Posted: Thu, 21 May 2009 03:23 PM - 8,265 Readers

By: Asher Price

Get those flip-flops ready, but if you’re headed to Lakes Buchanan or Travis, which fluctuate in depth, check to see whether your usual boat ramp still catches water: Protracted drought has drawn down lake levels.

Lower Colorado River Authority meteorologist Bob Rose forecasts near-normal precipitation this summer, which means not a lot.

“We will see periodic rain, and it will not be as hot as last summer,” he said.

Out of 12 public boat ramps into Lake Travis, at least eight currently are not operable because of low lake levels.

And at least two of the four boat ramps in Lake Buchanan are not available. For more information on boat ramps throughout the summer, visit the LCRA web site.

Low lake levels can harm businesses that depend on higher lake levels for their boat ramps and docks. Many marinas, meanwhile, shift their flotilla of slips into deeper water.

“I’ve watched the lake come up and go down again, and the lake is still beautiful,” said Liz Chapman, who has worked at Lake Travis Marina for 27 years. Ninety percent of the 310 slips at the marina are occupied, she said.

Low lake levels matter “because if you don’t know Lake Travis you stand a chance of running aground.”

Her advice: Stick to the cliff-side of the lake in any given bend or cove.

“Stay to the cliff side and you’ll stay in the deep water,” she said.

Robert Baird, who owns Siesta Shores Marina near Lakeway, says low lake levels means “more people, in a smaller amount of space,” which can lead to problems when inexperienced boaters are navigating heavy traffic. He advises boaters to watch their depth finders and keep an eye out for buoys.