Austin and Central Texas  is a fun place to live!
 
Beautiful Night View of the Austin Skyline!

Staff Picks for Fun Things to do: If you are new to Austin / Central Texas, here's a handful of fun things to do.
 
David's Pick: Zilker Botanical Gardens!

Footbridge at Botanical Gardens, Zilker Park, Austin, Texas
A gardener's paradise with Roses, Choi Pond, Butterfly garden and much more. Enjoy a walk anytime the weather's good. Zilker Botanical Gardens is located just west of Zilker Park on Barton Springs Road.
 
This footbridge is a popular spot in the Taniguchi Garden inside Zilker Botanical Gardens in downtown Austin, Texas, USA.
 
 
David's Second Pick: Watching the Congress Bridge Bat Swarm
 

If you are in downtown Austin on an early summer evening, it is hard to miss our bat swarm. The bat colony emerges just before sundown from their roost under the Congress Street Bridge in search of an insect supper. A winding horizontal vortex of an estimated 1.5 million Mexican Free-Tailed Bats streams from beneath the bridge and then snakes along Lady Bird Lake.

 

David's essay: Austin's Bat Swarm

 
Ross's Pick:  Lady Bird Lake Hike & Bike Trail!
 
Hike and Bike Trail at Lady Bird Lake, Austin, TexasWith an average of 300 sunshine-filled days per year, one of the greatest places Austin has to offer is the Lady Bird Lake Hike & Bike trail. Whether you're a focused athlete training for your upcoming triathlon, or simply enjoy a leisurely stroll accompanied by beautiful scenery, the 8.5 mile course is at your disposal. For the music enthusiast, visit the Stevie Ray Vaughan statue located west of the gazebo and South 1st Street bridge on the south shore of Lady Bird Lake.
Canoeing on Town Lake
Tom's Pick: Canoeing on Town Lake!
 
It's a great way to access the beauty of Lady Bird Lake and our waterfront parks. Canoes can be rented at Zilker Park. In addition to casual paddlers, rowing teams use Lady Bird Lake for training year-round.
 
 
 
 
Kat's Pick: Garrison Park!
Pinic at Garrison Park Austin TX
 
Garrison Park is located in South Austin at 6001 Manchaca Road. A little bit of country in South Austin, it contains several acres of woods with picnic facilities plus a family swimming pool and a baseball park. A great place inside the city to relax and spend some peaceful family time.
 
 
 
What's Special About South Austin?Map of South Austin and South Congress Avenue

South Austin is a little weird--a good thing! There's lots of small privately owned restaurants, particularly Mexican restaurants. A multitude of small local retail stores, particularly on South Congress Avenue,  offers fun shopping along with a laid-back, relaxed lifestyle.

First Thursday - The First Thursday of each month, merchants of the historic, pedestrian-friendly South Congress Avenue keep their doors open until 10 pm (and later in some cases), playing host to an array of events and activities. 
 

Austin, the Live Music Capitol of the World!
 
You've just landed in Live Music Heaven. From Antone's to Z..., Austin is the place to be if you like live music. 
 
Statue of Stevie Ray Vaughan, Austin TX music legend   
Central Texas, more FUN close by
 
More fun stuff within a two hours drive of Austin:
 
Aquarena Springs, San Marcos - One hour south of Austin on the campus of Texas State University, San Marcos. You can tour a large spring-fed crystal clear pond on their glass bottom boats. For directions and information:  
Link to Aquarena Info Website 
 Picture of Enchanted Rock
Enchanted Rock State Park - A huge dome of granite just north of Fredericksburg about two hours west of Austin. Great day trip including a challenging hike up the dome. Also, overnight camping facilities are available.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Visit the Blue Bell Creamery in Brenham, Texas!Blue Bell Creamery, Brenham - Weekdays only, but it's worth a special trip. Here's where our premium Texas ice cream is made. You get a plant tour and a free sample. It's also a pretty road trip particularly during spring wildflower season.
 
 
Fun Facts about Austin
 
Our city was originally called Waterloo and chosen to be the Capital of the new Republic of Texas in 1839. See the following link for a complete history ...
 

A few "fun facts" from the Austin History Center:

1. In 1917, the city allowed only one gas station to be open on Sundays. It was located at 4th & Brazos.

2. Congress Avenue was once the widest street in the world, about three times wider than it is now and originally paved with bricks.

3. In 1911, Austin's Austex Chili factory had the only tamale making machine in the world.

4. Austin's first drinking water was hauled in whiskey barrels up from the Colorado River and sold for 25 cents per barrel.
 
By David W. Crump 
 
If you are in downtown Austin on an early summer evening, it is hard to miss our bat swarm. The bat colony emerges just before sundown from their roost under the Congress Street Bridge in search of an insect supper. A winding horizontal vortex of an estimated 1.5 million Mexican Free-Tailed Bats streams from beneath the bridge and then snakes along Lady Bird Lake.
 
About the Austin Bat Colony
 
Austin hosts a nursing colony. The bat mothers arrive in early Spring and have their baby “pup” normally in mid-June. The young bats learn to fly by late August and then join the evening swarm to hunt for insects. This makes the most impressive emergences Late August and September evenings. The colony relocates south to Mexico as the colder temperatures of Fall approach in October.
 
Mexican Free-Tailed are medium-sized insect eating bats. They are very fast flyers reaching speeds of 60 mph. They are also long-distance travelers often migrating up to a thousand miles between central Mexico, Texas and beyond. The bats benefit our region with their voracious appetite for flying insects.
 
The Congress Street Bridge was widen in the 1980’s and an accident of this redesign was prefect crevices for the nursing bat mothers. The setting also attracted colonization with its water and location near prime insect hunting grounds in the Colorado River valley. The bat colony was initially considered a pest but has since been embraced as a tourist attraction and is now a celebrated part of the Keep Austin Weird culture.
 
Central Texas hosts many other bat colonies. The largest is a huge 20 million strong colony near San Antonio in Bracken Cave. Another large colony is in the Old Tunnel Wildlife Management area near Fredericksburg. A new colony has started under the McNeil bridge of I-35 in Round Rock.
 
Best Time & Place to View
 
The bats normally emerge just before sundown and fly east to hunt for insects in the Colorado River valley. The south sidewalk of the Congress Bridge is my favorite spot. While other views are available, the Congress Bridge lets you see the columns of bats as they fly east down the river. The bridge vantage point also avoids the odor which can be intense. Arrive about an hour before sundown to claim a good spot. Also, take the time to read the education signs in the small park on the southeast bank next to the bridge.
 
Summary
 
The bat swarm from the Congress Bridge is part of what keeps Austin fun and weird. Enjoy!
David W. Crump, Ross Gray Insurance Agency