Black Gap Wildlife Management Area
Exceptional darkness · Milky Way obvious
1 stay nearby →Big Bend National Park, a Dark Sky Park
A vast Chihuahuan Desert park on the Rio Grande, with the darkest night skies of any national park in the lower 48 states.
- How dark?
- Exceptional darkness · Milky Way obvious
- Entry
- $30 per vehicle, 7 days · open all night
- Food & town
- Study Butte (small community) · about 2 mi
- Certified
- Dark Sky Park · 2012
How dark is it, really?
Dark enough that the Milky Way is obvious the moment you look up, with no town glow worth mentioning on any horizon. (For the detail-minded: Bortle class 1–2, an estimate.)
When should I go?
Pick a night when the moon is down. The next stretch of moonless evenings is Nov 6–11.
| Best nights | Moonlight | Worth staying up for |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 6–11 | None · darkest skies | A sky full of stars, and extra shooting stars (Leonids) |
| Dec 5–11 | Mostly none · thin crescent on the edge nights | A sky full of stars, and extra shooting stars (Geminids) |
| Jan 3–9 | Thin crescent, rises late | A sky full of stars, and a meteor shower peak (Quadrantids) |
More dark windows, through Oct 2027
| Best nights | Moonlight | Worth staying up for |
|---|---|---|
| Feb 2–8 | Thin crescent, sets early | The Milky Way core |
| Mar 3–9 | Thin crescent, rises late | The Milky Way core |
| Apr 2–8 | Mostly none · thin crescent on the edge nights | The Milky Way core |
| May 2–7 | Thin crescent, rises late | The Milky Way core, and a meteor shower peak (Eta Aquariids) |
| Jun 1–5 | Thin crescent, rises late | The Milky Way core |
| Jul 1–5 | None · darkest skies | The Milky Way core |
| Jul 31–Aug 5 | Thin crescent, sets early | The Milky Way core, and extra shooting stars (Southern Delta Aquariids and Perseids) |
| Aug 29–Sep 3 | None · darkest skies | The Milky Way core |
| Sep 27–Oct 2 | None · darkest skies | The Milky Way core |
Computed from public astronomical data for this location. Updated monthly. How it's computed
Milky Way season here: Early Feb to late Oct. Out of season until early Feb. In season now, through late Oct.
Meteor showers ahead: Leonids on Nov 17–18 (half moon, sets around midnight), Geminids on Dec 13–14 (thin crescent, sets early), Ursids on Dec 22–23 (full moon, up all night), and Quadrantids on Jan 3–4 (thin crescent, rises late)Lyrids on Apr 22–23 (bright moon for most of the night)Eta Aquariids on May 5–6 (none · darkest skies)Southern Delta Aquariids on Jul 30–31 (thin crescent, rises late)Perseids on Aug 12–13 (bright moon for most of the night).
Email me before the next dark window at Big Bend National Park.
About one email a month, a few days before the moon goes dark: the dates here, the moonlight, and what's worth staying up for. Unsubscribe in one click.
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What it's like
What stands out at night in Big Bend is what's missing: no lit windows, no sign of a town. The National Park Service's Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division has found the sky here the darkest of any national park in the lower 48. Big Bend Ranch State Park next door is also a Dark Sky Park, and together they protect more than a million acres of night.
You don't need equipment. Pull off somewhere away from developed areas, set up a lawn chair, and wait for the Milky Way; a pair of binoculars shows far more than your eyes alone. Rangers and volunteers run free night sky programs, from star parties to moonlight walks, listed on the park's weekly ranger program schedule.
The entrances are open all night, but the park has more than 120 miles of paved road and a 45 mph limit. Watch for javelina, deer, and rabbits on the road shoulders after dark. Campgrounds are by reservation only, so book before you drive in. Storms can arrive quickly, and rain can flood creek beds miles away under a clear sky.
Getting in after dark
Park entrances are open 24 hours a day, all year, and you can arrive at any hour. Fee stations and visitor centers may be closed after normal business hours. Entering the park needs no reservation, but all park campgrounds are by reservation only at recreation.gov. Lodge guests arriving after hours should contact the lodge.
Food, fuel, and supplies
West Entrance (Maverick): no town nearby; Study Butte, TX, a small community about 2 mi away, has a grocery store, 3 places to eat, and gas on the map. Nearest places to eat on the map: Big Bend Resort & Adventures Cafe, Chili Pepper Cafe, and La Kiva Restaurant & Bar.
North Entrance (Persimmon Gap): Marathon, TX, about 40 mi away, with groceries (French Company Grocer), 2 gas stations, and 5 places to eat on the map. Nearest places to eat on the map: Bad Rabbit Cafe, Chisos Mountains Lodge Restaurant, and Chili Pepper Cafe.
Cell service is very spotty across the whole Big Bend area (fairly reliable only in the Chisos Basin on Verizon and near Panther Junction), and the desert can swing 30 degrees or more between day and night, so download the NPS app for offline use and pack layers.
Distances are straight-line and approximate. Places on the map may not be open. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Night sky tours near Big Bend National Park
Terlingua: Private Big Bend Stargazing Tour with Telescopes
Starlingua · starts in Terlingua, about 10 min · checked Sep 2026
These are affiliate links: we earn a commission if you book a tour through them.
✓ Certification verified Jun 2026 against DarkSky International registry (Internet Archive capture) · entry fee from National Park Service (Sep 2026) · after-dark access and night permits from National Park Service (Sep 2026) · darkness: Bortle 1–2, estimated (Sep 2026) · nearest town from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) (Sep 2026)
Dark sky places near Big Bend National Park
For a trip with more than one dark night: the closest within 150 miles, nearest first. Distances are straight-line, not driving.
Dark Sky Sanctuary Dark Sky Park Big Bend Ranch State Park
Exceptional darkness · Milky Way obvious
3 stays nearby →Dark Sky Reserve Greater Big Bend International Dark Sky Reserve
Very dark · Milky Way across the sky on clear nights
3 stays nearby →Dark Sky Sanctuary Devils River State Natural Area, Del Norte Unit
Very dark · Milky Way across the sky on clear nights
3 stays nearby →