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Passenger cars should be able to negotiate the dirt roads that lead to Hot Springs, Dugout Wells, and Grapevine Hills. The thirteen-mile Old Maverick Road, a shortcut to Santa Elena from the west, should also present no problem. The road passes the former jacal (a low-ceilinged dugout house) of a legendary Big Bend character named Gilberto Luna, who subsisted on crops cultivated in a dry wash, fathered more than fifty children, and lived to be 108. All improved dirt roads should be attempted only in dry weather at speeds under 35 miles per hour.
 Some 150 miles of unimproved back-country roads promise even more adventure, but with a high-clearance, four-wheel-drive vehicle. Check conditions at a ranger station. Otherwise, it can be a long walk back to civilization. The most popular are the 50-mile River Road, which parallels the Rio Grande, though river views are not as common as one might think; the Glenn Springs road to the site of a Mexican bandido raid in 1916; and the 2-mile Old Ore Road shadowing the Dead Horse Mountains, in the eastern part of the park. Conditions on these roads are unpredictable because the routes go through dry washes that change with every heavy rainfall. If you're taking the River Road, avoid the side roads leading to the Rio Grande. FYI: The Panther Junction gas station has a tow truck and a mechanic who does minor repairs. Major automotive work is done in Study Butte, Terlinqua, and Marathon.
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