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Town Lake is the most
stable portion of the Highland
Lakes chain, and in my opinion, Austin
just wouldn't be Austin without it.
To me, Town Lake is the heart of Austin.
The little camp called Waterloo that grew into Austin
began right where the Congress Avenue Bridge is today. The Colorado River and
all of its resources allowed Austin
to grow into a thriving metropolis. The river has also divided north and south
Austin for decades. When I have visitors from out of town, I tell them we're going
to Town Lake, but when we get there they say, "Why, this is just a river!" Town
Lake actually is a lake, created by the City of Austin
in the 1960s as a cooling pond for the Holly Street Power Plant, with Tom Miller
Dam and Longhorn Dam containing the water. Town Lake Metropolitan Park extends
the entire length, five miles, on the north and south shores. The park includes
seventeen ball parks, places to rent rowboats, canoes, kayaks and paddleboats,
swimming pools, volleyball courts, picnic tables with grills, and lots of great
scenery.
Cold Springs near Deep Eddy is a source of water for the lake.
Today it is covered by Town Lake but it still flows and can only be seen by boat.
It's on the south shore between Red Bud Isle and MoPac. A man-made pool has been
built under a 100-foot waterfall.
Sailing and canoeing are permitted on
Town Lake, but swimming and powerboats are not. However, you can swim in several
swimming pools in the park within a stone's throw of the lake. |
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The hike and bike trail in Austin
Photo courtesy Chandra Moira Beal |
| A popular feature
of Metropolitan Park is a 10-mile hike and bike trail. The gravel and concrete
trail begins at Riverside Drive and Congress Avenue, near the Hyatt. It goes west
past Auditorium Shores, which has parking and rest rooms; Butler Shores, which
also has parking; Zilker
Park (includes a short skirt around Barton
Creek); and crosses under MoPac, which also has a rest room. From there it
is a short jog west to Deep Eddy where there is a shower; past Austin High School;
across Lamar Boulevard; past Shoal Beach and the Buford Tower; past the trailhead
to the Shoal Creek Greenbelt; and across South First and Congress Avenue Bridges.
It intersects with Waller Creek Walkway, goes under IH35, past Festival Beach,
Martin Pool and the U.S. 183 Bridge and follows Lakeshore Boulevard until it ends
about one-half mile west. The trail crosses the river via footbridges at MoPac,
South First Street, South Congress Street, and the frontage road of IH35. |
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On
the North Shore of Lady Bird Lake: Holly
Beach
A small 2.5-acre park between Longhorn Dam and Metz Park.
Fiesta Gardens
Popular for Hispanic celebrations, this sixty-acre park
also has displays of exotic flora and a lagoon. Fiesta Gardens also has a boat
launch and lots of open grassy space.
Waller Beach
Twenty-six
acres of grassy park between IH35 and Congress Avenue. The park is filled with
gazebos, boat launches and docks.
Congress Avenue Bridge
Built
in 1910. A relief exhibit at the intersection of Congress Avenue and East Cesar
Chavez (north of the river, in the southwest corner) shows Austin as it looked
in 1889. It is displayed from the perspective as it would have appeared had you
been standing in the same spot in 1889.
South First Street Bridge
Also
known as the W.F. Drake, Jr. Bridge. Drake was mayor of Austin between 1951-1953.
Shoal Beach
An eighteen-acre stretch between Congress Avenue
and Lamar Boulevard. This section includes Buford Tower, dedicated in 1978 to
Fire Department Captain James T. Buford for giving his life in the line of duty
to the citizens of Austin during a water rescue. Buford Tower was originally built
in 1930 as a training place for Austin's firefighters.
Lamar Beach
Extends from Lamar Boulevard to Johnson Creek. This forty-acre park includes
several ballfields.
University Beach
Parallels the University
of Texas property west to Red Bud Trail and has one acre of lake access.
Red Bud Isle
Thirteen acres of primitive wilderness just below Tom
Miller Dam. It is literally an island; you can picnic and access the lake
from a circular drive of very rough road.
Emmett Shelton Bridge
This bridge was the first low-water bridge over Town Lake. Originally built in
1849, it was the gateway to the foothills west of Lake
Austin. Shelton is an attorney, author, land developer, marine captain, community
benefactor, historian, and poet. There is a historical plaque just west of the
bridge with an original block of Texas red granite that was part of the first
dam built on Lake Austin
in 1893 and destroyed by the flood of 1900. Portions of the bridge remain submerged
by the water.
Tom
Miller Dam
Finished in 1940, this was the third dam built in this
spot, the previous dams having been destroyed by flooding of the Colorado River.
The dam is accessible from Lake Austin Boulevard at Red Bud Trail. Tom Miller
was mayor of Austin. |
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On
the South Shore of Lady Bird Lake: Longhorn
Dam
Has scenic overlooks and picnic areas.
Lake Shores
Thirty-five-acre
undeveloped park east of the Kasuba property to Pleasant Valley Road.
Auditorium
Shores
A popular gathering place for free concerts and other public festivals.
It is a flat, grassy area from the South First Street Bridge to Lamar Boulevard.
Twenty-five acres in all, it has a gazebo, a reflection pool, and numerous rest
areas.
Butler Shores
Named for Roy Butler, mayor of Austin
in the early 1970s. Butler Shores has parking and is adjacent to the Parks and
Recreation Department headquarters. It extends from the Lamar Bridge to Barton
Creek, and has seven acres of lake frontage.
For a spectacular view of
Town Lake and Austin's skyline, check
out Lou Neff Point located in Zilker
Park. Isabella Neff was the namesake of the very first state park in Texas,
and Lou Neff is a relative.
As of this writing, Austin
is considering converting Town Lake Park into a performing arts center, parking
garage, and park land. |
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Buford
Tower
Photo courtesy Chandra Moira Beal |
BATSA
discussion of Town Lake would not be complete without a word about the bats. Between
April and October, North America's largest urban colony of Mexican freetailed
bats make Austin their home. More specifically,
they live under the Congress Avenue Bridge and can be heard squealing as you walk
under it. Hundreds of people gather on the bridge or shores to watch the colony,
literally millions of bats, leave in a swarm at dusk to devour mosquitoes and
other insects. The Austin America Statesman has set up a grassy beach and informational
stand for viewing from the south side of the bridge. Another way to watch the
bats is from your table at the Shoreline Grill. August is the prime month for
viewing.
http://www.batcon.org/ | |
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