Trail Overview

Pinto Canyon Road is a mostly graded dirt road suitable for almost all vehicles, but even for the serious off-road driver, the scenery makes it worth it. Pinto Canyon Road starts where the pavement of RM2810 ends, 32 miles southwest of downtown Marfa, Texas. It then descends through Pinto Canyon to the village of Ruidosa, Texas. The beautiful views of deep canyons and mountain peaks, including Chinati Peak at 7,728 feet above sea level, are why you drive this road. As you get towards the south end of the road, rugged mountains in Mexico loom in the distance. The road ends in the small village of Ruidosa right on the Rio Grande border with Mexico. The road is an easy, mostly smooth drive but is very dusty and has many sections with steep drop-offs into the canyon below.

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Difficulty

This road is in a very remote portion of Texas with no help within miles. It can be very muddy and slippery when wet.

Technical Rating

Craig Hunnicutt

Jul 04, 2026

2024 Ford Bronco

Open

NormalDusty

Decided we needed to take this trail after seeing an article in Texas Monthly naming it the most scenic drive in Texas. It lived up to that description and then some. Beautiful desert mountain scenery the entire way. The extremely remote location and harsh (hot and dry) landscape elevate this otherwise tame gravel road to worthy adventure status. If I said it once I said it 100 times, “I can’t believe there are mountains like this in Texas!” While not a difficult trail at all, having a sturdy vehicle does offer peace of mind given that any sort of breakdown in this remote, unforgiving desert terrain could present a whole host of challenges. The only other vehicle we saw on the entire 20 miles of gravel road was a Border Patrol truck and they were on an adjacent private, gated ranch access trail. So even with the recent headlines in Texas Monthly, this trail is a great place to take an incredible mountain drive in relative isolation.

Garett Trietsch

Jun 19, 2026

2024 Ford Bronco Raptor

Open

Normal

First time driving this trail, and it was not difficult. Very scenic. I only aired down to 31psi because I didn't have a great pump with me, and it turned out to be plenty. Only crossed paths with one other vehicle on the trail.

Robert Duncan

Jun 11, 2026

2014 Porsche Cayenne

Open

Normal

Matt M

Oct 22, 2025

Open

WashboardNormal

A very pretty scenic route that takes you between Presidio and Marfa. The road has some washboards but should be doable in just about any vehicle. the washes could get a little more difficult after rain before any maintenance. do note, though, That if you drive this trail south to nort with out-of-state plates, there is a very high likelihood that you will be pulled over by the border patrol. Apparently this is a known smuggling route to get around the Border Patrol Checkpoints. ask me how I know!