the most busy Spring Break ever....the HQ was always full!
- Families with smaller children are camping in South Leyva....good to see!
- A large group of college kids camped noisily in South Leyva for one night, then vacated quickly.
While the Park is for sure seeing more use, overall its good, and the experiance you want is still there.
Big Bend Ranch State Park continues to be very dual sport friendly and we look forward to going back soon!
The crew
UlyBrad shows up with tons of fire wood, food, extra gear and lots of great stories! Check out Brad's IXL dirt bike school, the techniques he teaches will vastly improve your dual sport riding.
Night in our camp, two sites shared btw four riders - worked out to just $25 each for 3 nights!
Never seen blue bonnets so big!
Botella Rd, the East side, was highlight of the trip.* Challenging, fun, and beautiful.The West side is impassable (we know, we tried...) but the East side is a hoot!
Other great rides in BBRSP!
UlyBrad in perfect form and unstoppable!
Big Bend Ranch State Park always makes you want to come again, and do it all over! Each time is a real treat, and its always a bit different in the Park.
Weather can always throw you for a loop, but the gamble can really pay off with fantastic riding.
Clarifying note: While still marked as a "trail" in fact Botella is very rough dual track road open to street legal vehicles. BBRSP was nice enough to open this road to vehicles, in particular so dual sport riders could have another option for reaching Cinega without having to ride 169 the whole way. Otherwise, riding on TRAILS (hiking, horses, mountain bikes) is prohibited. Thanks!
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