Lake Amistad Finally Rose This Summer. So Why Is Your Usual Boat Ramp Still Closed?

On October 2, 2026, Amistad Reservoir measured 1,058.29 feet above sea level and 42.1% full. That's well above the 35.8% recorded on the same date last year. The elevation is a different story. One year earlier, on October 2, 2025, the lake stood at 1,057.43 feet. All the storms, flood watches and river crests since July add up to a lake that sits less than a foot higher than last fall. That's why the National Park Service still has most of Amistad's boat ramps set up for low water.

The summer did deliver real water. The gain mostly paid back what the lake had lost earlier in the year. If you're hitching up a trailer this month, the useful number is how far the shoreline still sits from the ramps. The percentage is less useful.

A Summer That Started Near the Bottom

At the start of July, Amistad was close to its worst level on record. The NPS boating page notes that on July 17, 2024, the reservoir hit a historic low of 1,047.15 feet at 24% full. On July 2, 2026, the lake was at 1,047.54 feet, less than half a foot above that record.

Then the rain came. Del Rio recorded 1.62 inches by 5 p.m. on July 14, a daily record. Some southern Hill Country gauges measured 8 to 12 inches. The local meteorologist tied the setup to tropical moisture under a high-pressure ridge. On the Devils River at Bakers Crossing, NOAA's gauge crested at 21.19 feet on July 18, the highest crest in its recent-crests table.

By the afternoon of July 21, 830Times reported the lake at 1,055.52 feet. That was up nearly 1.6 feet in 48 hours and almost 7 feet from its average level a week earlier. The report credited much of the runoff to flooding on the Devils and Pecos rivers, which both feed the reservoir.

The table shows what happened after the July surge:

Almost all of the summer's gain came in one burst. From early September to late September, the lake actually slipped a little. The next jump came at the start of October. On September 30, the National Weather Service issued a flood watch for Val Verde County that forecast 1 to 4 inches of rain, with isolated totals up to 8 inches. On October 1, the Devils River at Bakers Crossing went from 6.9 feet early in the morning to a 24-hour high of 15.7 feet by evening. The lake rose about 1.4 feet between October 1 and 2. That river rise is a likely contributor, though no report so far has broken down how much each tributary added.

From July 2 to October 2, Amistad gained nearly 11 feet and more than 5,000 acres of surface. That's a big change for anyone who watched the shoreline pull back in 2024. It still leaves the lake about 59 feet below its 1,117-foot conservation pool elevation.

Why 42 Percent Doesn't Mean What It Sounds Like

If the elevation is about the same as last October, why did percent full go from 35.8% to 42.1%?

The answer is in how Texas counts its share of the lake. Amistad sits on the border, and under the treaty, Texas's conservation capacity is based on 56.2% of the reservoir's total conservation capacity. The share of stored water that actually belongs to Texas is set every two weeks by the International Boundary and Water Commission. The percent-full figure on Water Data for Texas measures Texas's water against Texas's capacity. It's an accounting number, so you can't convert it straight into how high the water sits at Diablo East.

The storage figures show the gap clearly. Total water in the reservoir was 794,058 acre-feet on October 2, 2025, and 812,545 acre-feet on October 2, 2026. That's a small difference. Over the same year, Texas conservation storage went from 649,584 to 762,808 acre-feet. The lake holds about the same amount of water. More of it is counted on the Texas side of the ledger.

For water planners, that shift matters. For someone backing a bass boat down a ramp, elevation is the number to track, and elevation says this is about the same lake as last fall.

Where You Can Put In Right Now

As of early October, the NPS current-conditions page lists only two ramps open, and each only partly:

• Diablo East: left side open, rest closed
• Rough Canyon: left side open, rest closed
• Spur 406 and Spur 454: NPS warns the water may be too shallow to launch most boats

The park lists four main ramps, at Diablo East, Rough Canyon, Box Canyon and Southwinds (U.S. Air Force) Marina. Smaller ramps sit at Black Brush Point, 277 North, 277 South, Spur 406, Spur 454 and the Pecos River. Spur 406 and Spur 454 aren't true boat ramps. They're old roadways that run into the reservoir, so they never officially close, even when the water is too low to launch. NPS asks boaters to launch there with caution.

