Redbud Valley Nature Preserve

A work errand brought me to Northeast Tulsa last week, and used it as an excuse to visit the Redbud Valley Nature Preserve in Catoosa. A stopped train just South of the preserve sent me on a long detour through narrow winding roads more reminiscent of West Virginia than the greater Tulsa area. I finally arrived at the parking area with about 45 minutes until closing time.

I can't believe it took me four years to get there. The place is a little gem, snuggled between a local creek and some bluffs. I followed the trail that skirts the limestone bluffs, sometimes passing underneath sizable overhangs. There are even a few caves, but they have the deeper ones blocked off with bars. I hope to return for a longer visit soon.

Pics taken with my Canon S100.

Exploring the Arkansas shoreline

On Wednesday I ran South along Riverside again, this time leaving the trail under the I-44 bridge. There is a huge sandbar South of the bridge that has great views of Turkey Mountain, and lots of cool flotsam strewn about, so I thought I would follow the shoreline as far South as it would let me.

Disciplined runners would not do this. Running through brush and on sand is not conducive to keeping a good pace. In fact, it was a very soft sand, so I walked the whole thing.

And that's OK. These days I'm running for the love outdoors and the adventure of exploring places both new and familiar. Pace is a low priority.

I followed the bar for a few hundred yards until brush made the way impassible, cut across the dune and came back to the Riverside trail just North of where I explored on the previous day. 

A cool little no man's land this is, between the bank and the river. I can't wait to go back and explore the treasures that have washed up over the years. Here are some shots of Turkey that I took with my I-phone:

Down in the ditch

This morning I ran South along Riverside to the outdoor gym around 53rd street. On a whim, I scrambled down the steep bank to a ditch that runs parallel to the river. It runs between the bank and a large scrub covered dune, collecting water from concrete pipes that drain the neighborhoods just East of Riverside. The place is quite beautiful if you ignore all the trash that has been deposited from the heavy rains. Riverside is just a few hundred feet away, but this place feels remote.

Here is an example of one of the flood control outlets.



The bank has slowly eroded around this structure so they've had to reinforce it with some pilings. The pilings themselves are decaying, so this may be gone in the next flood.

If you follow the ditch South, a nice view of Turkey opens up. I'd like to come back here with my DSLR sometime.