Day Trips: Secret Fishing Holes
Texas Parks & Wildlife’s RACA program adds two more spots
By Gerald E. McLeod, Fri., March 25, 2022
Two new secret fishing holes have been added to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department's River Access and Conservation Area program, and they're awesome.
Rivers in Texas are public domain, but with 95% of the land privately owned, finding access to the streams can often be difficult or nonexistent.
That's where the RACA program comes in. TPWD negotiates leases with landowners for public use of their property. Some access points are close to urban centers, like the Texas River School on the Colorado River near Austin, but most are wonderfully remote and secluded, like the paddle-in camps on the Devils River. The majority of the access points require reservations, are day-use only, and are primarily for fishing and paddlers. A few of the spots require a nominal fee, but all require users to pack out their trash. Currently the program includes 21 sites on 10 rivers, but leases are added and ended all the time.
Access to a beautiful stretch of the Blanco River at John Knox Ranch outside of Wimberley was recently added. The children's summer camp offers entrance to an isolated part of the river lined with towering cypress trees.* This is the take-out point for a 3.6-mile paddling trip from Fischer Store Road Bridge.
The second access point announced this month is a scenic section of the South Llano River near Junction. Cupgrass Cabins provides entry to a prime fishing hole on Bailey Creek as well as put-in for river paddlers. From here, the first take-out spot is 1-2 hours downstream, or South Llano State Park is a 4- to 6-hour float trip. This access has the added advantage of a gorgeous three-bedroom farmhouse for rent.
Editor’s Note: After publication of this column, John Knox Ranch Executive Director Henry Owen reached out to note that the photo that ran in the paper was of Blue Hole on Carpers Creek on the John Knox Ranch outside of Wimberley, not of the Blanco River bordering the children’s summer camp. Owen provided alternate photos of the Blanco River and the access site’s gate, included above in this updated version. He was concerned that readers would go to the access point expecting to find Blue Hole, which is not open to the public.
Owen also pointed out that the stretch of the Blanco River between Fischer Store Road Bridge and the John Knox Ranch isn’t really “lined with limestone cliffs” as the story said. The article was correct that the river is lined with “towering cypress trees.”
The author regrets the inaccuracies and hopes it didn’t mislead the public about the beauty of Texas rivers. In full disclosure, the photo of the South Llano River is downstream from the access point at Cupgrass Cabins.
A further note, the author had a delightful conversation with Owen, who grew up as a counselor at the camp and has been executive director for the last three years. One update to the March 23, 2018, "Day Trips" story about the ranch is that they no longer allow day-use visitors other than at the river access point. They still offer cabins for rent during the summer camp’s off-season for families and groups.
Summer camps are held June through early August for youths in grades 2-12. The ranch is owned and operated by Mission Presbytery and is named for the founder of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Summer camps have been held at the ranch since 1963.
Owen says he has kayaked the Blanco River and it can be a bumpy ride in places because of low water. It was an all-day trip to go from the ranch down to Wimberley.
The John Knox Ranch, which is a quarter-mile from Slime Bridge on FM 179, is the first public access point on the Blanco River in the TPWD lease program. Owen hopes the success of their allowing easement to anglers and paddlers will spur other landowners to consider joining.
Access to the Blanco River from the John Knox Ranch is open each day from 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset for wade fishing and launching non-motorized boats, canoes, kayaks, or other floatable devices for the purpose of fishing.
To access the parking area, email the John Knox Ranch during business hours Monday-Friday 9am-4:30pm at [email protected] to make a reservation. You will need the reservation confirmation email for the gate code. Reservations and confirmation are required in advance of arrival.
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