While visiting Blunn Creek this month I noticed the departure of winter and the beginnings of spring. Budding leaves, green sprouts, and a few flowers are cropping out of the soil. These changes are so far small and minor details compared to the overall landscape, which is still characterized by brown, dry grass and barren trees. As expected, I didn’t see very many people, especially when the weather turned cold. I usually love going out and spending alone time doing my nature blogs because it distracts me from the craziness of the city, but my last few visits have been so cold that I am not getting much out of the visits other than a running nose. During this time touches of spring were barely visible, if at all. Two of my visits this month were during gorgeous days. On these days I really never wanted to leave. Blunn Creek was so quiet and the life around me seemed to be non-existent other than the occasional car passing by or bird chirping. Blunn Creek trail is mostly covered with cacti, which I love because of their connection to Texas and to the southwest US in general. I see a lot of cacti in Austin, both in Blunn Creek and around the city, and in both places they are reminiscent of many road trips I’ve taken and trips I’ve been on since moving to Texas.
This month I also spent some more time on the hillside viewpoint where I could see the cityscape at all times of the day. I made sure to visit once in the morning, once in the evening, and two times in the afternoon, in order to experience the fullness of Blunn Creek and it’s beauty. Without a doubt, watching the sunset on the hilltop was my favorite visit, for obvious reasons. It was a beautiful, clear night, good weather, and made for an inspiring evening of research.
“These are the men charged with the duty of examining the construction of the plants, animals, and soils, which are the instruments of the great orchestra. These men are called professors. Each selects one instrument and spends his life taking it apart and describing its strings and sounding board. This process of dismemberment is called research.” (A Sand County Almanac 153).
After spending time at Blunn Creek, I live so close I usually take a few notes to remember my visit. During this month a few major points that stood out were the dying trees, the extremely muddy trails, the increase in weeds, and a staggering amount of dead tall grass. Because the weather has been so sporadic not much life has been able to survive at Blunn Creek. I know in the next few months the amount of life with rise and I hope that my blogs will get a bit more exciting! For now Blunn Creek seems rather untouched other than the occasional litter or graffiti. I find that Blunn Creek is an ideal spot to really get away from the city for a temporary time. It is remote enough to feel apart but close to still be right here in the city.