About Us - Bull Creek Foundation

THE BULL CREEK FOUNDATION

promotes and encourages the balance between nature, recreation, and development in a unique and treasured 32-square mile watershed.

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We are coming up on July 31st. Do you know what th

We are coming up on July 31st. Do you know what that means? Folks wishing to enter the preserve to hike, may do so without a permit. Please do so respectfully. It’s still a preserve, which means no pets allowed, no camping, no bikes…well, you can read the sign! For more info and to learn why this area is so protected, search “bull creek preserve” using your preferred search engine.

In short: “The overriding goal of the BCP is to protect the welfare of the species targeted by the conservation plan. Given this priority, access into the preserve areas is allowable only if endangered species protection is not compromised.”

While hiking St Edward’s this morning, we encoun

While hiking St Edward’s this morning, we encountered this bull nettle, and more plants without blooms that are easily identifiable as bull nettle. This stuff stings if you brush against it and that painful feeling typically lasts about 20 minutes.

According to Wikipedia, The main stem, branches, leaves, and seed pods are all covered with hispid or glass-like bristly hairs that release an allergenic toxin upon contact. Contact with the plant results in intense pain: stinging, burning, and itching lasting for hours.

Well, maybe it varies per individual, but just know, despite how it feels, that pain won’t last forever. And avoid the stuff! The stinging hairs and leaf shape (green, and often with white speckles) are distinctive features.

REMINDER! Car break-ins are up this summer. Please

REMINDER! Car break-ins are up this summer. Please don’t leave valuables in your car, and DO make a point to hide anything of potential value prior to arriving at the park. People have been known to watch park visitors hide their things in the usual places then break a window once the park visitor is out of sight. It can really mess up an otherwise great day.

#Repost @latinooutdoors ・・・ LatinoConservati

#Repost @latinooutdoors
・・・
LatinoConservationWeek is HERE!

7/17: #LCW2021 - Kick Off
7/18: #RecreateResponsibly
7/19: #RethinkOutside
7/20: #AdvocacyAfuera
7/21: #ConservationCultura
7/22: #ComunidadYFamilia
7/23: #DiversifyOutdoors
7/24: #YoCuento
7/25: #CelebrateLCW2021

Help us amplify and celebrate comunidad, cultura, and conservation!

Thanks to Joyce of NWACA (Northwest Austin Civic A

Thanks to Joyce of NWACA (Northwest Austin Civic Association) for organizing and leading monthly clean ups/work days at Bull Creek District Park on the third Saturday morning of each month. Anyone can sign up to help through the Give Pulse website. Look for a specific link in our next monthly newsletter.
📷: @jenmramos

We were lucky enough to see this little ribbon sna

We were lucky enough to see this little ribbon snake, a common species of garter snake, while hiking at Upper Bull Creek today! If you see a snake, give it space! They don’t much enjoy encounters with people, so you’ll typically only see them when they don’t hear you first.

We had a few hours’ break from the rain to enjoy

We had a few hours’ break from the rain to enjoy this waterfall! Along the way we picked up two big bags of trash so y’all could enjoy the landscape without smelling old beer and tripping on wet socks.

The sun is out and the water is flowing again at B

The sun is out and the water is flowing again at Bull Creek! This Memorial Day weekend, please recreate responsibly and pack out your litter. Anything that ends up in the creek quickly makes its way into the lake. And while we might find this space relaxing, we are sharing it with loads of other inhabitants who call it their home.

Bull Creek made the cover of Community Impact Maga

If you visit Alter’d State (in the Domain) any M

If you visit Alter’d State (in the Domain) any Monday through July 5, 2021, know that 10% of your net purchase proceeds will be donated to Bull Creek Foundation! We are honored that they chose to partner with us this season!

The cedar (juniper) limbs have been cleared from t

The cedar (juniper) limbs have been cleared from the main trail at Upper Bull Creek making it passable again. Maybe now those pesky social trails that appeared as a work-around will begin to show regrowth.

Here’s your seasonal reminder that poison ivy is

Here’s your seasonal reminder that poison ivy is THRIVING! We’ve put together this handy visual to demonstrate the simplest way to identify that pervasive plant that is troublesome to so many. Sometimes reciting “leaves of three” is not enough.

Leaning into the weekend like...

Leaning into the weekend like...

Dragonfly spotted along the Greenbelt yesterday. W

Dragonfly spotted along the Greenbelt yesterday. What would you say this is? A wandering glider? Wandering gliders show up on every continent except Europe and Antarctica. They don’t appear to follow specific migratory routes, but instead fly with the wind for food and favorable climes.

Smells like spring! These are wild onions. It's a

Smells like spring! These are wild onions. It's a perfect time to find these tiny delicacies. And like their cultivated cousins, all parts of the plant can be eaten. But always be sure they smell like onions before consuming since there are poisonous look-alikes such as the rain lily and crow poison (which just smell like grass).

Today, while hiking, we spotted a male, Texas spin

Today, while hiking, we spotted a male, Texas spiny lizard along the greenbelt! The underside is usually uniformly light grey in color, but males typically have blue patches on either side of the belly. Do you see it?

We asked the internet, “Does moss survive freezi

We asked the internet, “Does moss survive freezing temperatures?” And we got answers!

“As long as the surface is moist and exposed, moss photosynthesizes all year.”

“In winter, the plants absorb bright filtered light below bare tree limbs. They even photosynthesize under snow. Moss doesn't mind moving to frozen or semi-frozen surfaces as long as the surface is rough.”

Just over a year ago, at what was likely our last

Just over a year ago, at what was likely our last “normal” @generationserve cleanup event, a family had stepped just off the trail only to discover what appeared to be a 40+ year-old litter dumping site. They collected bags of bottles and cans that had a “vintage” appearance. Today we returned and managed to dig up more than two additional bags of the same - all cans and glass bottles among other odd items.

What was this area like in the 1970s and early ‘80s? It appears it served as a popular place to recreate near a swimming hole, and unfortunately, people were careless with their trash, much like today.

Let’s show we can be better than that in 2021.

Please be cautious on the trail at Upper Bull Cree

Please be cautious on the trail at Upper Bull Creek (Old Spicewood Springs Road). There are multiple downed cedar limbs and an entire tree just beyond the waterfall. Some block the trail and others hang over the trail. We have notified the City, but they’re pretty busy right now getting caught up. There appear to be safe routes around them.

Tree down at Link Falls! This is one notable chang

Tree down at Link Falls! This is one notable change to the landscape over the past few weeks, likely due to the recent winter storms. We expect these to remain in place since they do not interfere with designated trails, and should naturally decompose.

Interesting fact: Dead trees left to decompose naturally, or “snags,” and logs, provide habitats, food sources, and cover (a hiding place) for thousands of animal species. Wildlife uses nearly every part of a dead tree in every stage of its decay.

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