Springtime at the Springs

Nestled in Zilker Park, Barton Springs Pool Barton Springs Pool is three acres of ice-cold full-body refreshment surrounded by several more acres of basking-in-the-sun. Like puppies or crushes, Barton Springs may seem like one of those things that brook no blogging. Everyone knows it; everyone loves it. What else is there to say?

Well, one of the things Austinist likes best about Barton Springs is that there’s really never a bad time to go. It’s obviously a good place for basking, prone, like a member of some kind of primitive sun-worshiping cult, and the best place to go if you want to see a dog catch a Frisbee in his mouth (and we do). But if your goals are more ambitious than people-watching, swimming and eavesdropping, Barton Springs is still a fitting backdrop.

For example, after having a light brush with mortality Saturday afternoon*, Austinist had a three-part strategy for healing: we started to cry, called our dad, and went to Barton Springs. While only Austinist can call the Colonel, every Austinite can enjoy the restorative powers of the city’s most popular pool. And on any given spring or summer afternoon, it seems like most Austinites do.

Barton Springs is open almost year-round, and is open now, but will move to its full hours on April 25th. To get to Barton Springs Pool, travel east (from MoPac) or west (from I-35, Congress, or Lamar) along Barton Springs Road. Turn south on Robert E. Lee Road; a quarter of a mile down the road, make a right-hand turn into the free parking lot. Here’s a map. Alternatively, you could walk or bike and then no one would clobber you with their car.