The Guadalupe River was trickling along as Dan Ricci had to drag his daughter's inner tube over a shallow rock. When they got over, Ricci and 10-year-old Crista got back in their rubber tubes and slowly floated with the river just downstream from the Canyon Dam.
Families like the Ricci's don't seem to mind the unseasonably slow flow of the upper part of the Guadalupe River, where every week thousands of tourists and locals go tubing. The slow water, tubers said, is an easier ride for young children and first-timers.
Record low rainfall since October has left most of Texas in an exceptional drought, and popular tubing spots such as the lower Guadalupe River have seen a drop in business because of the slow-moving river. Meanwhile, spring-fed rivers such as the Comal and San Marcos rivers are being overrun on weekends as people flock to them for a more exciting float. Spring-fed rivers are less dependent on rain as springs draw water from the underground aquifer.
