Sports and Recreation in Austin
Town Lake Park boasts 17 ball fields for baseball, football, soccer and rugby, and volleyball. The area on the south side of Town Lake from Lamar Boulevard east to South First Street is known as Auditorium Shores, and many concerts and large events are held there. Butler Shores refers to that stretch of Town Lake from the Lamar bridge over the Colorado River to the east bank of Barton Creek.
East of IH 35 favorite spots for large Town Lake gatherings are Fiesta Gardens and Festival Beach, which stretches from IH-35 east to Canadian Street. All along Town Lake, people flock to the hike-and bike trails to walk, jog, bicycle, or otherwise enjoy the beauty of the Colorado River.
Rowing Dock is a Town Lake Austin Parks and Recreation concession whose mission is to promote rowing and other family watersports. They offer rentals, camps, private lessons, classes and memberships.
On the south side...
is the heart beat of Austin's park system. Zilker Metropolitan Park located on Town Lake is locally known as Zilker park. As many "Austinites" will testify to, a favorite spot here is the Barton Creek Swimming Pool. This Natural spring fed pool is over 1,000 FEET LONG!
Also not to be missed in this section of the park are several soccer, football, baseball, and rugby fields. While the more relaxed may want to visit the wonderful UMLAUF Sculpture Gardens which features the world famous Farrah Fawcet sculptures that made Charles UMLAUF well known in the mid seventies. One will also find the Botanical Gardens, Austin Area Garden Center, and The Zilker Hillside Theater all in this part of the park.
On the north side...
of the river people typically congregate where Austin High School, the Austin tennis courts, and a foot bridge over the river are all located together just east of where Loop 1 (MoPac) crosses the Colorado. You can get there from West Cesar Chavez but look carefully for signs telling you where to veer off and cloverleaf around to head south toward the high school. With plenty of space to park, many people begin and end their jaunt for the day here. A concrete gully, typically used as a boat launch, makes it an ideal spot to begin and end a canoe trip, too. Just west of MoPac off Lake Austin Boulevard, one can turn south onto Deep Eddy Avenue to find one of the city's most popular swimming pools and parks. Deep Eddy Pool (472-8546), which is quite large, has a shallow end that is wonderful for children plus lanes at the other end for serious swimming. Pool hours depend on the time of year, so call ahead to find out when the pool is open.
Next to Deep Eddy Pool is Eilers Park, complete with picnic tables, a playground, a sand court, and even an outdoor shower for cooling off after running the Hike-and-Bike Trail that ends at the park.