[KevinFromTexas]

Was in West Austin on Saturday. So I took the camera along for some shots of downtown and the hills.

Mopac (Loop 1) in South Austin south of Capital of Texas Highway (Loop 360).
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170251EDIT.jpg

Palisades West from Bee Caves Road.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170262EDIT.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170267EDIT.jpg

Palisades West from Capital of Texas Highway (Loop 360).
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170270EDIT.jpg

Scenic overlook along Loop 360.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170274EDIT.jpg

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http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170286EDIT.jpg

Austin's tv and radio towers. The tallest is 1,308 feet tall.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170287EDIT.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170288EDIT.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170289EDIT.jpg

Loop 360 Bridge, also known as the Pennybacker Bridge.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170290EDIT.jpg

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Crossing the Colorado River at Lake Austin.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170293EDIT.jpg

Palisades West.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170273EDIT.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170295EDIT.jpg

Next we went up to the top of Mount Shepherd. Mount Shepherd is one of the highest points in Austin. Where I was was about 871 feet above sea level which is over 400 feet higher than the river below.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170296EDIT.jpg

The Colorado River. At this point it's known as Lake Austin.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170298EDIT.jpg

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http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170300EDIT.jpg

The hill on the left with the single tower is Mount Larson.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170301EDIT.jpg

I'm glad I went up there because someone is building a new house on the last vacant lot along Courtyard Drive.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170304EDIT.jpg

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That's Bull Mountain. 2222 snakes around it there below that rocky outcropping.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170317EDIT.jpg

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Mount Lucus, Mount Barker and Mount Bonnell.
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10% grade around that corner.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170319EDIT.jpg

On the way back. Three South Austin midrises near I-35 & Texas 71.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170339EDIT.jpg

[DFW LUV]

Awesome Kevin!

Great shots with original views.

[innov8]

I love those shots from the hills and those nice homes looking down on the city.

Good stuff Kevin :cheers:

[flar]

Nice hills!

[KevinFromTexas]

Thanks guys.

This building, Palisades West, is a new 7-story office building going up atop one of the ridges at Bee Caves Road and Loop 360. I recently got the height for it. It's 117 feet tall. This officially makes it a highrise, and because of where it stands at 1,009 feet above sea level, also makes it the highest elevation highrise in Austin. According to GoogleEarth, it's 528 feet higher in elevation than where the Frost Bank Tower stands 4 miles away in downtown. Anyway, all the Austin forumers have been talking about where we've seen it. Last October I spotted the crane for it from as far away as 12 miles. Pretty amazing for a 7-story building.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170314EDIT.jpg

[denveraztec]

Amazing how I never notice these hills when I am in Austin. Thanks for sharing!

[ATXboom]

Weather really cleared up! Beautiful shots Kev.

[Bergenser]

This (http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170301EDIT.jpg) picture is so cool, I love the masts! :tup:

[Boris]

Those are some tall ass radio towers.

Great shots Kevin.

Other than the Palisades, nothing much has changed in that area since I moved from Austin; or has has there?

[dharper6]

Amazing how I never notice these hills when I am in Austin. Thanks for sharing!

You have to drive around the west side of town to be in the hills. If you're in central or east Austin, you usually have to be up in a building or on an overpass to see the hills over on the west side. Next time you visit, be sure to drive around the west side...you'll love it.

[Magnus1]

looks like socal

[Reverberation]

Awesome shots of one of the craziest places ever. Bar none.

[mSeattle]

Austin's skyline is growing nicely.

[dharper6]

Now that we've had some excellent rains this week, the hills are going to be getting nice and green over the next couple of weeks, and will stay that way until about July when the summer heat will take its toll.

[KevinFromTexas]

Amazing how I never notice these hills when I am in Austin. Thanks for sharing!

