Ojinaga
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Ojinaga

Ojinaga

Quiet Chihuahua border town where ranch country meets the Rio Grande opposite Presidio, Texas.

Ojinaga is a small border town in Chihuahua state, sitting across the Rio Grande from Presidio, Texas. It serves mainly as a crossing point into Mexico and a supply stop for the surrounding ranch country. The town itself is quiet and unassuming, with a few taco stands and local restaurants along the main road.

The surrounding desert landscape — where the Chihuahuan Desert meets the Sierra Madre foothills — is stark and beautiful. The Río Conchos joins the Rio Grande just east of town, one of the few places where the larger river still gets significant water.

Guide

Getting There

Ojinaga sits on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande opposite Presidio, Texas. The border crossing is open daily and handles mostly local traffic. From the US side, Presidio is about 60 miles south of Marfa on US-67.

From within Mexico, Chihuahua city is about 230 km south on the toll road (Mex-16 / Mex-45), a drive of around three hours. There is bus service from Chihuahua to Ojinaga several times daily. No passenger trains serve the border here.

Guide

Things to Do

Ojinaga is not a destination in itself but a gateway. The town has a pleasant central plaza with the usual church and government buildings, and the surrounding Chihuahuan Desert landscape — vast, severe, and beautiful — is what most visitors come for. The Río Conchos, one of the Rio Grande's few significant tributaries, meets the larger river just east of town; the confluence is worth the short drive.

The best scenery is on the US side of the border: the Big Bend area of Texas, with its dramatic canyon country, is within a couple of hours of the crossing. From the Mexican side, the drive south from Ojinaga into the desert hills of Chihuahua offers stark, unpopulated country for those with their own transport.