Culberson County, West Texas · near Van Horn · APN 14423: Park the Rig and Stay Put: No Checkout Time Out Here

Somewhere to Park It That Nobody Can Take Back

West Texas doesn't give away much, but it is generous with sky. That matters if you've spent the last few years living on somebody else's clock: the campground with the Tuesday checkout, the RV park that wants its money by the week, the pull-off where a knock at midnight means move along. What you've wanted the whole time is a place where the rig can sit, and where the answer to "how long are you staying?" is yours to give.

This is 5.7 acres of open high desert at about 3,840 feet, east of Van Horn. Park it, level it, and leave it. Put up a shade structure and a shed before anything else (there's nobody out here to ask), and when the cabin idea stops being just an idea, the ground will still be waiting. The nights run dark enough that the stars do most of the talking.

Van Horn is about 18 minutes away for fuel, groceries, and a hot meal. Roughly 30 miles north of town, on a private ranch, Blue Origin launches its New Shepard rockets to the edge of space (so you won't be the only one out here chasing a bigger sky).

The trade is the way in: there's no road worn to the lot and no power, water, or sewer at it, so you bring the truck with the good tires and you bring your own everything (the solar panels will never lack for work out here).

Plenty of people pass through Van Horn on their way somewhere else. The ones who stay usually have a reason, and a piece of ground with your name on it is a good one.