San Antonio, Texas: San Antonio River
Urban Rivers: Southwest
A venerable urban river
While far from a wild experience, even in an urban context, San Antonio''s River Walk deserves an honorable mention as an early example of how efforts to save an urban river can pay off, big time. Pedestrians simply step from the street to the river level and encounter trees, plants, and flowing water. The River Walk''s history began in the early 1920s, when city government made plans to convert the river into a storm sewer system by straightening the river and diverting its water through a concrete tunnel in order to prevent flooding. A group of local women formed a coalition that eventually saved the river and became a leading force for historic preservation that is still active today as the San Antonio Conservation Society.
The walk has undergone a couple of rehabilitations over the years, and the area has gone from seedy to mall-chic. You can also find all the Tex-Mex food and boutiques you can stomach; or you can just sit and watch the people, and the water, flow by.
