It’s My Park Day at Circle C

FALL 2025

It's My Park Day is Austin Parks Foundation's biannual, community-led day of service. Volunteers work to improve parks and green spaces around Austin and build community through projects like litter cleanup, tree mulching, invasive species management and more. 

For more than 20 years, It’s My Park Day has brought volunteers from across Austin together to improve their local parks and build community. All projects are led by community members to encourage neighbors to come out, lend a hand and connect with fellow park lovers from all walks of life. This is a day many look forward to all year as we celebrate the people and parks that make Austin special!

  • We are meeting at the Violet Crown Trailhead in the cul-de-sac at the east end of La Crosse Avenue. There is plenty of parking along La Crosse.

    Please be ready to rock at 9AM!

  • Please wear comfortable, closed-toe shoes as we will be getting a lot of hiking in, and bring plenty of water. Long pants and sleeves are recommended. We will provide eye protection and gloves.

  • We have enough folks who know their way around the trails and can guide those who do not! Our goal is to split up into teams and focus on three main zones within the park where trash is heaviest: the sidewalk between Bowie HS and the Veloway, MoPac underpass, and Escarpment underpass.

    • Bag the garbage and place it at the side of the Violet Crown Trail and the gravel trail behind Alamo Drafthouse/ATX Bikes west of MoPac.

    • Once we finish these zones, we can continue hiking the trails and Slaughter Creek itself, removing as much garbage as we can find.

    • PLEASE ONLY PLACE FILLED BAGS ALONGSIDE THE GRAVEL TRAIL. We are going to collect these bags using our utility vehicle.

    • Assuming we get all the trash collection completed, we can move to pruning dead juniper branches called “punji sticks”. We will provide some instruction at the start of the workday regarding this.

  • Since we are going to be working a fairly large area this google map should help. Please note the path in RED is the gravel trail. You may place filled garbage bags anywhere along the red corridor for collection.

  • Austin Parks Foundation has partnered with local businesses to provide a way to say “thank you” for your help! You can find the full list of give backs here.

Pruning Guide

If time permits (or you need to access trash) we are going to do some trimming of dead branches. Over time they may become broken and sharp and point ominously towards trail users. We call these “punji” sticks” and they are dangerous to both riders and hikers. They also limit your sightline of the trail ahead and cleaning them up makes everything look a bit better. There are two infographics below to show how to make your cut.

  • For the purpose of this IMPD event we have permission to cut only dead branches on ashe juniper trees.

  • It is important to make your cut past the “branch collar” and do not cut any branches over 3” diameter.

  • Please pull these cuttings at minimum 8’ away from the trail and stack them in low piles that do not exceed 4’ in height.

We will not be removing brush from the park; in fact, brush piles create a nice “rest stop” for wildlife as they scurry about the park gathering food and seeking shelter from predators.