Four-wheel drive is always required beyond mile 5. The seashore protects about 66 miles of coast
Tires for rock in the west and sand on the coast
Texas Parks and Wildlife is specific for the Big Bend Ranch roads: load range E tires are strongly recommended, six-ply is the absolute minimum, and if you have standard four-ply tread with two-ply polyester sidewalls, stay home. It asks for two inflated spares, not one, and says flats never happen on level ground out there.
The coast asks the opposite question. Four-wheel drive is always required from mile 5 to 60 on Padre Island, and the useful skill is airing down for soft sand and airing back up before pavement. One set rarely does both jobs well.
Tires are the only part of the vehicle that touches the ground, and on a loaded rig they work close to their limits. A good tire shop starts with load rating and size, then tread. It will also tell you when the tire you want will rub, need different wheels or throw off your gearing.
Expect help with
01Choosing a tire by load, terrain and season
02Wheels with the right offset and load rating
03Mounting, balancing and tire pressure sensors
04A matching full-size spare
05Alignment, rotation and repairs
How to choose tires for overland travel
Tread pattern is the last decision, not the first.
01Match the load rating to your real axle weights, not to the badge on the fender.
02All-terrain tires suit most overland travel. Mud-terrains are louder, heavier and wear faster, and earn it only in real mud and rock.
03Buy five. A matching full-size spare that you rotate in is worth the money when the nearest tire shop is a day away.
04Check the wheels too. Wheels have load ratings, and the wrong offset stresses bearings and rubs.
05Ask whether the shop can move or reprogram your tire pressure sensors.
What to have ready before you ask for a quote
A tire quote is quick when the shop knows what the tire has to carry.
01Vehicle, current tire size and wheel size
02Lift height, if any
03Loaded weight, or a list of what is on the vehicle
04Where you drive most: pavement, gravel, rock, sand, snow
05A budget range for five tires
Questions people ask
What does load range mean?
It describes how much weight a tire can carry at a given pressure. Heavier builds, vans and truck campers usually need a higher load range than the vehicle came with. The tire's sidewall and the placard in the door jamb are the places to start, and a tire shop can work through the numbers with you.
How big can I go?
Every platform has a size that fits at stock height, a size that fits with a modest lift, and a size that needs trimming and gears. Tell the shop your lift and wheels and ask what fits without rubbing at full steering lock and full compression.
Should I air down?
On washboard, sand and rock, lower pressure gives a better ride and more traction and is easier on the vehicle. It also means you need a way to air back up before pavement. How low depends on your tire, your weight and your speed, so ask your tire shop and start conservatively.
How high is Texas?
From Port Aransas at 6 feet to Guadalupe Peak at 8,749.
Altitude decides what your engine, your brakes and your lungs have to work with, and how late in the year the passes open.
02,0004,0006,0008,00010,000
Feet above sea level
Towns
Fort DavisIn the Davis Mountains at the start and finish of the 75-mile loop drive Texas Parks and Wildlife describes through the range.4,896 ft
AlpineOn US 90 with the Amtrak and bus stops, 100 miles from Big Bend park headquarters. State Highway 118 runs south from here to Study Butte.4,477 ft
MarathonOn US 90 at the top of US 385, 70 miles north of Big Bend park headquarters. FM 2627 leaves here for Black Gap, 55 miles south.4,044 ft
Van HornOn I-10 where State Highway 54 runs north toward Guadalupe Mountains National Park. Last interstate services before that corner of the state.4,044 ft
El PasoFar west corner, where I-10 meets the border. Franklin Mountains State Park sits inside the city, and the Trans-Mountain Highway crosses it.3,713 ft
AmarilloWhere I-40 and I-27 meet in the Panhandle. Lake Meredith and its two off-road areas are north, Palo Duro and Caprock Canyons south and southeast.3,670 ft
CanyonAt the gate of Palo Duro Canyon State Park on Park Road 5, where the Civilian Conservation Corps road drops to the canyon floor.3,543 ft
Fort StocktonWhere I-10 meets US 285 and US 385. The nearest EV charging to Big Bend, 130 miles out, and one of three towns with major shopping near the park.2,973 ft
TerlinguaStudy Butte and Terlingua sit between Big Bend’s west entrance and the Barton Warnock Visitor Center at the east end of Big Bend Ranch. Fuel and diesel.2,890 ft
PresidioWest end of FM 170 and the Fort Leaton entrance to Big Bend Ranch. Fuel, and the only local extraction and mechanic service for the ranch.2,581 ft
QuitaqueAt Caprock Canyons State Park and the Trailway, 100 miles southeast of Amarillo in Briscoe County.2,577 ft
Del RioOn US 90 at Amistad National Recreation Area, and the nearest full-service town to the Devils River State Natural Area.965 ft
HuntsvilleOn I-45 at the Sam Houston National Forest, 50 miles north of Houston, beside the only OHV trail in the national forests of Texas.371 ft
LufkinHeadquarters of the National Forests and Grasslands in Texas, and the service town between the Angelina, Sabine and Davy Crockett forests.313 ft
Corpus ChristiThe mainland base for Padre Island National Seashore. Last full services before the causeway and the 60 miles of drivable beach.7 ft
Port AransasOn Mustang Island, where the city sells the beach parking permit for markers 0 to 62 and allows camping on the sand.6 ft
Passes, high roads and summits
Guadalupe PeakThe highest point in Texas, in Culberson County. No road reaches it8,749 ft
Mount LivermoreHigh point of the Davis Mountains, inside the 75-mile loop out of Fort Davis8,338 ft
El CapitanThe cliff at the south end of the Guadalupe escarpment, above the Williams Ranch road8,095 ft
Emory PeakThe high point of the Chisos Mountains, in Big Bend National Park7,818 ft
Panther PassThe saddle the Chisos Basin Road crosses on its 6 paved miles into the basin5,778 ft
Trans-Mountain Highway summitTrans-Mountain Highway, Franklin Mountains State Park5,120 ft
Pass, road and summit elevations are the figures published by the agency that manages them. Town elevations are the town’s or county’s own
figure where it publishes an exact one; the rest are from the U.S. Geological Survey (3D Elevation Program at the place’s official coordinates),
retrieved September 18, 2026. Every source is listed at the foot of the page.
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