A new border crossing has opened in West Texas, reconnecting visitors to Big Bend National Park with a tiny Mexican town across the Rio Grande that has been cut off for a decade.
Beginning Wednesday morning, pedestrians were ferried by rowboat from one side to the other. U.S. Customs officers are not physically staffing the port of entry. Rather, visitors use an electronic kiosk to show their travel documents and communicate via remote link with officers elsewhere on the border.
National Park Service employees staff a small station on the U.S. side, guiding visitors to one of two customs kiosks. Previously, residents of Boquillas had to travel at least 240 miles to the nearest port of entry. It will be open Wednesday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.