The first time I visited Austin, I looked at a map. Not too exciting so far. But. On that map, I saw the words “Colorado River” and became very confused. You see, earlier that summer, I’d gone to the Grand Canyon—that big hole the Colorado River carved in its backyard when its parents were away at work. I was surprised, then, to learn the Colorado River also flows through Austin, and as I thought about it more, it didn’t hold up. I’d crossed the Continental Divide a few times that year (and it’s frequently well-marked, so I’d noticed it). Much like TSA, water can’t pass that thing, and the Colorado River was on the other side of it. This could not be the Colorado River.
It turns out I was correct—it wasn’t. At the same time, though, it was, because it turns out there are two Colorado Rivers. Austin got stuck with the little one.
While the bigtime Colorado River starts over 10,000 feet above sea level in—yes—Colorado, ours doesn’t even cross state lines, starting out past San Angelo near a town named Lamesa. While the bigtime Colorado River’s basin reaches all the way up into Wyoming, ours hardly even gets any help from New Mexico. While the bigtime Colorado River carved the Grand Canyon, feeds Lake Powell and Lake Mead, contains Horseshoe Bend, and was so unruly only the Hoover Dam could tame it, ours just started a couple of lakes, many of which are just the river to the naked eye.
It didn’t have to be this way. According to Wikipedia, this river was supposed to be the Brazos River and the Brazos River was supposed to be the generic brand Colorado River, but Spanish explorers got confused (are all explorers just confused people, in their own way?). But it is this way. From now until eternity, Austinites must live with the indignity of possessing the lesser Colorado River. Though in an attempt at a rebrand, we should probably start calling it the Coloradito.
I once had a substitute teacher in history class insist that they were the same river, and made us draw it on our homework maps: starting at Baja, up and over the Rocky Mountains, and down through Austin.
I was just looking at map of Austin and had the same confusion, so I started slowly following its route back to its source on Google Maps…. It’s not the same river… but it does meander across the state of Texas. Wonder how it has its source in the middle of the Texas desert? thanks for the informative article!
As a Coloradan visiting Austin for the first time in 2022 I became very confused when I came across the Colorado river in, and around this south, central Area of Texas. I thought wow, I didn’t realize the Colorado had a southeast fork?? Well, the two rivers are not related. I’m very familiar with western Colorado and the upper and lower basins of the drainage. There’s only one mighty Colorado!!!
As a Coloradan visiting Austin for the first time in 2022 I became very confused when I came across the Colorado river in, and around this south, central Area of Texas. I thought wow, I didn’t realize the Colorado had a southeast fork?? Well, the two rivers are not related. I’m very familiar with western Colorado and the upper and lower basins of the drainage. There’s only on mighty Colorado!!!