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Highway 118: Alpine to Study Butte, Big Bend, Texas
Photo: Jonathan Cutrer · CC BY 2.0

Drives Texas Big Bend and West Texas

Highway 118: Alpine to Study Butte

TX 118 · Alpine → Study Butte

Leisurely76 mi1 hr 20 min2,100 ft climbHigh point ≈ 5,400 ftOne way
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The drive

Highway 118 from Alpine to Study Butte is the main way to Big Bend from Alpine. It leaves Alpine and drops off the town's plateau on tight turns and steep grades, then sets out across the open Chihuahuan Desert on long, straight stretches with almost no intersections.

The mountains are the landmarks. Cathedral Mountain rises beside the road early on, and there are picnic tables with a view of it. Farther south the road passes the entrance to Elephant Mountain Wildlife Management Area, then a picnic table near Crossen Mesa, and runs on through arid ranch land toward the hills around Study Butte.

It ends in Study Butte, at the junction with FM 170 near the west entrance to Big Bend National Park. Terlingua and the River Road to Lajitas are just to the west.

Along the way

  1. Alpine
  2. Study Butte
Elevation
2,100 ft of climbing · high point ≈ 5,400 ft
AlpineStudy Butte
Curves
Mostly gentle curves
AlpineStudy Butte
GentleHairpins

Good to know

  • Services are few and far between: fill up in Alpine before heading south.
  • There's an immigration checkpoint on Highway 118 south of Alpine.
  • Big Bend National Park's entrance fee applies only once you enter the park, beyond Study Butte.

Open all year, weather permitting. Roads close for snow, fire, storms and repairs: before you set off, check TxDOT DriveTexas.

Questions about this drive

How long is the drive from Alpine to Study Butte?

Highway 118 from Alpine to Study Butte is 75.7 miles and takes about 1 hour 20 minutes without stops.

Is there gas between Alpine and Big Bend on Highway 118?

Services along Highway 118 between Alpine and Study Butte are very limited, so fill up in Alpine.

What is the best road from Alpine to Big Bend National Park?

Highway 118 south to Study Butte leads to the park's west entrance, near Terlingua, and is the usual way in from Alpine.

Is Highway 118 to Big Bend twisty?

Only near Alpine, where it drops off the plateau on tight turns and steep grades. Most of Highway 118 to Study Butte is long, straight desert road.

What you get in the app

Turn by turn, on this roadSpoken directions along the exact route. Carve never reroutes you onto a faster one.
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Distance, time, elevation, curves and intensity are from Carve's route. Checked 2026-10-28.

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Map of Highway 118: Alpine to Study Butte, from Alpine to Study Butte