Repeat destination? 🏝️ Traveling for merch? Lost, damaged? Tell us What you're owed ✈️
TRAVEL
Antonin Scalia

Cibolo Creek Ranch: Wildlife, movie sets, luxury

Ben Abramson, and John Bacon
USA TODAY
Cibolo Creek Ranch, where Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was found dead on Saturday, is an upscale resort in southwestern Texas near Big Bend National Park.

The resort where Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was found dead Saturday is a sprawling luxury retreat steeped in Southwest Texas ranching history that is home to buffalo, mountain lions, black bears and blockbuster film locations dating to the 1950s.

Three forts grace the Cibolo Creek Ranch, the oldest dating to 1857. Back then they were spartan complexes used to stave off Native American tribes. Now they house well-appointed rooms with rates that can exceed $800 per night on a rugged yet picturesque 30,000-acre swath of the Chihuahua Desert, 15 miles from the Mexican border.

Justice Scalia found dead at Texas ranch

No Country for Old Men, a film that won the 2008 Academy Award for best picture, was filmed here. So was There Will be Blood, which claimed the best actor award for Daniel Day-Lewis the same year. The filming of Giant brought Rock Hudson, James Dean and Elizabeth Taylor to the ranch — and won an Oscar for director George Stevens in 1957.

Hunting, horseback riding, fishing, wildlife hikes and birding are among activities listed on the ranch's website. Hunting excursions, for either birds such as pheasant or big game including mule deer and elk, occur on "remote areas" of its property not far from Big Bend National Park.

Hikers are provided with a "small emergency radio" as they pursue photo opportunities of the scenic ranch and its wildlife. Catch-and-release fishing is offered in a lake stocked with large-mouth bass.

Star-gazing is encouraged, and telescopes are provided.

The foothills of the Chinati Mountains provide a rich landscape for horseback riding, mountain biking and four-wheel ATV tours.

The ranch has a rich Texas history, where vast herds of cattle and sheep were raised in the late 19th century. The ranch's website says then-owner Milton Faver's "ranching empire" included up to 200,000 longhorn cattle. Faver also built the forts, but the place began its renaissance after Houston entrepreneur John Poindexter bought it a quarter-century ago.

The resort receives glowing reader reviews on sites such as TripAdvisor, which has awarded Cibolo Creek Ranch its Certificate of Excellence for five straight years.

Featured Weekly Ad