Things Are Crowded but Under Control at Boat Ramp #5

Boaters are thronging to Comal County Boat Ramp #5 Saturday afternoon, but MyCanyonLake.com Outdoors Editor Karla Held, who also owns Central Texas River Trips, said so far there is none of the unruliness and disregard for social distancing reported at other ramps and at Canyon Lake near dam near the outlet last weekend.

She said Comal County constables are instructing boaters where to park their trucks. The parking lot is full and recreationalists are now parking along the street.

Held was preparing to lead a group of stand-up paddle boarders out onto the lake, launching from private property near Boat Ramp #5 that is owned by Canyon Lake Adventures, which delivers watercraft to the lake for recreationalists.

“There’s a lot of people, but it’s controlled,” she said. Paddle boarders can launch from the boat ramp, too.

“Park up top and carry your board down,” she said. “It’s good practice.”

However, according to accounts on social media, cars are crowding into a parking area near the hydroelectric plant on the north side of the river coming out of the dam. Visitors are trying to access a fishing dock.

Overlook Park remains closed. Visitors cannot walk the dam or access the lake nearby.

Boat Ramp #5 is on the south side of Canyon Lake in Canyon Lake Forest, 3150 Canyon Lake Forest Dr.

On April 3, Comal County Sheriffs Office deputies began strictly enforcing pre-existing rules for county-owned boat ramps. They can only be used to launch and recover boats, not as gathering places or entry points to the lake shore. Fishing at boat ramps also is prohibited.

All county-operated boat ramps are now open to the public. All U.S. Army Corps of Engineers boat ramps are closed, with the exception of Little Jacobs Creek, #17.