APPROACHING CRAB SHELTER HIGH ABOVE THE DEVIL'S RIVER ON THE MORNING OF SATURDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2023.

Devil’s River Delights– A Quick Trip To The Trans-Pecos

Prologue…

Over the years I have been on a number of SHUMLA Treks, and have visited many of the rock art sites in the Trans-Pecos Region of Texas. In December of 2022 I noticed that SHUMLA was planning a trek to two sites on the Devil’s River that I had never heard of, much less visited:  Sunburst and Los Vientos Shelters.  Although the trek was scheduled close to a year away (October 28, 2023) I signed up, and paid my fee.  Several weeks before the day of our trek, SHUMLA archaeologist and trip leader Katie Wilson sent directions on when and where to meet.  Both of the sites we were scheduled to visit were on the Big Satan Unit of the Devil’s River State Natural Area, renamed as the Dan A. Hughes Unit.  The Hughes Unit is 13 miles downriver from the Del Norte Unit, which is open to the public.  The Hughes Unit is not open to the public, but is scheduled to open in 2024 or 2025 after construction of park infrastructure is completed.  During the week prior to our scheduled trek, the Devil’s River area had experienced quite a bit of rain and it looked for a while like the outing was going to have to be rescheduled.  But on Thursday, October 26, 2023, I heard from Katie Wilson that we were still a go.  So I drove to Del Rio on the afternoon of Friday, October 27, 2023, checking into my hotel and went to see Killers of the Flower Moon at the mall across the street.   The next morning I met Katie and the other members of our group at the locked gate of the Dan A. Hughes Unit, ready to see some rock art and enjoy the beautiful landscapes of the Devil’s River State Natural Area. 


The Crab Shelter…

 At the front gate we met Asa Vermeulen, the Superintendent of both units of the Devil’s River State Natural Area. Asa said the Dan A. Hughes unit was a  18,000 acre private ranch with ten miles of frontage on the Devil’s River, that had been acquired by the state of Texas in 2010.  Asa also outlined the ongoing construction of a new visitors center and other ameneties, and said if all goes according to plan the unit will be open to the public in 2024 or 2025.  We followed Asa to the landing strip where we parked and consolidated our group into just a few four wheel drive vehicles.  

ONCE WE WERE PARKED ON THE LANDING STRIP AND ASSIGNED TO A FOUR WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLE, WE HEADED DOWN TO THE DEVIL'S RIVER.

I was assigned to ride in Asa’s truck, and, as we made our way down to the river,  he told us a lot about the property and some of its features.  In addition to the landing strip and several buildings located adjacent to it, the state acquired the main ranch house, and a house down on the river called the River House.  He explained that Los Vientos, one of the sites we had originally planned to visit, was not accessible because of the recent heavy rains, but we would instead visit the Crab Shelter, perched high above the River House.  In short order we arrived and parked at the River House, nestled between the Devil’s River and some spectacular rock shelters high up on the cliffs. 

tHE DEVIL'S RIVER, AS SEEN FROM NEAR THE RIVER HOUSE. THE WATER WAS A LITTLE MURKY DUE TO RECENT RAINS, BUT STILL QUITE STUNNING.
THE STRUCTURE CALLED THE RIVER HOUSE. ABOVE IT YOU CAN SEE THE HIGH CLIFFS NEAR WHERE THE CRAB SHELTER IS LOCATED.

After a quick bathroom break, we started climbing the primitive trail up to the Crab Shelter.  It took us a while to get up to the shelter, since parts of the trail were very slick and had a number of unstable rocks.  The higher we climbed, the more beautiful the views of the river and surrounding area became. 

SLOWLY MAKING OUR WAY UP TO THE CRAB SHELTER.
IN SOME SPOTS THERE WAS NOT MUCH OF A TRAIL.
GETTING CLOSE TO THE CRAB SHELTER!

We reached the Crab Shelter and spent a couple of hours enjoying the pictographs located there.  The star of the show is a large, and exotic, anthropomorph that, from a distance, resembles a crab.  While the crab-like element was pretty well preserved, much of the art at this shelter was degraded by exposure to the elements and not in very good shape.  There were a number of cupules on the bedrock floor of the shelter and cupules and incised marks on some large boulders loacted near the center of the shelter and the the crab element.  Here are a few of my pictures.  For a more complete gallery of my photos from our visit to the Crab Shelter, look here. 

THE CRAB SHELTER. THE SIGNATURE CRAB ELEMENT IS LOCATED NEAR THE BOULDERS WHICH SIT NEAR THE MIDDLE OF THE SHELTER.
THE REMARKABLE CRAB-LIKE ANTHROPOMORPH.
THIS DSTRETCH VERSION OF THE CRAB ELEMENT ALLOWS YOU TO BETTER SEE SOME OF THE DETAILS OF THE PANEL.
SOME OF THE CUPULES IN THE BEDROCK FLOOR OF THE SHELTER. NO DOUBT THIS WAS A SACRED PLACE.
THE SHELTER HAD A STUNNING VIEW OF THE DEVIL'S RIVER. AS THE MORNING WORE ON, THE RIVER BEGAN TO REGAIN ITS TOURQOISE COLOR.
OUR AMIABLE AND INFORMATIVE HOST, SHUMLA ARCHAEOLOGIST KATIE WILSON. THE CRAB-LIKE ELEMENT IS OVER HER LEFT SHOULDER.

The Sunburst Shelter Pictographs…


We climbed down from the Crab Shelter, had a bite of lunch at the River House, then headed for the Sunburst Shelter.  While the Crab Shelter is located right on the Devil’s River, the Sunburst Shelter is located a good distance from the river, situated on a small side canyon.  The hike down to the Sunburst Shelter was much shorter and easier to negotiate. While the signature sunburst element is quite crude, overall the rock art found at this shelter is quite nice.  There are numerous well preserved elements and they contrast nicely with the light colored walls and ceiling of the shelter.  Here are a few of my photos.  For a more complete gallery of my photos from the Sunburst Shelter, look here.  

THE BEGINNING OF THE SHORT CLIMB DOWN INTO THE SMALL SIDE CANYON WHERE THE SUNBURST SHELTER IS LOCATED.
LOOKING UP AT THE SHELTER FROM NEAR THE BOTTOM OF THE SMALL CANYON.
THE SIGNATURE SUNBURST ELEMENT IS SURROUNDED BY SOME INTERESTING ROCK ART.
DSTRETCH VERSION OF THE SUNBURST PICTURE.
PHOTO OF THE AREA TO THE LEFT OF THE SUNBURST ELEMENT, WHICH CONTAINS SOME BOLD IMAGES.
DSTRETCH VERSION OF THE ABOVE PHOTO.
ON THE HIKE OUT I STOPPED TO TAKE THIS PICTURE OF A FEATURE THAT ASA CALLED "THE TINY TINAJA".

Epilogue…

I enjoyed my day at the Hughes Unit of the Devil’s River State Natural Area.  The landscapes and scenery were beautiful.  The rock art was interesting, while not spectacular.  But I am glad I got to experience it.  I am grateful for Katie Wilson and SHUMLA for making this trek available.  I left the park and made the long drive home, arriving safe and sound a little before 10:00 p.m. that evening. 

YES, I REALLY WAS THERE THAT DAY. YOURS TRULY AT THE CRAB SHELTER.