For my second nature blog I decided to travel back to Blunn creek, the site of my first nature blog. I went on a Thursday afternoon right around sunset. The weather was gorgeous and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. There were an especially abundant number of birds flying around, more than usual in my opinion. The temperature was exactly 75 degrees, perfect weather for a nice day out in nature. I spent my hour exploring a different path than I had previously traveled last time. I went into the park from a different entry and immediately noticed that many of the trees had been cut down to create a scenic entry way into the park. Many of these trees were still lying on the ground next to the entry. Some had even been turned into mulch which I assume was going to be used to create the pathway down to the creek. I also noticed that there were a couple plants that were non native that had been planted at the entry in place of where the forest used to be. I took a picture of one of these plants that I found to be particularly interesting and felt as though it did not belong with the others. After noticing all of this disturbed nature due to man, I continued down the path towards the first creek bed. Like Aldo Leopold’s description of a river in his book A Sand County Almanac the river bed “still remains, in a few spots hardly changed since Paul Bunyan’s day; and one can still hear it singing in the wilderness”(Leopold, 122). The perfectly eroded rock that lined the water signified that this creek bed had been here for some time. The banks of the creek looked as though they had been eroded for countless years due to the perfectly carved edges within the rock. Much like Leopold’s description the creek could be heard singing through the wilderness. It had a mini waterfall that had been created due to some foliage that had fallen into the water, and could be heard from a little ways up the path. The sound of the water was extremely calming. I also noticed the countless different forms of vegetation growing both around and within the water. I found the moss and weeds within the water to be especially interesting. One weed growing within the water was an almost red color and looked entirely different than anything I have seen growing in the water before. After analyzing the first creek I realized that there was another creek adjacent to the one I had been inspecting. Here there was not as much water as the first creek but you could see through the water more clearly. The water was almost completely clear and looked almost clean enough to drink. Just like the first creek bed the second was surrounded by gorgeous eroded rock that lined both sides of it. Both creek looked as though they kept going for some time even deeper into the preserve. After analyzing both creek beds I continued down the path way a little bit further and noticed a giant tree, ten times bigger than any of the other trees in the preserve. Its branches extended so far around the preserve creating a canopy overhead. It was sad to see that on one side of the tree someone had graffitied some lettering on it. To have such a beautiful tree ruined by such a reckless and disgusting marking truly upset me. Still even with its blemish the tree was awe inspiring. Finally on my way out of the preserve I noticed a sign warning about possible coyotes that inhabited the preserve. I was shocked to realize that such wild creatures could be living in such close proximity both to St. Edward’s and interstate I-35. Overall, my second adventure to Blunn Creek was even better than the first. I got to experience a whole other side to the park that I had never seen before and also got to witness a beautiful sunset. I would definitely suggest visiting the left side of the preserve to any nature enthusiast.
Someone had cut down a bunch of the forest right when you come into the preserve, some of it was turned into wood chips.
This giant tree towered over all the other ones in the preserve, someone had put a graffiti tag on it though.
Had a strange redish hue.
Water was flowing down the stream here at a very fast pace.
This cactus like plant was different than all the other natural foliage, looked as though it had been purposefully planted.
I did not know that coyotes lived so close to campus and so far into the city, its hard to imagine with a freeway so close to the preserve.
