Basics
- Location:
- Connects Natchitoches, Louisiana with Eagle Pass, Texas.
- Surface:
- Paved
- Suitable Vehicle:
- Passenger Car
- Length:
- 540 miles (in Texas)
- Time:
- 9 - 10 hours
Description
Texas's El Camino Real, created in 1691, has had any number of names. El Camino Real itself means "King's Highway" in English and this once was the thoroughfare between East Texas and Mexico. The section between San Antonio and Louisiana was once known as Camino Arriba. The section between San Antonio and Mexico was once the Lower Presidio Road. Today, it often goes by, simply, the Old San Antonio Road.
In the early 1900s, the Daughters of the American Revolution had granite markers placed along the route. In the early 2000s, the road was designated a National Historic Trail, as part of the El Camino Real de Los Tejas. And, today, most of it is driveable, although motorists may balk at how very long it is.
The road entire is 700 miles long, 540 of it in Texas. It winds through Texas's quiet, scenic, rural side. The only truly large city you'll pass through is San Antonio. Otherwise, you're more likely to touch on old small towns, or drive alongside missions and old jail houses. This is a historic route indeed, with hundreds of years of history. And if you're on the way to somewhere specific rather than just cruising, the El Camino Real does follow Highway 21, Highway 35, Highway 97, and Highway 133.
