What Scenic Drive actually is
Scenic Drive is a winding two-lane road that climbs the lower foothills of the Franklin Mountains along the eastern edge of Kern Place and Rim Road. It was built in the 1920s as a pleasure drive, and nearly a century later it still serves exactly that purpose — a place to pull over, step out, and look at one of the most unusual geographic views in the United States.
From the overlooks you can see downtown El Paso and downtown Juárez side by side, separated only by the thin green line of the Rio Grande. On a clear day the view reaches into New Mexico to the north and deep into Chihuahua to the south. There are very few places in the country where you can stand in one nation and read the street signs of another.
When to go
Sunset is the obvious answer, and it is the right one. The western-facing overlooks catch the last light over the Juárez mountains, and the city lights of both countries come up while the sky is still glowing. Arrive thirty minutes before sunset to get a parking spot — the pullouts fill up quickly on weekends.
Early morning is the quiet alternative. The air is clearest, the light is soft, and you will often have the overlook to yourself. Sunrise over the Franklins throws the whole valley into warm shadow, and it is the best time for photography.
What you are looking at
Directly below the overlook is the Rio Grande, the river that drew every settlement to this valley. The bridge connecting El Paso and Juárez is visible, and on a busy day you can see the line of border traffic. To the south, the Sierra de Juárez rises sharply — a younger, steeper range than the Franklins.
To the north, the Franklins continue up toward Transmountain Road, and on the far horizon you can pick out the Organ Mountains in New Mexico. The three-state view — Texas, New Mexico, and Chihuahua — is one of the geographic facts that makes El Paso unlike any other American city.
Combine it with a walk
The Rim Road neighborhood above Scenic Drive is one of El Paso's oldest and most architecturally interesting residential areas, with homes dating to the early 1900s. A slow walk along Rim Road after the overlook gives you a sense of how the city's wealthy early families lived, and the same views that sell those homes today are free for anyone who drives up.
Finish the evening in nearby Kern Place, where a handful of long-running restaurants and coffee shops make the trip down the mountain worth lingering over.
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