Cute little trail
Blunn Creek Preserve
[Hiking]
- 7/17/2010
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Rating:
Difficulty:
Solitude:
Distance: 2.00 Miles
Duration: N/A
As hikes in Austin go, this one gets points for solitude (I didn't see anyone else the entire time) and scenery. The high point has a great view of St. Edward's and downtown, and there are plenty of trailmarkers, which I happen to prefer. It wasn't particularly special or challenging, and I like the hikes further southwest better (Barton and the like) but this one was nice. There's a little creek, and as one reviewer noted, a fair amount of debris and litter. It's too bad, really. Bonus: I saw a bright purple dragonfly and a cottontail rabbit on the trail!
Woohoo!
Barton Creek - South Gus Fruh
[Hiking]
- 5/30/2010
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Rating:
Difficulty:
Solitude:
Distance: 3.50 Miles
Duration: 3 hours, 30 minutes
So great! For accuracy's sake, I think what I actually did was more north than south, but the trail marked in my handy guidebook wasn't exactly easy to follow in practice, so we just went with it and improved a bit. We started at the trailhead on Barton Hills Drive (so so sorry if this is another trail altogether) and after making it past a swimming hole, the trail became less and less distinct and more and more amorphous. But no prob, we just kept going alongside the creekbed, moving over boulders, around trees and alongside some really gorgeous cliffs, at one point finding some little springs seeping through the rock and down to the creekbed. We also saw small caves and at one point found a little climbing rope bolted into a 10 foot high rock shelf we were able to scoot up. After the "trail" alongside the creekbed got a little too difficult and steep (I stupidly neglected to bring a pack and was just carrying a water bottle so scrambling got hard) we moved down into the creekbed proper and just moved around muddy or shallow areas of the creek. It was insanely beautiful, all I can say. If you go down to the creekbed like I did, just be aware of all the loose rocks. And obviously, trail marking is nil. I think I saw two the entire time I was in the park. Also, there are lots of people around on a sunny Sunday, and sadly lots of litter. But I loved this hike and my buddy and I already agreed to return soon.