Where Austin Runs And Paddles Beneath A Downtown Skyline
Kayakers and runners share a downtown Colorado River reservoir ringed by a hike-and-bike loop.
🚣 On the water and trail
Lady Bird Lake is a reservoir on the Colorado River in downtown Austin, held back by Longhorn Dam and rimmed by the Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail. Runners, cyclists, and dog walkers move along the shaded loop from first light, when the water sits still and the skyline catches the sun.
Gas-powered boats stay off the water. Kayaks, canoes, paddleboards, and rowing shells own the surface, and the calmest stretch runs past the elevated Boardwalk that cantilevers over the south shore. Rental docks along the shoreline send paddlers out by the hour.
The loop threads past the Congress Avenue Bridge and its summer bat colony, then continues west toward Zilker Park and the cold water of Barton Springs. Downtown reflections and low morning light keep the north bank busy with photographers and rowing crews before the trails fill.
