Terlingua, because of its close proximity to the 1250 square mile Big Bend National Park, services the estimated 350,000 visitors each year with several businesses such as hotels, RV Parks, restaurants, activity providers (especially mountain-biking) in addition to providing residences for park employees, river guides, local artistes and others.
As we enter the 29th day of the government shutdown as I write this, I can only imagine the hustle and bustle in this old ghost town.
Terlingua, once a mining town that had seen the boom in the late 19th and 20th centuries, went bust in the 40s when the mines closed down which left the buildings in ruins and later helped earn the place the name 'a ghost town', in spite of being the only real town in the area.
As you walk through the town, you might get the impression that you are probably passing a movie set for an old Western but do not be fooled! If you set out to visit in the mornings, you will find the town gathering at the quaint coffee shop coffee shop, Espresso Y Poco Mas, that serves everything from coffee to breakfast burritos to sandwiches until 2 in the afternoon.
The place also offers a 7-room boutique hotel, La Posada Milagro, if you intend to stay close to the ghost town.
The ghost town also attracts crowds with its annual Terlingua International Chili Championship that happens on the first Saturday of every November where some of the renowned top chefs compete in the chili cookoffs.
The Starlight Theater and the adjoining store, The Terlingua Trading Company are literally the most happening places in the Terlingua ghost town as it starts getting darker in the evening.
The store, housed in the old company store of the Chisos Mining Company, helps pass time as you wait for your turn at the Starlight Theater.
What interested me in the store was some of the works of the local artists who moved to the area over the years and settled down.
There were a trio of guitar players strumming on the porch of the store when we showed up one evening in fall for dinner.
The Starlight Theater was an old movie theater that has been converted into a restaurant/saloon with live shows. The menu, that includes a lot of local flavors will not disappoint you. (I cannot say the same of the live show, at least the night I was there, lol). But the service was amazing and in spite of the long waits, the hostesses are very patient and the bar man is accommodative too, which helps, especially when you are beat after a long day of hiking and trekking!
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