Boating on Lake Travis, Texas (pics)

jimmy_the_builder

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I've been over here in Texas for the past week or two doing a bit of work; swmbo came out for the weekend and on Sunday we headed out to Lake Travis and rented a little speed boat for the afternoon.

Lake Travis isn't a natural lake - it's basically the Colorado river with a big dam that was built around 1940. The dam has created a body of water which is 4.5 miles wide at its' widest point, and 63 miles long.

We rented a 19 foot bowrider, which was perfect for the lake. We saw tons of power boats, and I think one raggie. The water was 82F I think the chap at the marina said; it was certainly very warm.

Interestingly, although the boat was a 2006 (according to its' hull number), it had clearly had a hard life, although it ran very well. It had 1300 hours!

I'm afraid my pics aren't very well organised, so in no particular order....

Here are some ducks in the lakeway marina:

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Lake Travis is surrounded by v expensive real estate, each house has its' own floating pontoon:

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Near lakeway we found this beach ... it's just like East Head:

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... NOT!

Customary wake shot:

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It was a beautiful day, 31C in the afternoon.

Back at the marina we saw this chap:

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The boat cost $300ish for four hours incl gas and ice. Very easy to organise, no need to book, just roll up with credit card and ID - UK driving licence was good enough.

Finally, and only cos we were in Texas of course, I've rented this small runabout for the trip. It makes me look like a local!

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Cheers
Jimmy
 
Thanks Jimmy. That 63 mi is longer than the typical US lake. The water level looks to be higher than when I was on the lake a decade ago. To complete your "native" outfit you will need a baseball cap. I have a closet full of them.

Kelly Cook
 
If only the "small runabout" had come with an outboard - you could have done a clarkson! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Thanks for the photos /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Rick
 
[ QUOTE ]
Not tempted to hire a Harley D ? /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

I was when I first got here, and there's a place just up the road that rents them - but having driven around for a bit in the truck I decided against it. There's not much road rage here, but by the same token there isn't too much paying of attention either. The most common scary thing that I've seen is people reversing out of parking spaces without looking first.

Interestingly you don't have to wear crash helmets here - there is some sort of additional qualification/insurance requirement that allows you to ride without one. Use of handheld phones to make calls and texts is also legal; however, seat belt use is mandatory.

Cheers
Jimmy
 
Not exactly sure on the hp but it I think it was the 4.3 Volvo Penta motor, so what would that be, 225hp praps? Not sure. Went well though.

Cheers
Jimmy
 
Looks fantastic make sure you bring back some of that sunshine to the Solent. Did you manage to see how much fuel was on the water, would be interesting to compare to the UK.
timbad
 
Interesting - NO.

Depressing - YES /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Hi Tim, they didn't have diesel on the the fuelling dock (welcome to America!) but regular unleaded is 4.66 usd per us gallon, which is about 69p a litre.

Cheers
Jimmy
 
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