The City of Austin cut the ribbon on the Wishbone Bridge at Longhorn Dam on February 7, 2026. That finally made the Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail a continuous 10-mile circuit with no cars on it. Two days later, in the week of February 9, TxDOT closed the east-side pedestrian crossing at I-35 so it could build the new Lady Bird Lake Bridge.
So the trail gained its far eastern crossing in the same week it lost the one in the middle. This fall, the eastern half of the lake runs on several construction schedules at once. One closure lasts a week, a few last through winter, and one lasts until 2033. If you know which is which, you can plan a loop that works.
What the Wishbone Bridge actually fixed
For years, people going around the east end had to leave the trail and walk the Pleasant Valley Road detour. The Wishbone replaced that detour. The city describes the span as just under half a mile long. It links Longhorn Shores, the Mount Holly Peninsula and Canterbury Park. Each leg is longer than three football fields. The shared-use path is 24 feet wide and opens to about 65 feet at a central plaza.
Its companion project, the Unity Underpass, is 165 feet long, 30 feet wide and 16 feet tall. It got new drainage and lighting, plus a tile mural made by the community. Right now the Wishbone also does a job nobody planned for it. It is one of two crossings The Trail Conservancy suggests while the I-35 east side is closed.
Crossing the lake at I-35 now
You can still cross at I-35, just not on the side the trail used to use. The west-side sidewalk on the I-35 bridge is open, but there's no way to get between the north and south shores on the east side. TxDOT's detour map sends pedestrians along Riverside Drive to the west sidewalk, using temporary signals at Manlove Street and Edgecliff Terrace to cross Riverside.
These are your options for getting across east of downtown this fall:
- South Congress Avenue. The Conservancy names it first. It's the farthest west of the three.
- The I-35 west sidewalk. It's open, but you reach it by the Riverside Drive detour and the temporary signals, not along the shoreline.
- The Wishbone Bridge at Longhorn Dam. The other crossing the Conservancy recommends. It sits at the eastern end of the loop.
The reopening date is the part to treat loosely. The Conservancy expects the east-side closure to last about a year from February 2026. An undated TxDOT FAQ said construction on the new east-side pedestrian bridge would start in mid-2026 and take about a year. TxDOT's Lady Bird Lake segment page says the existing east pedestrian path at the lake will stay closed through 2029. None of these pages says whether that 2029 date applies to the crossing itself or only to the old path. Until TxDOT publishes a firm date, plan as if the change could last longer than one winter.
The east end runs on several clocks
Each closure below has its own start and end date, and they overlap. Here's how they line up as of early October 2026:
| Location | What's happening | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| South-shore boardwalk at I-35 | Full closure, then limited access | One week starting as early as Oct. 18; limited access through early 2027 |
| North shore near The Confluence and Austin Rowing Club | Reroute for Austin Energy underground electrical work between Brazos and Trinity streets | June 2026 through March 2027 |
| North shore west of I-35 | Back on the permanent trail, then switching between the trail and the detour path | September–October 2026; intermittent November 2026–January 2027 |
| East-side I-35 pedestrian crossing | Closed for the new Lady Bird Lake Bridge | Since the week of Feb. 9, 2026; estimated about a year |
| Riverside Drive ramp to the boardwalk | Closed; staircase and boardwalk stay open | Feb. 16, 2026, through 2029 |
| North shore along East Avenue | Detour path along the south side of East Avenue | October 2025 through 2033 |
The long-term detours were built to last. The East Avenue detour is a 14-foot-wide path, surfaced partly in decomposed granite and partly in permanent concrete where the existing infrastructure allows it, such as under the north side of the I-35 bridge. Fencing surrounds the active work areas. The boat ramp west of I-35 near the Holiday Inn is reserved for emergency vehicles only. Because that route stays in place until 2033, plan as though it is the north-shore trail at I-35 for years to come.
The short-term changes are where routines get disrupted. West of I-35, TxDOT moved trail users back to the permanent trail for September and October. Starting in November, crews expect to switch back and forth between the existing path and the detour for about three months. A route that works this week may change before the holidays.
The October 18 boardwalk week
The south-shore boardwalk under I-35 is the next scheduled disruption. TxDOT crews plan to close it for one week starting as early as Sunday, October 18. During the closure you can reach the trail from South Lakeshore Boulevard east of I-35 or from the trail entrance west of I-35.
TxDOT is held to a cap on these full closures. The Conservancy states the rule this way:
"Continuous closures of trails and waterway near the bridge are limited to three times per year, each lasting no more than one week."
Once the week is over, access along part of the south-shore boardwalk will stay limited through early 2027 while crews build the pedestrian bridge east of I-35. Trail users will still be able to pass under the I-35 bridge. The Conservancy notes that all of this depends on the weather and says more details will come later in October. Check the detours page the morning you head out.
Where The Confluence fits into a rerouted loop
The newest place to explore on the east end opened on June 6, 2026. That's when Waterloo Greenway opened The Confluence, the second phase of the project, along Waller Creek from Fourth Street to Lady Bird Lake. It includes three lattice bridges over the creek and an 800-foot boardwalk set into Waller Creek that skips the Red River Street and Cesar Chavez Street intersections. Its off-street trail connects the Lance Armstrong Bikeway, Palm Park, Rainey Street and the Butler Trail.
That link matters more this fall because the Butler Trail next to The Confluence is the stretch that's rerouted for Austin Energy work until March 2027. Waterloo Greenway lists entry points at Red River Street and Davis Street in the Rainey Street Historic District, from the Butler Trail near Trinity Street, from the south near the Mexican American Cultural Center, and at 4th and Sabine, 3rd and the I-35 frontage road, 2nd and Sabine, and Cesar Chavez and Trinity. The park is open 5 a.m. to 10 p.m., with different hours on event days.
Some features are easy to miss if you come in from the lake. The Lagoon Overlook and the Leaf Deck sit beside the water. The Lakeview Terrace and Explorers Garden are shaded and set up for families. The Cypress Grove and Trailhead Plaza at 4th Street connect to the Waterloo Greenway Trail farther north. The planting alone includes more than 1,600 new trees. Grandpa's Lakeview Terrace hosts a family monarch migration activity on October 17 and a family tree walk with a scavenger hunt on October 24, both from 10 a.m. to noon. Creek Show returns November 13 through 21, from 6 to 10 p.m. each night, along the new stretch between 4th Street and the lake. It's ticketed.
Next on Waterloo Greenway's list is Palm Park, the restoration of Sir Swante Palm Neighborhood Park at 200 N. IH-35. It sits right where the greenway meets the I-35 corridor, so the next change on the east end is already planned.
Meanwhile, at the west end
ACL Fest's second weekend at Zilker Park runs October 9 through 11. On festival weekends, Barton Springs Road and Stratford Drive close on set schedules, and Azie Morton Road closes on festival days. Some roads and parking lots stay closed through October 16. Barton Springs Pool can be reached only through its Azie Morton entrance. For the next 11 days, both ends of the lake are dealing with closures. After October 16, only the east-end construction schedules are left.
At Ealy & Company, we follow the daily details of Central Austin as closely as the market, from which crossing is open to when the boardwalk closes. If you'd like a local guide who knows the area at that level, we'd be glad to talk. Inspire your next chapter: schedule a consultation.
