The Nature Conservancy’s Independence Creek Preserve

— As one travels on I-10 heading west from Junction towards El Paso, the scenery is not the most appealing. A traveler in that situation has just left the Hill Country behind and is now in flat terrain. A few miles after passing Ozona, you will see Exit 325 to Sheffield, Texas. From there, the drive to Independence Creek Preserve is approximately 30 miles. Those 30 miles will soon start to pay off with beautiful scenery, unlike the rest you’ve just seen on the interstate. You then reach the Nature Conservancy’s Independence Creek Preserve, a refreshing oasis in West Texas. After an initial conservation easement of 702 acres in 1991, the Nature Conservancy expanded that preserve with more land being acquired for a total of 19,740 acres of preserved West Texas land. Independence Creek is a large, spring-fed creek that flows into the lower Pecos River. The shot here was taken at the lake by the preserve’s entrance.