RIVERSIDE PARK OFFERS A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE

Jesus Villegas, 2, plays in the children’s park at Riverside Park.

Evan Lewis/elewis@vicad.com

Evan Lewis/elewis@vicad.com O.C. Garza, public relations director for the city of Victoria, talks about the paddling opportunities on the Guadalupe River through Riverside Park.

BY CIARA MCCARTHY cmccarthy@vicad.com

By day, O.C. Garza is spokesman for the city of Victoria, helping to inform the public about how the city works and what government officials are doing.

But by earlier in the day, Garza is an avid cyclist. He starts most of his days cycling in one of the city’s crown jewels — Riverside Park.

As a frequent visitor to the park, Garza serves as one of its best guides and recently took the Advocate on a tour of the park’s best features.

Garza starts the tour near the PumpHouse Riverside Restaurant and Bar, the historic location of the original pumping station for Victoria’s water. The privately owned restaurant stands on the banks of the Guadalupe River, which provides a steady stream on most days that’s perfect for kayaking.

Aspiring kayakers can enjoy the river by renting a kayak from Gerry’s Kayaks, which provides the gear and the instructions necessary for a leisurely paddle on the river. Kayakers usually enter the river at the public boat ramp and meander down the river’s turns before stopping their ride at the dock near the PumpHouse.

If you’re looking to jump into the river sans boat, the park includes multiple access points to the river, the most popular of which is Pebble Beach. Pebble Beach has a clear bank that allows access to the water and is shallow enough for swimmers of all ages to cool off.

For the water-averse, Riverside offers plenty of other sporting options. One of the most popular, Garza said, is Riverside’s 18-hole disc golf course. The Frisbee-based course allows for a relaxing, stress-free tour of the park.

Riverside’s disc golf course was designed by John Houck, who Garza refers to as the “Jack Nicklaus” of the disc golf world because of his fame in the industry.

If you are more interested in hitting golf balls, the park is home to Riverside Golf Course, an 18-hole public course.

The park also includes one of Victoria’s most popular amenities, the Texas Zoo, which showcases some of Victoria’s cutest residents. New additions to the zoo include Archie the fawn and Laguna the ocelot kitten.

Like any park, Riverside includes numerous playing fields, including the wellknown Riverside Stadium baseball field. The complex that Victoria is particularly proud of, Garza said, is the Challenged Athletes Dream Complex. The space includes two fields that are specifically built to be safe and accessible for kids who might have difficulty playing on a standard field. The space is safe and usable for kids in wheelchairs and walkers.

The park includes a stunning stretch of flowers in the Rose Garden, where hundreds of roses bloom in a nod back to Victoria’s moniker as the “city of roses.” Visitors can meander among the buds from 6 a.m. until 11 p.m.

If all of the options for exploring the park seem a bit daunting, there’s plenty of space to just sit and enjoy the view. The park has 200 picnic areas, according to the city of Victoria, that provide space to eat, relax and enjoy the nearby river.

Evan Lewis/elewis@vicad.com Naomi Villegas, 6, plays in the children’s park at Riverside Park.

Dorothy Hanna O'Connor dreamed of a place for final rest for a pet member of the family. MemoryMeadows Pet Memorial Parkoffers that place of permanenceright here in Victoria. A beautiful setting, it offers serenity to remember and reminisce with your pet. Create a sense of closure remembering the relationship between you and your very loved pet family member.