El Capitan Trail Junction
in Texas · centroid 98 mi from El Paso
Less than a quarter mile from the trail is the junction of three trails. Stay straight to continue toward the summit of Guadalupe Peak. A right turn directs hikers toward Devil's Hall and the Guadalupe Peak "stock trail".
A left turn here begins the El Capitan Trail. The El Capitan Trail leads around the base of El Capitan and along the west side of the Guadalupe escarpment, ending at the historic Williams Ranch house. It is the only trail to provide access to the west side of the Guadalupes.
As such, the trail provides excellent opportunities for solitude and sweeping views. If following the trail to the right, in about a mile you'll reach the junction of the Stock trail connector for Guadalupe Peak. This trail features a less steep ascent/descent from the peak.
- States
- Texas
- Trail type
- National Park trail
- Centroid nearest city
- El Paso, TX · 98 mi · ~2.8 hr drive
- Centroid coords
- 31.8967°, -104.8295°
About Guadalupe Mountains National Park
This trail is inside Guadalupe Mountains National Park, a national park managed by the U.S. National Park Service. Conditions, road status, trail closures, and reservation requirements are published on the park's NPS page — check it before driving in, especially in winter or during major weather events.
Entrance fee: $10 per vehicle (verify current rate on the park page). An America the Beautiful annual pass ($80) covers entrance to all NPS units.
Official NPS trail page: https://www.nps.gov/places/gumo_gp_3trailsjct.htm
Park homepage: https://www.nps.gov/gumo/index.htm
Plan your hike
Maps + permits: long-distance trails like this often require permits for through-hiking, backcountry camping, or specific sections (especially in National Parks). Check with the maintaining organisation listed above and the relevant land manager before booking travel.
Water + supplies: water sources vary seasonally on most U.S. trails. Carry a filter and consult current trail-condition reports — through-hiker journals (PCT-L, AT Reddit, etc.) and the maintaining organisation publish regular updates.
When to go: hiking seasons vary widely with elevation, latitude, and snowpack. Through-hikers traditionally start the AT in March-April (Springer northbound) and the PCT in late April (Campo northbound). High-elevation western trails (CDT, JMT, Wonderland) generally aren't passable until July.
If you've hiked El Capitan Trail Junction and have current notes (water sources, trail closures, permit changes), tell us at /contact — we update pages as we learn.
Stay nearby
Other trails within 50 miles
Sources
Trail data on this page is compiled from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), the maintaining organisation's public-facing materials, and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA where excerpts are quoted). Distance, terminus, and descriptive text for nationally-designated trails are hand-curated from federal land-manager websites and trail-association sources. We do not modify the underlying data; this page presents what is already publicly recorded. To suggest corrections, see our methodology page.