The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) celebrated the opening of the Dan A. Hughes Unit of Devils River State Natural Area with speeches, refreshments and a ribbon cutting on Oct. 9, according to an Oct. 22 news release from the agency.
The unit, located about an hour north of Del Rio, spans 18,000 acres. TPWD said it brings the total acreage of the state natural area to more than 37,000 acres of protected land with access to the Devils River, which connects the site to the Del Norte Unit 13 miles upstream.
Speakers at the event included state Rep. Eddie Morales, Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission Chairman Paul Foster, former Chairman Dan A. Hughes Jr., TPWD Executive Director Dr. David Yoskowitz, former TPWD Executive Director Carter Smith, Texas State Parks Director Rodney Franklin and Complex Superintendent Jason Hairston, the agency said.
“We’re able to celebrate the opening of the Dan A. Hughes unit because people were willing to listen, be flexible, and then committed to getting the job done when it needed to get done,” Yoskowitz said, according to the release.
The release credited Hughes Jr. with spearheading the effort to secure funding for the unit, which is named for his father. “My father loved land; He loved Texas, the outdoors and his family,” Hughes Jr. said. “He would be very, very proud of this day.”
Smith said the original landowner donated a conservation easement through the Nature Conservancy with a vision of seeing the ranch permanently protected. “Big wide open spaces, beautiful West Texas vistas, pretty sunrises and sunsets, 10 miles of frontage along the clearest and purest and most pristine river in all of the state of Texas,” Smith said.
For visitors, TPWD said the unit offers a handful of primitive campsites along the river, with drive-up and walk-in options, composting toilets nearby, and no water or electricity. The agency also pointed to 10 miles of hiking trails and wildlife viewing that includes white-tailed deer, javelinas, bald eagles and quail.
The release noted that the stretch of the Devils River from Del Norte to the Hughes Unit can be strenuous and should be attempted only by experienced paddlers carrying three days of supplies. The Devils Back area can be included in a paddling itinerary with a Devils River Access Permit and only with an authorized TPWD guide or shuttle service concessionaire, according to the agency.
TPWD recommended park reservations for both day use and overnight camping, with more information available on its website.