The
Highland Lakes
and the diverse topography between the Balcones Escarpment
and the Blackland Prairie afford many scenic drives and views
in and around Austin. A great place to start is the State Capitol, north of the Colorado River. There
are several good views of the Capitol from IH 35, Loop 360,
and MoPac, but for one of the best, drive north on Congress
Avenue from Town Lake.
Zilker Park is south of
Town
Lake on
Barton Springs Road, where a shelter within the Taniguchi
Oriental Garden offers one of the nicest views in the city.
Within the park, Lou Neff Point, where Barton Creek flows
into the Colorado River, is a great place to see downtown
Austin up close and watch the river flow through town. Take a
few minutes and relax here. On the opposite shore is another
nice spot providing a view up Barton Creek. You can park on
the north side of Cesar Chavez Street and walk under a bridge
to get to this spot along the Zilker Hike-and-Bike Trail.
During the Christmas holiday season, the lighted Christmas
tree in Zilker Park can be spotted from many vantage points
along MoPac or Loop 360.
The Zilker
Nature Preserve
is located on Stratford
Drive. (Stratford Drive intersects Barton Springs Road within
Zilker Park.) The Austin Nature Center office will provide
you with a trail map; on this map you can locate a great
overlook. The start of the trail to the Zilker Preserves
Overlook begins on Stratford Drive near Barton Springs Road.
Another way to reach this overlook is to drive west on Barton
Springs Road, go underneath the MoPac overpass and turn right
on Rollingwood Drive. You will see a sign on your right
indicating "Trail Access." Drive on to the end of
the road and park in the Zilker Club House parking lot. Walk
back to the trail; the overlook is very near the road and
provides a great view of the park and preserves. The patio at
the Zilker Club House also affords a nice view of the area.
The French
Legation
the only building in Texas
erected by a foreign government-charges a fee to enter the
grounds but offers some nice views of downtown Austin. From
IH 35 go east on 8th Street and take the first road to the
left, which is Embassy Street. The entrance is to your left.
As you leave the Embassy, continue north on Embassy Street,
turn right onto 9th Street, and turn left at the next street,
which is San Marcos. The Ebenezer Baptist Church, at the
corner of San Marcos and 10th Street, also affords nice views
of downtown Austin. As you leave Ebenezer Baptist Church, go
east on 10th Street, turn right onto Waller Street, and
continue until you reach 7th Street. Turn left there and
continue to Huston-Tillotson College, which will be on your
left about 3/4 of a mile down 7th Street. Turn left onto
Chicon and enter the campus through the gate on the left. You
will receive a great welcome from the guard, who can advise
you where the best views are of downtown and east Austin from
the campus area.
Going south on IH 35, turn
east on Texas Highway 71 (Ben White), continue to Montopolis
Drive, and turn left. Watch for Grove Street, which will veer
off to the left (northwest). You will see a nice view of
downtown as you drive down Grove, and when you reach
Riverside turn right. After a long block, take another right
onto Montopolis, follow Montopolis back to Ben White, turn
left there, drive to Riverside, and turn left again. The
intersection of Ben White and Riverside Drive offers another
nice view of downtown and south Austin. Continuing on
Riverside will bring you back into the city.
City Park Road
provides magnificent
views. Drive west on RM 2222, go past Loop 360, and turn left
on City Park Road. You will drive along a ridge where you see
the city on one side and glimpses of the Hill Country on the
other. The road ends at Emma Long Metropolitan Park on the
banks of Lake Austin.
Mary Moody
Northen Theater
Among the best spots for
viewing the Austin skyline!! Located on the campus of St.
Edward's University, at 3001 South Congress Avenue. Another
good spot is the overlook on the east side of Loop 360 about
1.8 miles north of the Bee Caves Road cutoff. Also on the
east side of Loop 360,1.5 miles north of the Bee Caves Road
cutoff, you will see the sign for the Wild Basin Preserve. A
visitor's center there is staffed daily from 9 a.m. to 5
p.m., and from the porch of the visitor's center you have a
nice view of the Hill Country. A short walk down the Easy
Access Trail will take you to an overlook with a great view
of downtown Austin. This trail, designed to accommodate
mobility impairments, is ideal for a less-than-strenuous
walk.
If you continue north on Loop
360 from Wild Basin, you will encounter more nice views just
driving along. If you go south on Loop 360, however, turn
east on Bee Caves Road, and take the second road to your
left, which is Red Bud Trail. At the corner of Red Bud Trail and Forest
View Drive, you will encounter another outstanding view of
downtown Austin. At the next crossroads, which is Lake Austin
Boulevard, turn right and continue under MoPac, taking Cesar
Chavez. Drive along the north side of Town Lake, continue to
Congress Avenue, turn left there, and drive up Congress
Avenue to see a favorite view of the Capitol of Texas.
Mount Bonnell
is famous for its
panoramic view 785 feet high above downtown and Lake Austin.
This is a great place to picnic. Go west on 35th Street, veer
left on Old Bull Creek Road,
and turn right on Mt. Bonnell Road. Mt.
Bonnell will be on your left at the top of 100 stone steps. A
curfew extends from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. As you leave Mt. Bonnell
go north on Mt. Bonnell Road, turn right on Mt. Bonnell
Drive, turn left on Balcones Drive, take another left onto
Perry Lane, and turn left again onto Ridge Oak. Here you will
find a small hilltop park built above a city water reservoir
that offers dramatic views of the Loop 360 bridge, Austin
Country club, Lake Austin Peninsula, and Cat Mountain.
