Right in the centre of urban Austin lies Lady Bird Lake, a reservoir on the Colorado River which splits the city of Austin in half and covers 190 hectares. Locals take great pride in this little piece of man-made paradise at the heart of the city.
Begin your day with a relaxing stroll around the lake via the gentle Lady Bird Lake Hike and Bike Trail, which extends 16 kilometres around the lake. If you aren’t interested in tackling this on foot, rent a bike many local shops offer hourly or daily options. Breathe in the scent of the flowers in the surrounding gardens as you traverse the trails on your chosen means of transport. These lush areas were created by former First Lady of the United States and Austin local Lady Bird Johnson. Her important contributions to the city of Austin led to the lake being named in her honour.
Swimming is not permitted in Lady Bird Lake, but there is still plenty to do. Visitors can cast a reel and try to catch a specimen from the richly populated waters just be sure to check the Texas Parks and Wildlife website for details about the limits that can be caught and kept each day. If largemouth bass and redbreast sunfish aren’t to your taste, you can try your hand at canoeing and kayaking, or rent a paddleboat and take it slow. Electric motorboats under five horsepower are the only motorized vessels allowed to cruise the lake.
For a spooky treat, take the family down to the Ann W. Richards Congress Avenue Bridge, spanning the lake from downtown Austin to the Bouldin area. Here visitors will find the largest city-dwelling bat colony in the world. Between March and November the colony is estimated to be about 1.5 million bats. Have your camera ready to snap a shot as the bats, which fan out in columns as they emerge from under the bridge in search of food.
