One of Texas’s biggest tourist regions owes its start to a 3-1/2 minute earthquake over 30 million years ago. In less time than it takes to describe it, the ground trembled and shook and the Hill Country was born.
But it took an act of man — and Congress — to paint the finishing touches on the landscape. As a young senator, Hill Country hometown boy Lyndon B. Johnson delivered this region the Highland Lakes in the 1930s, a project that brought electricity to this once isolated region, controlled flooding on the sometimes raging Colorado River, and, of special interest to today’s travelers, provided Texans with over 150 miles of water recreation.
If you’re looking for a weekend getaway–one that offers plenty of outdoor fun, spectacular scenery, and cozy, small town atmosphere–take a trip to the Highland Lakes. Grab the picnic basket, a swimsuit, some comfortable shoes, and even your fishing rods for this jaunt to some lakeside communities where, especially in the summertime, you’ll find the livin’ is easy.
Head north from San Antonio north along US 281 to the town of Marble Falls, located on Lake Marble Falls (we’re going to return to this community a little later). Continue north on US 281 to the town of Burnet, located just outside of the largest of the Highland Lakes.
Burnet is home to several excellent visitor attractions. If you’re looking to beat the heat, consider a tour of Longhorn Cavern State Park, whose dark recesses are filled with history. After a look around the park, drive on to the town of Burnet and, if you’re a shopper, check out its many antique boutiques where you can easily spend a day scouring through shelves in search of special finds. Or, if you’re ready to see the first of the Highland Lakes, head west on TX 29.
The first lake in the chain is Lake Buchanan, the granddaddy of them all. Contained by one of the largest multiple-arch dams in the world, this lake covers 23,000 acres, spanning over 30 miles in length and eight miles in width. For a good look at the multiple-arch dam, walk out on the observation site. Spend a few minutes in the adjacent museum which chronicles life in this area in 1937, the construction of the dam, and wildlife in the lake region.
One of the most popular ways to view the lake is aboard the Vanishing Texas River Cruise. Kick off your shoes, settle back in a deck chair, and watch a little bit of Texas drift by while someone else takes over the driving. Cold-weather cruises feature a look at American bald eagles that nest along the upper reaches of the lake, but in the summer you’ll find many other attractions of the rugged shoreline, perhaps spotting deer, feral hogs, and wild turkey as they come from the hills to drink at the river’s edge. The cruise passes by the Falls Creek Vineyards, located in the community of Tow (rhymes with cow). Save time after your cruise to return to the winery for a tour and taste of this award-winning product.
But Lake Buchanan is just the first of the stairstep lakes that lie nestled in this Hill Country region. For a look at other lakes along the chain, drive south on FM 1431 from Lake Buchanan to one of the quietest of the Highland Lakes. Inks Lake, the second in the chain, is a small lake only three miles long, but it has a special charm all its own.
Much of the water’s edge is lined with homes, and a large section is bordered by the Inks Lake State Park. This 1200-acre park offers 100 campsites, fishing piers, a concession for buying groceries or bait, and a nine-hole golf course.
Continue down FM 1431 to the third in the lake chain, Lake LBJ. Once named Granite Shoals, the lake was renamed for Lyndon Baines Johnson because of his work as a young senator to bring the lakes to the Hill Country. This lake is protected by tall granite cliffs which shield the lake from gusty winds. Because of the calm waters, skiers and anglers are attracted in droves.
It’s also home of the sleepy community of Kingsland, a resort and retirement village that caters to those who come to enjoy a few days of fishing. Here you’ll find cottages for rent by the day or week on the junction of the Llano and Colorado Rivers, where quiet coves afford a catch of black bass, white bass, crappie, catfish, and perch. Kingsland is also home of the Kingsland Archaeological Center.
Discovered in 1988, this archaeological site has yielded artifacts dating back to the Paleo-Indian (over 10,000 years ago) to the late prehistoric period (700 years ago). A small visitors center and museum house artifacts from the site.
The next stop is Lake Marble Falls, named for the slick marble ledges that formed a waterfall and a natural lake. Today these falls are usually hidden in the depths beneath Lake Marble Falls and seen only when the water level drops.
You may not get to view the marble falls, but there’s no way to miss the granite for which Marble Falls is famous. This glimmering stone is everywhere, from the bluffs lining the lake to the picnic areas at City Park.
In fact, one of the largest quarry operations of its kind is found on Granite Mountain, just west of the town of Marble Falls. Pink granite from the quarry was used to construct the nation’s largest state capitol building in Austin, Texas. A century ago, hundreds of stonecutters from Scotland along with gangs of Texas convicts performed the backbreaking work of cutting the stone from Granite Mountain.
The rough, rocky terrain of Marble Falls diminishes somewhat by the time you reach Lake Travis, a large, meandering lake that winds its way from the Hill Country to Austin’s front door. At 65 miles long, Travis is the longest lake in the chain and over three miles across in some spots, with literally hundreds of coves and inlets along its snakelike boundaries. Much of the land on Travis’s shores is controlled by the Lower Colorado River Authority and remains undeveloped, but there are several excellent public parks from which to choose.