Hueco Tanks State Park & Historic Site

This was one of the nicer state parks we have seen. The staff were friendly and informative, there were multiple trails for hiking, the facilities functioned very well and were well kept and clean, and the rv sites were extremely nice. They were paved, in a wonderful setting, and included shade structures. The physical features of the park were outstanding

We’ve encountered so many great accommodations by parks for pandemic travel but this place was not one of them. Cumbersome system requires much advance planning and call to a special number In Austin, then when you arrive, you start all over. In-person check in is required EACH DAY, using a pencil from a pile handled by others, no sanitizer at hand. Then an orientation by yet another park volunteer who clearly didn’t know how far 6 ft was. Then maskless encounters with other rangers and volunteer hosts, a closed gate in and out of campground that had to be handled, bathrooms stinking of old fashioned disinfectant, and no oversized vehicle parking anywhere. Half the park roadway is closed to driving entirely and dogs are allowed only on the pavement, when there are long gravel trails that don’t go anywhere near fragile rock sites. Even staying two nights in this very off the grid location, you must get in line at 730 am to try and get a permit for self guided hiking due to limited visitors allowed — which I totally get, but couldn’t camping reservation ensure you at least one day? No one ever checked the permit either. Petroglyphs are faint and other than ascending the chain trail (steep and strenuous) hikes are somewhat unrewarding. The rock climbing concessionaires seem to have this place sewn up though. It could be a remarkable experience for others as well, but unorganized procedures, underfunded infrastructure, and largely indifferent staff didn’t help. One young ranger was warm and helpful just to give credit where due. And the rocks are amazing, almost worth the dreary drive out from El Paso. Been there, done that and won’t make the detour again.

We stayed here for one night in January. Because of the sensitive & historical nature of the park, only 70 people (including day trippers) are allowed in the park at one time so reservations are a good idea. When we arrived, there was a line of people at the entrance waiting for someone to leave so that they could go in. Since we had a reservation we were able to go in. Check in was easy but there was a bit of a wait. We had to let the rangers know when we left in the morning so that they could let more people in. There is a 15 minute video that is required watching for any first time visitors.
Our site was paved with electricity and a nice Ramada for eating in. I did a walk around and sites 6-12 had the nicest views but were too small for us. We didn’t have consistent cell coverage but were able to get some OTA channels. The outhouses smelled very strongly of disinfectant.
A large portion of the park is only accessible with a ranger guide and there are tours scheduled most days. That would be a must for us on a return trip.
The parts that are accessible are pretty interesting. The area has been used by various groups for over a thousand years so it was interesting to see the petroglyphs from different time periods - overlaid of course with graffiti from both the the late 1800’s and the 1900’s. The park is a highly rated spot for “boulderers” and there were large groups of young people with their mats climbing the boulders. It was fascinating to watch -the flexibility, strength and patience astounding. We explored all of the self-guided trails as well as some off trail scrambling which was a lot of fun.

Stayed overnight but can’t wait to come back. Our gravel site was level and included electric and water. The views are spectacular! We had poor Verizon service but the amphitheater had 3 bars LTE.
They limit visitors to 70 at any one time. First timers are required to watch a short video on park history and regulations. Much of the park is only accessible with a guide to protect it from overuse and abuse.
We were by far the oldest people in the park! It is a haven for young rock climbers.

Hueco Tanks are really huge rocks piled up just out side El Paseo. The back in sites are either tucked into the rocks with Ramada covered tables or looking out over the desert to the mountains with Ramada covered tables. There is lots of space between sites ....hard packed gravel pads on 2 loops
.... our 35 foot 5th wheel would have fit in many of the sites and we saw many larger rigs.
We Hiked on 2 different trails up onto the rocks and located the ancient drawings That the park is known for.
This is one of those parks we’re your camp site is a delight to wake up in.
Cell coverage and hot spot is only at the visitor center. internet no....
In the summer it would be very very hot here. We were here in the fall and it was perfect temp for hiking. Spring the desert would be in bloom and cool.

We spent 1 night and then returned for an additional 3 nights at Hueco Tanks. This is a beautiful park situated about 25 minutes from El Paso surrounded by amazing rock features and scenery. Hueco is a bit different than your average TX State Park, and while the campground is small, it's well spaced and offers plenty of privacy between sites. The park itself is broken into 4 areas, North, East, West, and East Spur mountains, and only North is accessible without a guide. North limits access to only 70 people at a given time, 60 of those entries are reservable by phone up to 90 days in advance for 3 days at time (then 1 day out), and most of the access is by rock climbers. Hueco is not only incredibly scenic and an interesting historic site, it's also the spot for world class rock climbing (bouldering). Even campers are required to get an access pass if they want to hike, wander, and/or rock climb, but sleeping in the park gives you first access when the doors open at 8. Accessing the park for camping or hiking/etc requires that you watch at 15 minute video as a way to help educate visitors in the parks history and preservation, understanding the why behind the park rules. Both the rangers and the campground hosts were very nice and helpful, and it's worth noting that the park also locks campers in at 6pm when the park closes.

For $16 the sites are water/electric- we are TX State Park pass holders, otherwise we'd also tack on the TX park entry costs, all are back in, and there is an easily accessible dump station. Camping (just like park access) is limited to 3 nights, and as of today, has to be made by phone (not the TX reservations site).
The only 'minor' ding for us was the weak and very inconsistent cell service- it was in and out and not great even when we had it with the help of a booster.

This was a place I have wanted to visit but forgot where it was until friends were there the week before. And as luck would have it, we driving right by it on our way to Las Cruces. This park is a world class bouldering area, as well as, a historic site with over 2,000 rock art pieces all hidden in cave areas. There are many hoops to jump through to get in and hike as other have described below. The campground reservations can only be made by phone. The reservation line is only open Monday - Friday and closed on holidays (we were calling on a holiday). The park, however, is open all year everyday. So...if you look on the park website, there is the actual park phone number (with the little phone symbol). Call that and push the number for the staff directory. Then push the number for the head ranger and you have the office. They were very helpful and told us they plenty of spots in the campground. The sites run from 35 ft to 75 ft. Our site #3 was very long and easily accommodated our 40 ft MH and Jeep. All the sites have 50 amp E/W and are paved and level. Some site are right at the base of the mountain. There is a dump station in the camping area. Each site also has a covered picnic area. Everything the others say is true about entering and using the park. If you don't have a Texas park pass, it can be pricey. You EACH need to pay the daily park fee of $7. That added $28 dollars to our final cost. I would recommend getting to the office closer to 7:00 AM for a permit. There are only 10 permits for the campground and each person needs one and MUST be present. It was a hassle to be able to hike the mountain, but worth it. We were the only hikers we saw. Everyone else was there to boulder. One thing you don't want to miss is finding the eight faces or "masks." They are in Cave Kiva. The ranger will give you a VERY general direction sheet in exchange for your license. These are written directions with photos. It is a fun adventure and so exciting when you find the cave and masks. Check our blog post attached for some photos! Winter is the most popular time at this park because the bouldering folk like it very cool. Guided tours are inexpensive, $2 a person, and will take you to the other two mountain areas that can not be accessed alone. They are challenging with lots of climbing, crawling, and sliding. Not for everyone! However, there are different Level tours for difficulty to see the Rock Art. There is a Verizon cell tower right outside the park but the small mountains do block it in the campground. We used our booster and got decent 4G, but at times it dropped to 3G and also disappeared.