Lady Bird Lake and the Butler Trail

Lady Bird Lake is the dammed stretch of the Colorado River that runs through the middle of Austin, and the Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail that circles it is the city's living room. The trail is about ten miles of mostly packed-gravel path around the lake, with shorter loops possible using the bridges, and on any morning it is full of runners, walkers, dog owners, cyclists, strollers and visitors, with the downtown skyline rising on the north shore and greenery and the Zilker side on the south. The south-shore boardwalk, a long stretch built out over the water east of downtown, is one of the most scenic sections, with wide views back toward the towers. Rest areas, restrooms, water fountains and accessible entrances are spaced along the route. The lake itself is for paddling, not swimming: swimming is not allowed, but kayaks, canoes and stand-up paddleboards are rented from docks around the shore, and gliding beneath the bridges past the skyline is one of Austin's best and cheapest outdoor experiences. Paddlers also gather near the Congress Avenue Bridge at dusk in bat season to watch the colony emerge overhead. The trail is cared for by The Trail Conservancy, a nonprofit that partners with the city on improvements and programming, and its website keeps a current list of detours — a few sections near downtown and the interstate have been rerouted around major construction, so check before setting out on the full loop. Go early in the morning in summer, carry water, and treat the trail as the backbone of an active Austin day.

The lake and the trail are a story of civic will. The reservoir was created by a downtown dam in the 1960s and was long known as Town Lake; it was renamed in 2007 for Lady Bird Johnson, the former First Lady, who led a beautification campaign that brought trees, landscaping and the first trail sections to its shores beginning in the early 1970s. The trail was later renamed for Ann and Roy Butler — Roy Butler was a former Austin mayor who championed it — and it has been extended and improved over decades, most dramatically with the boardwalk, which closed a long gap on the south shore by building the path out over the water. The Trail Conservancy, founded as The Trail Foundation, raises money for restoration, restrooms, art, lighting and ecological work, and it is the best source for current maps, parking and detour information.

To use it well, pick a section rather than feeling obliged to do the whole loop. The classic short loop runs between the Lamar Boulevard and South First Street bridges, passing the skyline, the Zilker side and plenty of shade; it is a good choice for a sunrise walk. The boardwalk section east of downtown is best at sunrise or sunset. Cyclists share the trail with heavy foot traffic, so ride slowly and announce passes. For paddling, rent from one of the docks on the south shore or near Zilker, go early before the wind picks up in the afternoon, wear the provided life jacket, and remember that rowing teams and tour boats use the water too. In summer, start before nine or go after sunset; there is real shade in places but long sunny stretches in others.

The trail threads together many of Austin's headline sights. Zilker Park, Barton Springs and the Umlauf Sculpture Garden sit just south of the lake's western end, the Congress Avenue Bridge bats are in the middle, the Long Center and Palmer Events Center face the skyline on the south shore, and Rainey Street's bar bungalows and South Congress are a short walk off the path. A perfect active morning might be a loop walk, a kayak out to the bridges and a swim at Barton Springs; a perfect evening might be a paddle to watch the bats emerge. Families can tackle short sections with strollers, and couples will find few better free dates than a sunset walk on the boardwalk.