Barton Creek
Square Mall
To watch the moonrise or
sunset or to take pictures of the Austin skyline, drive out
to 2901 Capital of Texas Highway (Loop 360), where Loop 360
intersects MoPac. The northeast parking lot has been
outfitted for moon gazers, complete with trash receptacles
and a bench. Still, watch out for the red ants if you're sitting on the grass. Also
watch the sunset from the parking lot of St. Luke's on the
Lake, a church overlooking Lake Travis with some of the best lake views.
Please park in the lot west of the church and as a common
courtesy don't leave your trash. The church is on RM 620 just
north of Mansfield Dam.
Blunn Creek
Nature Preserve
a short trail at the
northeast end, designed with wheelchair accessibility in
mind, affords a superb view of St. Edward's University. On
the south side of Oltorf Street near the intersection of IH
35, Travis High School has access to this trail along the
west side of its campus.
The Foothills
at the Hyatt Regency
For the best views while
dining, try 208 Barton Springs Road on Town
Lake, the
County Line at 6500 West Bee Caves Road, or the Oasis Cantina
Del Lago on Lake Travis. At the Oasis you can watch the
nightly sunset inside through glass windows or outside
year-round from decks at several levels. To get there, drive
out RM 2222, take RM 620 west, turn right onto Comanche
Trail, and follow the signs.
For great views farther out,
drive northwest to any of the Highland Lakes, a chain of lakes 150 miles long formed by a
series of dams on the Colorado River. Closest in is Austin's
Town Lake, followed by lakes Austin, Travis, Marble
Falls, LBJ, Inks, and Buchanan. Lake Buchanan, farthest out, is the largest of all
these lakes, all of which offer recreational opportunities,
such as swimming, boating, or hiking.
Highway 183
A scenic route to the
lakes is to drive north of Austin on U.S. 183. Go west on RM
1431. This route will give you views of Lake Travis, Lake
Marble Falls, and Lake Lyndon B. Johnson. You will pass
through the town of Marble Falls. RM 1431 ends at Texas
Highway 29; turn right here. After several miles Lake
Buchanan and Lake Buchanan Dam will be on your left and Inks
Lake will be on your right. Take Park Road 4 (turn right) at
Inks Lake and continue to U.S. Highway 281. Turn right and
you will be back on RM 1431 at Marble Falls after about 8
miles.
For a scenic drive west of Austin, go
west on Texas Highway 71, continue past the turn off for RM
620 for another couple of hundred yards, and then turn left
on Hamilton Pool Road (RM 3238). After a few miles this
road loses its status as a ranch road, becoming narrower,
windier, and slightly rougher at this point. About 14.5 miles
from the cutoff you will reach Hamilton Pool, named for a
natural pool within a cave where a waterfall 65 feet high
furnishes a constant supply of water. Shortly past the
Hamilton Pool turn off you will plunge into the Pedernales
River valley.
The road takes a hairpin course down and across the narrow
one-lane low water bridge, so take it easy and enjoy the
scenery.
You may wish instead to drive
west on U.S. Highway 290, turn right on U.S. Highway 281,
pass through Johnson City on U.S. Highway 281,
turn left onto RM 1323, and continue to Willow City. At a
T-intersection where a small wooden sign says "Willow
City Loop," turn left here to drive one of the most
wildly beautiful roads in Texas. After about 14 miles, turn
left onto Texas Highway 16. Soon you will come to Eckert,
where you take a right turn and continue to the intersection
of RM 965 toward Enchanted Rock State Natural Area. Enchanted
Rock and its smaller companions are awesome. A mile-long
climb to the summit will provide you with some of the best
panoramic views, sunrises, and sunsets. Incidentally, Texas
Highway 16 is beautiful all the way from Kerrville, Enchanted
Rock, to Llano.
To take a scenic drive south
of Austin, go south on Manchaca Road until it ends at FM
1626, where you turn right. For the next 4.5 miles you drive
on the edge of the Balcones Escarpment. Bear west toward
Driftwood on FM 967. When FM 967 comes to an end after 9.2
miles, turn left onto RM 1826 going west for just over a
mile, and turn left on FM 150. Continue to the intersection
of FM 150 and FM 3237, turn right on FM 3237, and continue to
Wimberley. A quick way to return to Austin is to turn right
on RM 12, which will take you to the town of Dripping Springs
and U.S. Highway 290, where you turn right and continue east
to Austin.
Or drive south on IH 35 to San
Marcos and take RM 12 west. About 10 miles out of town, RM 12
suddenly veers north to Wimberley. You continue straight on
RM 32. In less than 5 miles you begin to climb Devil's
Backbone, a long and rugged hill that helps define the
Guadalupe River and Blanco River watersheds. The views from
the roadside park at the top are wonderful.
East of Austin, Texas Highway
71 will take you to Bastrop. Drive through Bastrop and take
Texas Highway 21 north (turn left); about 1 mile east you
will come to Bastrop State Park. Park Road I connects Bastrop State
Park to Buescher State Park. There is a stop between these
parks that will give you great views of the area. Both of
these parks are in the Lost Pines.
Different wildflowers bloom in
all different seasons. For more information check the Texas Wildflower Season at
Lone
Star Internet.
Also check the newspapers or call the Wildflower Hotline,
832-4059 ext. 4, starting about the middle of March through
May, to determine the best areas for wildflowers. Especially
in the spring-the prime time is usually the first 2 weeks in
April-the views of blooming wildflowers in the Central Texas
area can be glorious.
| Texas
Hiking and Biking | The
Highland Lakes
| Texas State Parks |