The boating page has a ramp-status table, but it's still headed by the July 17, 2024 record-low note. The alert on the current-conditions page is the more up-to-date guide. The same boating page explains that, unless otherwise posted, closed ramps may still be used to launch small, lightweight craft you can carry to the water's edge. That keeps kayaks and canoes in play at more spots than the open-ramp list suggests.

Some closures have nothing to do with water level. The Diablo East Marina Cove, Scuba Cove and walkway access are closed because of excess docking material, an unsafe walkway and dock, and unstable, loose ground. NPS says the area will reopen once those hazards are fixed. Even if the lake keeps rising, those spots stay closed until the repairs are done.

NPS runs a live webcam on the Diablo East ramp. The park calls it one of the busiest ramps at Amistad and a favorite for tournaments. A quick look at the camera before you leave town shows where the waterline sits that morning.

Fuel, Slips and Passes Before You Launch

With fewer ramps open, a few practical details matter more than usual.

Lake Use Passes. NPS updated its fee page on August 21, 2026. It lists a one-day pass at $4, a three-day pass at $10 and an annual pass at $50. The park's Superintendent's Compendium, dated September 22, 2026, requires passes for registered motorboats and for sailboats over 14 feet, including tournament boats. Diablo East and Rough Canyon have automated fee machines. You can also buy passes at the Visitor Center or on Pay.gov. The U.S. pass doesn't cover any fees Mexico charges past the Rio Grande buoys.

Fuel. NPS lists Southwinds Marina as the only place on the lake that sells marine gas. The listed public hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday through Sunday. The same NPS page shows the Southwinds ramp as closed, and no recent update on its fuel service turned up. Calling (830) 775-7800 before you count on a fill-up is the safest plan.

Slips and buoys. Rough Canyon Rentals, LLC, leases the Rough Canyon Marina from the park. It rents boat slips and mooring buoys and has a sewage pump-out dock. It doesn't sell gas, and it currently has no boats for rent. The marina is 23 miles northwest of Del Rio, about seven miles west of U.S. Highway 277 North on Recreation Road #2.

Fishing reports. Texas Parks and Wildlife's weekly fishing reports are on hold. The newest 2026 report on its Amistad page is from February 25. That February report describes a lake about 7 feet lower than today's.

The Border Bass Battle on a Two-Ramp Lake

The fall's biggest lake event will test the left-side-only setup at Diablo East. The Del Rio Chamber calendar lists the Border Bass Battle there on Saturday, October 31, 2026. It's an hourly big-bass tournament, with fishing blocks running from 7:45 a.m. to 4 p.m. Entry is $125 per angler plus a 3% service fee. The listing also includes a 13-pound ShareLunker competition. The Chamber's page dates back several years, so confirm details with the organizers before you register.

Under the Compendium, any fishing tournament with more than 10 boats needs a special-use permit from the park. If you're organizing a club outing this fall on top of the Battle, that permit and the narrow launch lane at Diablo East should shape your schedule.

A short checklist for the next few weekends:

1. Check the NPS Amistad current-conditions page the morning you go. The boating-page ramp table is out of date.
2. Pull up the Diablo East webcam to see the waterline before you hitch up.
3. Buy or renew your Lake Use Pass, either at a fee machine or online.
4. Call Southwinds Marina before relying on it for fuel.
5. Treat Spur 406 and Spur 454 as launch-with-caution spots, not as sure things.

Amistad gained nearly 11 feet this summer. Even so, on October 2, 2026, the lake sat less than a foot above last October's level, and the ramp alert reflects that.

Del Rio is one of the communities Linda Ramon knows best, and she enjoys helping families understand the local details that shape daily life here, from lake access to the drive out to Rough Canyon. If you're thinking about a move within Del Rio or relocating to the area, she's happy to walk you through your options in English or Spanish, at your pace. Let's Get Started.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.