Dam fun & native plants at LCRA’s Wilkerson Center
Queen butterfly in the Wilkerson Center’s native-plant garden
The siren song of beautiful fall weather, combined with school holidays last week, pulled us, unresisting, outdoors every day to enjoy local sightseeing in Austin.
On Wednesday I took the kids to the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) on Lake Austin Boulevard to play with their cool interactive model of the Highland Lake dams, from Buchanan Dam in the Hill Country down to Tom Miller Dam that creates Lady Bird Lake. A miniature Colorado River flows down a terraced hill, pooling behind model dams with real floodgates operated by turn wheels that allow visitors to generate electricity, manage water allocation to various recipients (cities, agriculture, and wetlands, for example), and even see abstract houses built in the flood plain get inundated. We lucked into a guided tour, but the display, which is part of the Wilkerson Center for Colorado River Education at Redbud, is open to the public on weekdays and free. One caveat: some of the dams’ turn wheels are locked and can only be accessed on an official tour; our guide explained that the water levels have to be “reset” after opening some of the flood gates or the display won’t work properly, so those sections must be supervised.
After you’ve played with the models you can walk to an overlook to view the real thing: the Tom Miller Dam holds back Lake Austin and creates Lady Bird Lake, which flows through downtown Austin.
The center includes an attractive demonstration garden with a mix of mostly native and some adapted plants, which I somehow managed not to get a picture of. Educational signs explain how to conserve and manage water on your property by terracing, making rain gardens, and using native plants. In addition, huge water cisterns near the entrance collect rainwater from the LEED-certified building’s roof and are used to irrigate the garden.
The view below the dam was scenic, with the bald cypresses turning a rusty orange and kayakers paddling in the green water.
If you haven’t visited the Wilkerson Center, it’s definitely worth a look, especially during the beautiful days of autumn.
All material © 2006-2009 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
How interesting and quite beautiful. It would be fun doing the kayaking.
Sounds like a nice outing with the kids. H.
I never knew it was there. Sounds like a great little field trip, especially with kids. And it’s ok that you didn’t get photos of the demonstration garden — you were in the moment enjoying your family. Any more field trips planned for this weekend?
Yes, we’re going to Westcave Preserve today. I’ll also have posts soon about our outings to Pedernales Falls, the Texas State Cemetery, and Mount Bonnell. —Pam
Hi Pam, what a cool place, can’t wait to explore it. Some day you should gather your explorations and photos of them into a local natural/garden tour book. There’s a market for outdoor touring.
Thanks, Kathleen. That’s a fun idea, although perhaps online journals like this one meet that need these days. —Pam
PS And fall has arrived by the lake in the two weeks since I stopped by! Thanks for the pix.
Beautiful butterfly! You have a lot of fall color there.
What a great idea! I’d love my kids to play with the dams’model and then, to see the real thing!
The views of the lake are gorgeous!
Great ideas for things to do with kids when they’re out of school. There is so much to see and do around here. I’m making a list, and checking it twice.
We had an LBJ theme this spring and summer with two granddaughters. Johnson City, the Ranch, the Library and Capitol and the Wildflower Center. I think they’re LBJed out.
Maybe we’ll do the Great Dam Tour over Christmas vacation. Start at the actual Buchanan Dam and work our way to this exhibit @ Lake Austin.
You’ve been an inspiration.
We’ve done the LBJ theme before too but over the course of a few years, not all at once. We all really enjoyed the LBJ ranch, and of course we go to the Wildflower Center all the time—such a great place. Enjoy your dam tour; it sounds ambitious! —Pam
My biggest kid – my DH Philo- had a wonderful time at the Dam Park – we both found it fascinating. But we’ve never wandered the State Cemetery featured in your latest post, Pam – it’s now on the to-visit list!
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
It’s funny to think of Philo playing with the model dams, but I bet there are lots of big kids who love it. You’d like the State Cemetery, Annie, seeing as you’re such a genealogy and history buff. —Pam
What fun! And looks like you had a perfect day for your adventure. (Maybe one day I’ll make it to Texas, but right now, I wish I could fit in Santa Ana Botanical Gardens and the Getty in Southern CA. No time, no time…)
I hope you can fit in visits to those places too, Town Mouse. I’d love to see them on your blog! —Pam