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What are Some Outdoor Activities in Austin, Texas?

By Sheri Cyprus
Updated May 17, 2024
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Austin, Texas is known for its wide mix of styles and people. There is no shortage of intriguing outdoor activities in Austin, especially since the weather here is mild all year round. Whether you're watching a concert on Sixth Street or swimming in the Barton Springs natural pool, you'll always find something to do outdoors in Austin.

Austin's Sixth Street is a great place for eating, dancing and bar hopping. It was formerly known as Pecan Street and it has many different types of restaurants and bars. The music in these places varies from country, jazz, hip-hop, rock and more. Sixth Street is also known for its outdoor street concerts and arts and crafts shows. The west side of Sixth Street is great for browsing the one-of-a-kind stores and antique shops as well as visiting the ice cream parlour and bakery.

Swimming in the Barton Springs Pool is one of the most popular outdoor activities in Austin's Zilker Park. The pool is completely natural yet does have diving boards. Due to its natural underground springs, the pool stays at about 68 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius) year round. Zilker Park is centrally located and, besides swimming, is also known for outdoor activities such as cycling, volleyball, soccer and hiking.

Hiking up to Mount Bonnell is often considered one of the best outdoor activities in Austin as from its top you can see amazing city and lake views. The Barton Creek Greenbelt area is another popular area for hiking. Since Texas' geography is so rocky, rock climbing is another outdoor activity you're likely to see around Austin.

Definitely one of the most unusual outdoor activities in Austin is bat viewing. Downtown Austin's Congress Avenue Bridge has the biggest colony of bats in a North American city. The bat count here is as high as one and a half million at times. The best time for viewing the bats is said to be at sunset in late summer when many bats are in flight to look for food.

Water sports are popular outdoor activities in Austin. Lake Travis is known for waterskiing and fishing. Catfish and varieties of bass are said to be fairly plentiful in Lake Travis. Lake Buchanan is a very popular lake for fishing for largemouth and striped bass. Sailing and kayaking are other common outdoor activities in Austin's lakes.

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