Photos shot for the August/September 2018 issue
The Year of Epic Texas Challenges
Texas' vast and diverse landscapes and array of outdoor pursuits offer thrills for participants and spectators alike. Each issue of 2018 will feature an event to challenge even the most extreme athletes and sportsmen. We hope you'll enjoy reading it from the comfort of your armchair or perhaps be inspired to try a new pursuit.
Sweeter'N Hell
Annual Wichita Falls bike ride tests both strength and heat endurance.
After 36 years, Wichita Falls’ annual Hotter’N Hell Hundred still plays out as bicycle high theater.
Although the plot (the course) and local characters (friendly and enthusiastic) remain basically the same each year, the players (up to 13,000) and plot twists — Hotter’N, Windier’N or Wetter’N — can fluctuate wildly. Hence, no two rides are identical.
The ride’s century word play is part of Texas lore. Locals developed the idea as the linchpin to the city’s centennial celebration in 1982, a 100-mile ride now held annually on a Saturday in late August (always nine days before Labor Day), a time when 100-degree days are the Wichita Falls norm.
Saving Species Sooner
The Recovering America's Wildlife Act could help protect Texas species in peril.
For decades, Texas biologists have toiled over solutions for species teetering on the brink, with some success. But what if we could help more species, and help them earlier, before their situation becomes dire? The answer has come in the form of proposed bipartisan national legislation — the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act, or RAWA — that could bring an estimated $60 million annually to Texas (out of $1.3 billion nationally) for natural resource conservation and outdoor recreation initiatives.
Devils Advocates
Landowners and conservation groups work to preserve the pristine Devils River.
At first sight, most anyone can see the Devils River is special. The Caribbean aquamarine color of its crystal-clear water is stunning, winding through arid, rocky canyons.
There’s more here than beauty. In drought-prone Texas, water is life, for people, fish and wildlife, livestock and agriculture; the spring-rich Devils sends benefits way beyond its banks. Somewhere between 15-18 percent of water in the Rio Grande below Lake Amistad comes from the Devils River.
This is rough country, covered in thorns, jagged rocks and steep cliffs, hence the name “Devils.” But down by the river, it’s heavenly. Prized by anglers for feisty game fish, the river is also home to rare species like the Devils River minnow and the Texas hornshell, a freshwater mussel that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed as endangered in March.
Keep Texas Wild
It's not just for kids. If you like nature-related topics in an easy-to-read format, you can find three years of our popular Keep Texas Wild issues and the teacher resources to go along with them.
