Big Bend Marufo Vega and Mesa de Anguila

Big Bend is a good place to hone off-trail skills. I looked at those trails on maps many times but never got around to hiking them. There's a lot of good info on bigbendchat.com. In fact, I entered "Marufo Vega" in their SEARCH page and the first result was "Man dies on Marufo Vega Trail."

I don't know of a Big Bend guide, but that could be a lot of fun to hike with an expert. You can explore by yourself and have a great time if you are careful. I did some off-trail stuff that was a lot of fun my first trip there, also did some with a friend who knew the area better than me. The most remote off-trail hiking I did was in Big Bend Ranch State Park. It was a challenge just following the Rancherias Loop at the time (probably still is) and there are lots of off-trail side trip opportunities there.

The great thing about going off trail in Big Bend is you can see where you are going and where you've been in the desert environment. So it's reasonable to head out on your own making sure you don't get so far you can't find your way back. Try short hikes before committing yourself to multiple days into the backcountry. The big hazards are cliffs, heat, and lack of water. In February the heat and water are less of an issue.