It’s our last full day today. We’ll be packing up the tent and heading north to Marfa.

The sign welcoming you to this tiny (pop. 2,400) one-stop Texas town reads MARFA IS HOW THE WEST WAS. Having seen little except olive-hued prairie grass, cacti, and tumbleweeds since driving out of El Paso a couple hundred miles back, you could well believe this claim. But if you turn south at the single flashing red light in the center of town and drive past the Border Patrol headquarters, you will soon find yourself leaving America’s mythic past for what is arguably the most cutting-edge art complex on the planet.

For the next two days we should be walking and doing this.

Back in the car. Not long now. Nearly there:

Big Bend is one of the largest and least visited of America’s national parks. Over 801,000 acres await your exploration and enjoyment. From an elevation of less than 2,000 feet along the Rio Grande to nearly 8,000 feet in the Chisos Mountains, Big Bend includes massive canyons, vast desert expanses, and the entire Chisos Mountain range. Here, you can explore one of the last remaining wild corners of the United States, and experience unmatched sights, sounds, and solitude.

We’ll be spending tonight in a tent at the base of a mountain. I hope I remembered to bring warm socks.

Oh no we don’t! It’s just time to head west. But before we do, we’ll be stopping off at Space Center Houston for an early morning tour.

The rest of the day will be spent on the road. Our target is Del Rio, 350 miles west of Houston and close to the border with Mexico.

Today I will be exploring Houston: the Menil Collection, the Rothko Chapel (pictured above), and hopefully visiting the West Alabama Ice House.