No other park in Austin is as well known, well loved, and much visited as Zilker Park. A site of a number of annual festivals and events and located adjacent to Lady Bird Lake and downtown Austin, Zilker Park is just about everything you could want in a park.
A Brief History of Zilker
The park is named after Andrew Jackson Zilker, who donated the 350-acre plot of land to the city in 1917. During the Great Depression, it was developed into a city park, and has since served as a central hub for many recreational activities for the city. The park’s large size makes it a perfect location for festivals, including events such as the Austin City Limits Music Festival and the Zilker Park Kite Festival.
Zilker Park is also home to many permanent attractions, such as Barton Springs Pool, Zilker Nature Preserve, Zilker Botanical Garden, the Zilker Zephyr miniature train and large and fanciful Zilker playscape, as well as Zilker Hillside Theater and Umlauf Sculpture Garden. The park also features soccer, volleyball, and polo fields, a nature center, and many historical sites. The city hike and bike trail that runs along Lady Bird Lake also passes through the park with a spur leading to Barton Springs and on the Barton Creek Greenbelt, providing an easy route for cyclists and people on foot to access the park.
Festivals Galore
Of all the events the park hosts, the Austin City Limits Music Festival, or ACL as it is known to music fans, is the largest, hosting about 75,000 visitors a day. The event started in August 2002 as a two-day festival. Eventually, it expanded into a three-day event. The decision was made to turn the 2013 ACL into a six-day festival, covering two consecutive weekends and showcasing more bands.
The Zilker Kite Festival is another well-attended annual event in the park. Held on the first Sunday of March, the festival is often attended by more than 20,000 people. The original “Kite Tournament” was created in 1929 by The Exchange Club of Austin, and it has become the longest-running kite festival in the U.S. People of all ages attend the event each year to take to the skies with kites of all shapes and sizes. The event is also pet friendly. Everyone is welcome.
The Zilker Holiday Tree
Another popular annual fixture is the Zilker Holiday Tree, a 160-foot tall tree made of lights that is illuminated every December. The first tree was lighted in 1967, and it has been a holiday tradition ever since. The tree is built around Zilker’s Moonlight Tower, one of the original public electric streetlights that still stands.
Moonlight Towers were erected in Austin in the 1890’s. Built of steel, the towers stand more than 160-feet tall and are only 15-feet wide at their base. Austin is the only city in the world that has preserved a number of its moonlight towers. The tree is made up of thirty-nine 189-foot long strands of 25-watt bulbs with 87 bulbs on each strand. In all, nearly 3,200 blue, green, red and yellow lights are incorporated into building the tree. A 10-foot star with its own 150 bulbs tops the tree.
Shakespeare in the Park, The Sound of Music, and the Zilker Zephyr
Of the permanent attractions at the park, the Zilker Zephyr is also one of the more intriguing. The Zephyr is a narrow-gauge, light-rail miniature train that chugs along Barton Creek and Lady Bird Lake. It is great for families, as the 25-minute ride is relaxing and scenic for adults, while still being novel enough to get the little ones excited. The train runs on an hourly schedule during the week, and every half-hour on the weekends.
The Austin Shakespeare Festival stages Shakespearean plays around Austin, including free performances under the stars in Zilker Park. Zilker Park also boasts the longest-running outdoor, pay-what-you-will musical production in the United States. The Zilker Hillside Theater plays host to the Zilker Summer Musical, which has been taking place yearly since 1959.
The Austin Parks and Recreation Department originally began the event as a project for local high school students, but it has grown into a highly polished stage production with an annual attendance in excess of 60,000 people. Productions have covered nearly every popular musical production in recent memory, from You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown to The Sound of Music.
In addition to plays and musicals, Zilker Hillside Theater also has frequent concerts, with styles ranging from country to jazz.
Swimming in Natural Springs, Hiking, Biking, Disc Golf and More
Barton Springs Pool, also located in Zilker Park, is a favorite among locals and visitors the world over. The three-acre pool is fed from underground springs, and maintains a constant temperature of around 68 degrees year-round. Though a bit chilly for a typical pool, the cold water is a blessing during Texas’ witheringly hot summers.
The springs were considered to have spiritual and healing powers by Native Americans before Europeans ever arrived on the continent, and many bathers still feel a deeply spiritual atmosphere today – while others just love the cool water, grassy hills, and sunbathing.
Zilker Park offers plenty of other ways to get physical. The Hike and Bike trail winds its way through the park, and is used by joggers, dog-walkers, and cyclists the city over. There are also a couple of multi-use sports fields, sand volleyball courts, and 9-hole disc golf course. If you want to get your blood pumping in Zilker, there are options!
For a Meditative Experience
The park is also a great place to relax and reflect. The Zilker Botanical Garden is located on several acres of topographically diverse landscape, and features many different types of garden styles. Cacti and succulents of West Texas and koi ponds and teahouses of Japanese gardens are among the many gardens represented.
The Umlauf Sculpture Garden, a deeply quiet and serene space, is another great place to unwind. The outdoor sculpture garden showcases work donated by late American sculptor Charles Umlauf. The bronze sculptures have all received a wax coating, protecting them from oils and salts on our hands, so visitors are welcome to touch the sculptures. Visitors can tour the garden with a docent, or take a self-guided tour of this very unique and scenic Austin location.
Everything that Zilker Park has to offer, from large annual events to serene gardens, has made it a cherished part of the city of Austin. It has a long history of serving Austinites, and will continue to be enjoyed by residents for years to come.