The Los Ebanos Ferry or El Chalán, formally known as the Los Ebanos-Diaz Ordaz Ferry, is a hand-operated

cable ferry A cable ferry (including the types chain ferry, swing ferry, floating bridge, or punt) is a ferry that is guided (and in many cases propelled) across a river or large body of water by cables connected to both shores. Early cable ferries often ...

that travels across the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...

between Los Ebanos, Texas, and Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, Tamaulipas. It is the last of its kind along the entire stretch of the Rio Grande. The city of Los Ebanos was named after the Texas Ebony ('' Ebenopsis ebano'') that anchors the ferry. The ferry was first opened in 1950. It is the only remaining international ferry operation on the U.S.-Mexico border. The crossing is occasionally closed when river levels are high, such as in 2015.

Border crossing

The Los Ebanos Port of Entry is the

U.S. Customs and Border Protection United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the largest federal law enforcement agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security. It is the country's primary border control organization, charged with regulating and facilita ...

facility that is used to inspect passengers and vehicles entering the US from Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, Tamaulipas via the Los Ebanos Ferry. A new border station was built in 2011. The port of entry has been the site of occasional seizures of marijuana found hidden in vehicle tires. File:Los Ebanos outbound inspection facility 2009.jpg, Outbound inspection facility at Los Ebanos in 2009 File:Los Ebanos TX from Mexico hand-pulled ferry - panoramio.jpg, Los Ebanos Ferry as seen from Mexico in 1999. The US Border Inspection Station is on the opposite shore

References

External links

* * * {{Crossings navbox , structure = Crossings , place =

, bridge = Los Ebanos Ferry , bridge signs = , upstream = Rio Grande City–Camargo International Bridge , upstream signs = , downstream =

Anzalduas International Bridge Anzalduas International Bridge is an international bridge over the Rio Grande, which connects the western outskirts of both the city of Mission, Texas in the United States and the city of Reynosa, Tamaulipas state, in Mexico Mexico, offic ...

, downstream signs = Texas_FM_396

Transportation in Hidalgo County, Texas Historic American Engineering Record in Texas International bridges in Tamaulipas Ferries of Texas Cable ferries Cable ferries in the United States