Yeah. You pretty much have to be in West Austin to really see them. You will notice a gentle rise on the horizon, but it's not very pronounced. This is because Central Austin, downtown and east Austin, any area that is east of West Austin, sits in a river valley. Downtown is actually one of the lowest points in the entire city. The points east sit low, and the terrain gradually slopes upward towards the river like a plateau. The area just east of the river in West Austin drops 300 to 400 feet straight down. You can see this drop in the photo below with those three hills on the left. That's Mount Lucus, Mount Barker and Mount Bonnell. After that the elevation stays only about 100 feet higher than the river for up a mile west of it. Then it starts to rise again and the hills increase. So east of the river you really don't see the hills all that much. Of course it depends on where you are. From some places you can see them just fine. Farther west in West Austin the hills get bigger, and in western Travis County the elevation peaks at 1,400 feet. Farther west elevations hit 2,000 feet and the hills can be 600 to 700 feet tall.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170321EDIT.jpg

This picture is so cool, I love the masts!

Those towers are visible all over Austin. Several of them are taller than the Empire State Building. At night their air craft warning lights create a sort of wave like effect. The best view of them is from Mount Bonnell Park.

Those are some tall ass radio towers.

Great shots Kevin.

Other than the Palisades, nothing much has changed in that area since I moved from Austin; or has has there?

I didn't know you used to live in Austin. How long ago was that? It hasn't changed all that much since the 80s. Most of the office buildings along 360 were built in the mid and late 80s. The highway was only finished in 1982, before that it was just virgin land.

[ATXboom]

^^^ To see the hills simply drive Loop 360 / Capital of TX Hwy...

great vistas. Very much reminds me of Socal in many areas as mentioned.

[BigBird9]

Great pics! I like to see Austin from that prespective becasue the only part I ever saw was along I-35 and downtown. It looks a lot like the north part of San Antonio.

[Boris]

I didn't know you used to live in Austin. How long ago was that?

We lived in Austin from 1995 through the end of 2001. Had to move because my wife could not deal with the allergies. (Que pena).

Anyway, we lived for a while in some apartments right off of Cap. of Tex Hwy and Spicewood Springs. Beautiful area. Then we got a house in Cedar Park. Liked the apartment better.

Adios

[WesternGulf]

Real talk, I have never "got" Austin and it's popular appeal, but if there IS anything that sets it apart from other Texas cities physically/geographically is this:

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170321EDIT.jpg

Nice photos.

[ATXboom]

^^^ yes, part of the attraction is physical with the terrain and beautiful lakes.

The biggest however is the people/culture. Being a sunbelt city this is very difficult to pick up on in a 2 day visit, unlike visiting an old [pre auto developed] urban American city like SF or Chicago where you can pick up on a vibe without ever interacting with people. This is certainly not a city that prides itself on the post card shot of it's downtown for the flash in the pan appeal it may provide many other cities.

...now cross those 2 things above with great cost of living, massive job growth/opportunity and weather/outdoor activity and amenity on water, cliff, bike etc and you have it rather simply.

I will spare the people/culture descriptions as you probably have heard them before... and many of the folks filling up Austin probably share many of your lifestyle choices and desires as so many are from the Bay area, NY, etc.

In just a few years I believe you will be able to pick up on the vibe much more quickly as the city's core goes through some massive radical changes for the better. It will be unlike any other sunbelt city.

[TXLove]

great pics Kevin......that side of Austin seems so distance from the rest of the city just because of the look. I often go out this way just to get away from the "city" because this area just doesn't look like the city!

[dharper6]

Real talk, I have never "got" Austin and it's popular appeal, but if there IS anything that sets it apart from other Texas cities physically/geographically is this:

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/West%20Austin%20views/P1170321EDIT.jpg

Nice photos.

I'm surprised you mentioned that because I've met many new Austinites from the Bay Area and they always tell me it reminds them of SF culturally. I think it's probably an overstatement but compared with anywhere else in the south, it's true in a relative sense. It was even that way when I moved here in the 70s. A lot of Austinites think the weirdness is actually subsiding some, but it's still here to a great extent (thankfully).