How Long Is the Pecos River From Start to End?

The Pecos River is one of the longest rivers in the United States. At 926 miles long, this river starts in north-central New Mexico and travels through Texas. When the Pecos River ends, it is in the Rio Grande. The river ends at the Amistad National Recreation Area, starting in Mora County in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.

However, after leaving the mountains, the river flows over desert-like land. It is dry for a big part of the year. Around Roswell, N.M., the river widens into a basin, which closes somewhat to a broad, shallow valley at the Texas–New Mexico border. In the last 100 miles of its course, the river cuts into a narrow canyon more than 1,000 feet deep. 

The Pecos River is a natural border for several different counties. Legend has it that the Pecos River is also where the Wild West began. It is also how Pecos Bill got his name.

In the early 1600s, explorers came to the upper Pecos River area to look and mine for minerals. The surrounding area was increasingly used for many different purposes throughout the next couple hundred years. It was used for trapping, mining, logging, and hunting.

The Pecos River has generally been a huge recreation spot for many visitors. People will come from miles around to enjoy the state’s most popular trout fishing streams. The scenic value of this river is second to none. Many qualities attract visitors year after year, such as high mountain meadows, rugged canyons, and waterfalls. Along the river, there are aspen, pine, and spruce forests.

This serves as the eastern boundary of Texas’s most arid and mountainous region, generally known as the Trans-Pecos. The river also played a huge role in the Spanish exploration of Texas. However 1949, the United States government created the Pecos River Compact. This helped settle the dispute between New Mexico and Texas over the water rights to the river.

The photo featured at the top of this post is © Jared_campbell/iStock via Getty Images